In just his third PGA Tour start of the year,
Tiger Woods proved he is ready to play with the big boys. Finishing in 12th place at the Honda Classic on Sunday, the 14-time major winner’s best result since 2015.
While he might have finished eight-shots behind the co-leaders, Woods was more than pleased with his performance and he wasn’t the only one impressed with how his game is progressing.
“I feel like I’ve really hit the ball well,” Woods told reporters on Sunday. “I missed the golf ball in the correct spots and I had control of my ball. That’s something I’m very proud of. Each and every time I’ve come out to tournaments, I’m getting the feel of the round faster.”
“I’m amazed at how well Tiger’s playing,” Jack Nicklaus told CBS on Sunday. “I think it’s fantastic. He’s swung very well. He’s playing very well. It’s fantastic.”
With his impressive finish at PGA National, Woods jumped 49 spots in the FedEx Cup standings, moving into 130th position and 155 spots in the world rankings. Now ranked 389th in the world, it is the former number one’s highest standing since November 2015.
The 42-year-old’s focus is now firmly set on preparing his game for Augusta in April. Continuing to play and improve each week until it is time to take on The Masters.
“I need to keep playing tournament golf and I need to keep building my body, keep building towards April,” said Woods. “That was the goal when I first came back, to try and get everything situated for April, and I feel like I’m right on track for that.”
“I didn’t really know what to expect for the year. I had to make some pretty big changes in my swing and my feels. That’s something that is a reality, my new reality; my back’s fused and I can’t create the same shots I used to be able to create. I can hit the same shots but I just have to do it in a different way.”
Whatever way he’s doing it, it seems to be working –
