“The Tiger,” one of the strongest and most ferocious animals in the wild and in the world of golf. Tiger Woods is easily one of the most recognizable names of this decade and for good reason.
He has accomplished things that were not thought to be possible at his age and physical state.
In 2014, it seemed that Tiger was headed downhill for good. It all began with back spasms and slowly deteriorated from there. That same year he announced that he would be missing the masters due to receiving a microdiscectomy to relieve a pinched nerve in his back.
After a mediocre season in 2015 and to the dismay of his fans, Tiger went back and had another microdiscectomy with the hope of returning in early 2016.
His situation only seemed to get worse as he later received a follow-up surgery for the pinched nerve only to fall victim to back spasms that would remove him from play in 2017.
A little over a year ago, Tiger was cleared to begin chipping golf balls again. This was a major personal victory for him after not being able to rotate for several months.
As he slowly returned to the game that he once dominated, he was bombarded by the media. He played very little and not very impressively which should be expected considering his past surgeries and medical issues. Even considering this, he was shown no mercy.
The top news was that Tiger was out for the count and that he would never come even close to where he once was.
I can only imagine the emotional havoc that Tiger was dealing with personally. To have gone from 79 PGA wins and being as consistent and calm as a robot to barely being able to swing a club must have been emotionally traumatizing.
In the midst of all of this, Tiger stayed optimistic and hoped for the ability to tee off again.
Back in his prime he was nearly unstoppable, and yet there was always a debate about whether he or Phil Mickelson should be considered the best on the PGA. Fifteen years ago, the majority would have most likely taken the side of Mickelson.
However, today things are drastically different. Middle-aged golfers and individuals young and old alike were all on Tiger’s 2018 comeback train. He was on the track to perform one of the most impressive comebacks in sports history.
Although Tiger fell a few strokes short at the 2018 PGA championship, this takes no credit away from his achievement. Going from not being able to swing a club a little more than a year ago to competing at the highest level of the sport is nothing to be scoffed at.
Tiger understands the effect that this will have on his legacy and he is hungry for a win. After five years of falling short of the podium and recently coming so close, he is bound to claim his spot on the throne in the near future.
After being told that he was done for good by doctors, the media and people everywhere here he is as strong and ferocious as ever. Tiger is biting at the heels of his competition and fighting for a win with multiple generations of Americans supporting him.
Grace Chaves