Tiger Woods: ‘I’m not that far off from winning golf tournaments’

He’s said it before but this time people were sitting up and taking notice.

This time, as Tiger Woods charged up the leaderboard at the Players Championship, a long overdue 80th PGA Tour victory really did look within reach.

The 14-time major champion hit eight birdies in his first 12 holes Saturday, carding his best ever score at TPC Sawgrass and briefly flirting with the lead.

He maintained that form in the final round, showing flashes of the man that won the Players in 2001 and 2013, coming within four shots of leader Webb Simpson.

But as the clamor grew in the galleries and the golf world drew breath, it wasn’t to be.

“I played so well this weekend; unfortunately, I just didn’t cash in,” said Woods, who finished tied for 11th, seven shots behind eventual winner Simpson.

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Updated 8:11 AM EDT, Mon May 14, 2018

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“There’s no way I would have predicted I would be at this point at the beginning of the year. But now I feel like I’ve got my playing feels back and I’m playing tournament golf.

“I’m not that far off from winning golf tournaments.”

Jordan Spieth, his playing partner Sunday, said: “He’ll win sometime soon enough. He’s certainly playing well enough to do so.”

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Simpson’s revival

That the headlines will focus on a man who ended up outside the top 10 underlines the fact Woods remains golf’s biggest draw.

Look beyond the grand narrative, though, and Simpson was completing a career resurrection of his own.

Webb Simpson celebrates with his wife Dowd after winning the Players Championship.

It’s been six years since the 32-year-old’s crowning achievement, the 2012 US Open title, and five since the last of his four previous PGA Tour wins.

The American has had to reinvent himself in the wake of the 2016 ban on anchor putting, forsaking the style he’d honed all his life and plummeting down the rankings as a result.

He’s also endured personal tragedy, recently losing his father and best friend Sam aged 74 following a battle with Parkinson’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia.

“It’s been a long time. We did it,” said an emotional Simpson after his first Tour win in 108 starts. “It’s hard to put into words what this week has been like.

“I thought before [my father] passed that maybe the golf course would be the hardest place to be … but I think it’s my favorite place to be. That was where we had most of our memories.”

Simpson’s overall score of 18 under was the lowest at the Players Championship since 2003, and his six consecutive birdies on Friday equaled a tournament record.

Precision was the key to his Mother’s Day victory, having been last in the field for driving distance but first for driving accuracy.

Simpson has adapted his putting style in the aftermath of the ban and uses a longer than normal putter with the shaft running up his left forearm as he addresses the ball.

Former Masters champion Adam Scott, who was also affected by the ban, joked: “I hope he doesn’t putt to well with that thing up his arm or they’ll ban that, too.”

Tiger Woods clinched his fifth Masters and 15th major title with victory at Augusta in April.

The former world No. 1 had not won the Masters since 2005, and it was his first major win since 2008.

A month after winning the Masters, Woods received the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, from President Donald Trump.

Woods won the season-ending Tour Championship in September 2018. It was his first title in five years following a succession of back injuries.

Signs that Woods was back to his best were obvious at August's PGA Championship, where he finished runner-up to Brooks Koepka. It followed an impressive showing at July's British Open, where he briefly topped the leaderboard.

Woods made an impressive return to competitive golf in 2018 after multiple back surgeries in recent years. He played his first Masters in three years in April 2018.

The four-time champion had back fusion surgery -- his fourth procedure -- in April 2017 and returned to the game pain-free in December. He finished tied 32nd at Augusta.

Woods was touted as one of the favorites after impressing in his early-season events. He also set tongues wagging by playing a practice round with old rival Phil Mickelson, right.

Woods finished tied second at the Valspar Championship in March 2018 and followed it up with a tie for fifth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. The hype needle moved into overdrive.

Woods set out on his legendary path by becoming the youngest winner of the Masters -- at 21 -- with a record 12-shot win in 1997.

One of his most remarkable feats was winning his first US Open by an unprecedented 15 shots at Pebble Beach, California, in 2000, sparking a streak never seen before or since.

Woods' victory in the 2001 Masters meant he held all four of golf's major titles at the same time, dubbed the "Tiger Slam."

Woods' win rate, his dedication to fitness training and his desire to succeed were changing golf. Prize money rocketed because of Woods. Off the course, he married girlfriend Elin Nordegren in 2004.

Woods showed rare emotion when he broke down in tears on the shoulder of caddie Steve Williams following his win in the 2006 British Open at Hoylake, months after his father and mentor Earl passed away.

Despite being visibly hampered and in pain from a knee injury, Woods won the US Open in breathtaking fashion at Torrey Pines, California, in 2008. It was his 14th major title to leave him only four behind the record of Jack Nicklaus. He was later diagnosed with knee ligament damage and two fractures of his left tibia. He missed the rest of the season after surgery. It is still his last major title.

In December 2009, Woods crashed his car into a fire hydrant outside his home. As the big picture emerged it was discovered Woods had been conducting a series of extra martial affairs. He took three months away from the game to sort out his private life.

In February 2010 Woods addressed the world's media to explain and apologise for his actions. His infidelity led to divorce and was the beginning of a downhill slide in Woods' playing career. By October he lost the world No. 1 ranking, a position he had held for 281 consecutive weeks

Back in the fold, Woods earned his first win in two years at the Chevron World Challenge in December 2011, a charity tournament he hosts that does not count on the PGA Tour money list.

Woods was back in the winner's circle in 2013, lifting five titles, including the Arnold Palmer Invitational, to get back to the top of the rankings.

In March 2013, Woods and Lindsey Vonn announced they were dating on Facebook. In January that year, the champion skier had finalized her divorce from Thomas Vonn, after initializing proceedings in 2011. In May 2015, Woods and Vonn announced their breakup, with the golfer claiming he "hadn't slept" in the days following.

Later in 2013 there were signs all was not well as Woods was seen to be in pain as he picked the ball out of the hole at the Barclays tournament in August. He missed the Masters the following April for the first time since 1994 to undergo back surgery.

Woods pulled out of the Farmers Insurance Open in February 2015, and struggled with injury and form for the rest of the season.

Woods cut a dejected figure at that year's US Open as he struggled with his game and carded rounds of 80 and 76 to miss the cut.

In August 2015 Woods made his last appearance for 15 months to undergo follow-up back surgeries. At one stage during his rehabilitation, Woods spoke of there being "no light at the end of the tunnel" -- and with one eye on his fading career, he suggested "everything beyond this will be gravy."

Woods made a much-anticipated return to golf in December 2016, showing signs of promise with the highest number of birdies in the field -- 24 -- but he also made a number of costly errors to finish third from last in the 18-man event.

He missed the cut in his first event of 2017 in the US and pulled out after the first round of the Dubai Desert Classic in February, citing back spasms. He underwent a fourth back prodecure in April.

The golf legend was arrested Monday, May 29, on suspicion of driving under the influence. He was booked into a local jail in Florida and released a few hours later. He said in a statement he had "an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications."

In August Woods entered a first-offender program and pleaded guilty to reckless driving on October 28. He will avoid jail unless he commits major violations of his probation.

Woods returned to golf after 301 days at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas on November 30 2017. He carded a three-under first-round 69 and appeared pain-free and hungry to resume his career.

Tiger Woods: From highs to lows

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Also finishing alongside Woods on 11 under was fellow American Justin Thomas, who leapfrogged Dustin Johnson to become world No. 1 for the first time.

Thomas is the 21st player to hold the top spot since the rankings began in 1986, and at 25 the fourth youngest behind Woods, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy.

“I want to have it for a really long time,” he told reporters.

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Americans now hold all four major championship titles, as well as the unofficial fifth major, The Players.

The last time US golf held such sway? The ‘Tiger Slam’ of 2000-01, when Woods won all five of those events in a row.