Tiger Woods: Why Winning at Bay Hill Will Take Him to the Masters' Title

It took 924 days for Tiger Woods to win a PGA Tour title again. The victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational will give Tiger enough confidence and momentum to grab his fifth green jacket at the Masters Tournament.

Eldrick put an end to a 132-week winless drought on the PGA last weekend. Moreover, he shut some rumors and sayings, like the media and fans’ suggestions.

Until last week, when he withdrew from the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship, there were a lot of doubts about his health status. Woods’s left the tournament after tightness in his Achilles tendon.

It wasn't a good sign; the media even suggested that he might miss the Masters for the first time in his 16-year professional career. Surprisingly, Wood’s pulled a rabbit out of his hat and came back six days later in style.

It is the wisest decision he’s made health-wise. In past years, Tiger played injured all along. Do you remember the 2008 U.S. Open? The man could barely walk, but kept grinding, and lifted his third title in that major championship; in turn, he missed the rest of the season.

Last week, at the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship, he decided not to compromise his physical state and he saw the result of his wise judgment.

Woods’ return means a lot of things; for starters, he went back to the Official World Golf Rankings top 10 since May 2011, when he was dropped out of it for the first time in 14 years.

He went from the 18th place to the sixth as a result of his victory. To claim the top spot back he needs to outcast Luke Donald, Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Steve Stricker.

The feat wont’ be easy, but with the Masters on sight, the former world No.1 can make it happen.

Augusta is a place where Woods has had some of his finest performances and displayed his A-game on a regular basis. Along with the PGA Championship, it is the major tournament he has won multiple times, with four.

It’s also a course that suits his game. In 1997, he won his first green jacket by a record margin of 12 strokes, with record score of 18-under. Four years later he captured it again to claim the Tiger Slam—he held all the major titles at the same time.

His 2002 triumph set him as the third golfer to win back-to-back Masters Tournaments; the other two who had accomplished the feat were Nick Faldo and Jack Nicklaus.

But the greatest Masters title came in 2005. Woods lost the top spot of the Official World Golf Rankings to Vijay Singh, for the first time, in September 2004. After six months, Tiger claimed it back by winning at Augusta.

It’s been three years since Woods’ won his last major championship, and despite the entire buzz surrounding him since 2009, when he cheated on his wife, the best results have always come at the Masters.

After 2005—his last victory there—he has posted six consecutive top-10 finishes, including two runner-ups, surprisingly, he hadn't even won once before the Masters.

Now, Tiger has taken all the pressure off of himself. The first step toward getting here was the Chevron World Challenge. Despite not being a full-field official event, Woods' confidence soared.

After the Chevron, his worst result was a tie for 17th at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship held in February.

Woods also made quite an impression at the Honda Classic, where he finished second to Rory McIlroy. Tiger’s fourth round was a true lesson of putting, he sank two eagles and four birdies for a bogey-free 62.

There’s only one thing that could come between him and the green jacket—himself. Winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational proved that he isn't done yet. Different from previous events, this time, Eldrick defeated a stellar field with a prominent game.

He left the Hank Haney discussion aside, he didn’t lose the lead and his health seemed to be better than ever. To put it in simple words: he found the winning formula, which he had misplaced almost two years ago.

Tiger has run out of excuses, he has proven to be getting back to where he belongs. He’s still far from being the player he was three years ago, but he’s close and a victory at the Masters can be the icing on the cake.

Fans and media will be delighted to see him back in Augusta, playing the best golf he has put together in the last 108 official PGA tournaments, but moreover, it will do a lot of good to the sport.

Even in his darkest hour, Woods was always the news-maker. Now with his mind set on the Masters title and “looking forward to the momentum I've built up here”, as he said last Sunday, expect high TV ratings, lots of high hopes and most importantly, Tiger's 15th major championship title.