I usually don’t waste my breath talking about golf, but I did yesterday.
There’s only one reason for it – Tiger Woods.
A friend and I talked for a few minutes about one of the greatest golfers of all time, who has won 14 major championships.
As the conversation went back and forth, he said, “I like Tiger more than I like golf.”
This view is shared by numerous other golf enthusiasts across the country. When Woods is on top of his game, he makes golf a viable sport. People actually watch.
Everyone agrees that Woods’ win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational is a positive sign for the golf world. Everyone loves a juggernaut.
It’s not a coincidence dominant teams in the 1990s like the Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bulls and New York Yankees marked the height of popularity for their respective sports as well.
Woods will win the Masters and continue his campaign for major No. 19, one more than Jack Nicklaus’ 18. He hasn’t won a Masters tournament since 2005, but he’s due.
Winning the Masters is the only way for golf to regain any of the popularity it possessed when Woods was winning tournaments left and right.
After Woods took down Rocco Mediate with one good knee in an 18-hole playoff to win his 14th major in 2008, he was on top of the world. He won six major championships from 2005 to 2008.
At that point, Woods couldn’t be stopped.
Then everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Woods. In the span of a year, he lost his wife, his game and numerous lucrative endorsement deals.
Woods hit the worst slump of his career. Injuries from the car accident and a nasty divorce left Woods out of sorts and off the golf course for most of 2009.
The 749 days between Woods’ win at Bay Hill and his last tournament victory saw unknowns Martin Kaymer, Darren Clarke and last year’s Masters’ winner Charl Schwartzel all win major championships.
Golf fans in the United States don’t want to see players from foreign countries come in and dominate majors, especially a national pastime like the Masters. They want to see their best American golfer, Woods, dominate the sport like he did only a few years ago.
Even the golfers playing against him say Woods getting back to his winning ways raises the competition within the sport.
No matter the sport, it’s always good to have someone that leads the pack to cause the other competitors to raise their game. Woods is more than happy to wear a bullseye on his back.
After hearing his former allies, caddy Steve Williams and swing coach Hank Haney, betray him publicly, Woods has come out with vengeance on his mind.
Doubters and critics will only fuel his fire.
Woods is on a mission to prove he’s still got a lot of golf left, despite being 36. After all, he’s already ahead of Nicklaus’ major winning pace.
If Woods does manage to win Sunday, he will make sponsors like Gatorade and Tag Heuer, who dropped him after his car accident and high-profile divorce, look like fools.
There’s a reason Woods still made $90.5 million in 2010 despite not winning a tournament. He’s one of the most identifiable athletes in the world.
Not only would a win at the Masters be a great win for Woods’ comeback story, it will create a buzz around golf for the first time in a while.
Golf will once again become a sport with a legitimate superstar.
 
Micah Bedard is a 21-year-old mass communication senior from Houma. Follow him on Twitter @DardDog.
 
____
Contact Micah Bedard at [email protected]