Tiger Woods comes up agonizingly short in his best performance in years
Tiger Woods didn’t win this weekend’s Valspar Invitational in Palm Harbor, Florida, but he certainly made millions of golf fans believe it’s only a matter of time before he wins again.
Woods, playing in only his fourth event of the season, came within a shot of tournament winner Paul Casey on Sunday. And as impressive as that finish is, even more promising is the fact Woods appears to be improving each tournament he plays.
After opening with a birdie on the first hole, Woods made par on 14 of his next 15 holes, including a stretch of 12 straight.
Woods finally gave the crowd something to get fired up about when he nailed a 44-foot putt for birdie on 17, moving him to within a shot of the lead.
TIGER WOODS!!!!!
1. Shot. Back. #QuickHits pic.twitter.com/EzmFJvu0sN
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 11, 2018
But any chance he had at forcing a playoff ended at 18, when another long birdie putt came up a few feet short. He finished his round with a 1-under par 70.
What a ride.
Tiger Woods finishes 1 short of forcing a playoff.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/70hs4VSaBE
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 11, 2018
Woods finished the tournament at 9-under par, tied for second with Patrick Reed. He played all four rounds in the tournament — an event he had never played in during his career — at least 1-under par or better.
This was the first time Woods had a top five finish on Tour in 1,659 days.
Casey, meanwhile, opened with four birdies on his first seven holes. He shot a 6-under par 65 in his final round, tying Sergio Garcia for the low round of the day. Casey finished at 10-under par for the tournament more than an hour before Woods and the final groups were finished.
Shine on, @Paul_Casey! 🏆😄
The 2018 @ValsparChamp winner. pic.twitter.com/nZ4EKhTbO5
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 11, 2018
Casey needed just 21 putts in his final round, the fewest putts he’s ever recorded in a PGA Tour event. His only other victory on the Tour was at the 2009 Shell Houston Open.
As for Woods, who had struggled to hit greens in regulation early in the season, the problem Sunday wasn’t hitting the greens but getting in a position for birdie. He was seemingly always trying to navigate 25- and 30-footers for birdie all day.
After his round, Woods admitted his irons were his weakness in the final round.
“I didn’t feel that sharp with my iron game,” Woods told NBC’s Steve Sands. “I played very conservatively into the greens because I wasn’t as sharp as I was yesterday.”
But the excitement of watching Woods compete down the stretch in search of his 80th PGA Tour win had Twitter users pumped about what the future might hold for Woods.
https://twitter.com/DylansFreshTake/status/972953712435097606
🗓 Had major back surgery 323 days ago.
😍 Re-captured the attention of the golfing world.
⛳️ Finishes tied for second at the Valspar Championship.
👏 Four days of pure entertainment from Tiger Woods.🐯 He's back!
— bet365 (@bet365) March 11, 2018
Woods will tee it up Thursday in the opening round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, Florida. It’s an event Woods has won eight times, including four consecutive years from 2000 to 2003.
It may end up being Woods’ final event before the Masters, which begins April 5. It’s worth noting that Woods was a 60:1 favorite to win the Masters when the year began. Sunday, those odds have come down to 10:1.
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