Tiger Woods claimed his first victory of the year at the Farmer Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. Woods has won at this course eight times, a PGA record. He even won the 2008 U.S. Open Championship at this course in an epic battle with veteran Rocco Mediate in an 18-hole playoff.
Woods, essentially, won the tournament on one leg. Woods has had severe ligament damage in the knee joint and was suffering from a stress-fracture.
Does this win signify that Tiger Woods is back? I think not. This win basically occurred on Woods' home course. This public golf course also does not feature much rough, so Woods was able to take advantage of the par-5’s (-12), and drive the ball all over the lot without being heavily penalized.
We will have to wait to see how Tiger performs at the majors. I think it will be very difficult to break Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major championships.
Woods currently has won 14 majors, and at this point of his career, I cannot fathom him winning a British Open or a U.S. Open due to the inconsistency with his driver. The Masters and the PGA Championship would be his best shots at winning a major, but Woods hasn’t won at Augusta since 2005.
Could it be possible that Woods was using performance-enhancing drugs during his early career? The PGA Tour began drug testing in July 2008, and Woods has not won a Major since that time. Some speculate the fallout between him and his wife Elin Nordegren led to his demise.
Nevertheless Tiger’s Butch Harmon golf swing produced enormous swing speed, torque and power, but it caused a massive amount of physical stress on Tiger’s frame. Is it possible that Tiger used PEDs to recover from injury and dominate the game of golf in historic fashion?
He, allegedly, has been linked to Dr. Anthony Galea. Galea is a Canadian Sports Medicine doctor who has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Royal Canadian Mounted police for allegedly providing illegal drugs to athletes and smuggling illegal drugs into the U.S.
He did not face charges, but he allegedly is not allowed to come to the United States unless given permission by the U.S Department of Homeland Security.
Woods is currently ranked No. 2 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
