Tiger Woods Makes Fantastic Comeback Against Sean O'Hair

Sunday afternoon, when none of your favorite teams are playing, why not watch the PGA Tour? Especially now that the "Greatest of All-Time," Tiger Woods, is back out there.

Golf, for some of you that do not realize, is athletic, is entertaining, and is interesting to watch. Of course, these are all even more true when Tiger is prowling the links, and it's Sunday.

I enjoy watching golf, and have since I was 12 (1999) and realized the Masters is played right by my birthday. Now, I love the PGA Tour, especially when Tiger Woods is playing, and on my rommate's 50" HDTV.

HD Golf, and all sports for that matter, is where it's at. If you call yourself a sports fan, watching them in HD makes all the difference in the world. Fans can see minute details, close calls, and know definitively how the play ended, or should have been called.

Indeed, HD is needed, particularly when watching games that are decided by inches.

Today, I tuned into the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, played at Bay Hill Club in Orlando, Florida, and had a great time cheering Tiger on. Even though Woods was down by five strokes to start the day, I knew he had a great chance of winning, a reason I watched the entire round.

Tiger is so special, he's worth watching by himself.

What makes him special is his mental and physical ability working together. He always methodically breaks down every shot. He takes his time deciphering greens, and thinks his shots all the way through. The most exceptional thing about Tiger is that he can come back at any time, even from large margins.

Networks love the ratings he brings, a reason all the commentators hype him up so much. Indeed, there are actually many examples that prove NBC is pulling for Tiger Woods to win.

During coverage today, here are a few things muttered by commentators Dan Hicks, Johnny Miller, and others that show NBC loves Tiger.

Going into commercial breaks, Hicks said, "One of the greatest things on a golf course, a Tiger Sunday Charge," and "Tiger Woods, just one stroke behind." Miller uttered, "Hopefully his (Tiger) ball did not bury, if you're going for him," which the networks do. They even showed a mid-round recap of all of Tiger's best holes, something no other golfer got this week.

Tiger makes ratings go up, the networks make more money on advertising, and everyone is happy.

The round was initially delayed by rain, something that would factor in as the final group finished their tournaments. The final group of the tournament included Zach Johnson and Sean O'Hair, an up-and-coming player who had a mental explosion in the 2007 Players.

They teed off around 3:00 PM EST, and from the start, Johnson and O' Hair knew Woods came to play. At the start of the day, O'Hair led at -7, Tiger was second at -2, but the lead wouldn't last.

In the course of three holes, Tiger closed the lead to two strokes, and on the third hole, he had a great shot.

His second shot came within inches on a bounce, then spun back to five feet of the hole. He lost a stroke with a birdie, and O'Hair gained one with a bogey. It was exciting, as is Woods overall, another reason he gets me to watch.

On the seventh hole, both Johnson and O'Hair hit their shots to 15-20 feet of the hole on the par three. Tiger, though, went last and landed his ball within six feet. He sank the putt, and went to 50/50 putts made from under six feet in this tournament.

Those numbers are remarkable, a reason other golfers don't want to play against Tiger, and are intimidated by him.

O'Hair left his putts short, and then long, and dropped a shot with a bogey. After seven, Tiger was down only one at -4, to O'Hair's -5.

O'Hair gained a stroke on nine, but then lost it on 11, as he bogied. Certainly, the match stayed close all day, another reason it was so entertaining.

On hole 15, O'Hair missed a long put, and Tiger hit his longest one of the tournament. The birdie tied the match at -5 with 16, 17, and 18 remaining, the first, second, and fourth hardest holes of the day.

Hole 16 turned out to be one of the most important of the whole tournament. Tiger started by driving into the right rough, while O'Hair drove into the left fairway. Then, after much deliberation with his caddy, O'Hair approached his shot, only to bounce it into the water.

This was Woods' opportunity, and he seized it, laying up, then hitting the ball within five feet again. Tiger parred, as O'Hair bogied, and Tiger went to 17 up one.

Woods had a horrible drive on 17, in which the ball buried under a lip in a bunker. Even with that, he had a par chance, but missed and scored a bogey. It was the first time in nine holes he didn't have a par or better.

O'Hair parred, and both were tied coming into 18.

As they walked, the sun began to set, and some wondered if they would have enough light to finish.

Both drove well, and got the ball on the green in regulation. O'Hair sat at around 20 feet, and left the putt short, as he had done all day. He parred, finishing at -4.

As the sun set in Florida, Tiger's home state, he lined up his 16-foot birdie put for the win.

He crouched from both sides, and practiced his stroke over and over again. Then, Woods approached the putt, pulled the club back, and stroke it true. As the ball rolled, flash bulbs went off as the ball rolled directly into the cup.

Another emphatic fist pump, win, and heroic comeback for the greatest golfer in the world.

It was a magical win for the magical athlete, Tiger Woods.