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The Shot That Spawned A Million “Tiger’s Back!” Proclamations

You’ve heard people say “Tiger’s back!” before, or at least ask if he’s back. You heard it when he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational back in March. You heard it when he worked himself into contention for a spell at the Masters last year. You’ve probably even heard it after good rounds in no-name tournaments that ultimately went nowhere. It’s a testament to how badly people want Tiger to be back, how much more compelling so many people find golf when he’s in peak form.

And that’s why, thanks to what he did yesterday, you’ll hear so much “Tiger’s back!” talk in the time leading up to the U.S. Open, which takes place in San Francisco next week. It wasn’t just that Tiger won the Memorial yesterday (Jack Nicklaus designed the course) – it was how. He came from behind. He birdied three of the last four holes. He closed to deal – and hit one of his greatest shots ever in the process. Yes, he pumped his fist like the Tiger of old, and yes, the crowd loved it:

Amazing how even one vintage Tiger moment can make his on- and off-course struggles seem like so long ago. Hopefully his play next week doesn’t make this seem like a long time ago, because we’re not immune to the Tiger factor either. He tied Nicklaus in career PGA wins yesterday. We’d still like to see him make a run at those 18 majors, too – and yesterday made it seem possible.