Golf: Tiger Woods' Win a Major Win for the Sport of Golf as Well

On Sunday March 25th, Tiger Woods did something he hadn't done in 923 days—he won. For the seventh time in his 16-year career, Tiger won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, earning his first PGA Tour win since 2009.

Woods shot a 2-under 70 on Sunday to capture the title, beating second-place finisher Graeme McDowell by five shots. Woods took the world down memory lane and often showed glimpses of the Tiger we grew to love while looking dominant over the rest of the field, finishing the tournament at 13-under par.

Tiger's win couldn't have come at a better time for the sport of golf. With the Masters at Augusta beginning next week, the world has its attention back on Tiger Woods, and thus its attention back to the sport of golf.

The headlines this past weekend, you could say, were a 50-50 split with Tiger's win battling the NCAA Tournament, but if Tiger is in contention for, or better yet, wearing his fifth green jacket come next Sunday, the headlines will be all about Tiger.

According to Michael Hiestand from the USA Today, Tiger propelled NBC's coverage of Bay Hill to a 4.8 overnight ranking, up 129 percent from last year and just about the same to Tiger's win in 2009 when the ratings reached 4.9.

The message is clear—people want to see Tiger and people want to see him at his best, atop the leader boards consistently.

Judging by the ratings, the sport of golf should want to see him succeed too.

Tiger Woods currently has 14 major tournament titles, four shy of tying Jack Nicklaus. However, Tiger is only one shy of Nicklaus' career PGA Tour victories mark with 72 victories.

What seemed like a gimme a few years back turned into highly unlikely over the past few years as we saw Tiger Woods' career and world crumble around him. But this past weekend, like a shot of adrenaline to the heart, Tiger's career is seemingly back on track, and our eyes are glued to it.

What a storyline if Tiger Woods can resurrect his career by winning his first major in over three years and go back full circle to the same place he first captured America's heart by winning his first-ever major in 1997.

A win next week at The Masters, while tying legendary Jack Nicklaus in Augusta, would probably be the biggest victory in Tiger's career, and also the biggest victory for golf.