Tiger Woods Shouldn't Be Content with 2012 Memorial Championship Victory

Tiger Woods failed to enhance his legacy.

On Sunday, Woods won the 2012 Memorial Championship, which marked just his second PGA tournament victory since 2009. While the triumph is valuable in terms of solidifying his once vanishing confidence, at this point in his career, only majors affect Tiger’s legacy.

After the win, NBC Sports tweeted this fun fact surrounding the outcome’s supposed historical significance.

"

Tiger Woods wins the Memorial, tying Jack Nicklaus for 2nd all-time with 73 PGA Tour victories. golfchannel.com/news/golftalkc… #golfchannel

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) June 3, 2012"

Tiger birdied three out of the last four holes on Sunday to win the tourney. His shot on 16 was the most impressive of the trio. According to ESPN, Jack Nicklaus raved about it and said:

“The most unbelievable, gutsy shot I've ever seen. Look at the position he was in. If he's short, the tournament is over. If he's long, the tournament is over. He puts it in the hole.”

Pre-scandal Tiger’s reputation was that of a competitive force of nature with a legendary killer instinct and a clutch gene superior to that of every other athlete on the planet. A competitor with such a prestigious status will only retire satisfied if he or she earns the label the greatest of all-time. Tiger wasn’t only on pace to do that in golf, but in sports history, period.

But, he has since fallen off that pace. And in order to once again lay claim to that title, Woods must win more than your average reputable PGA tournament.

In terms of taking a stranglehold of the label "greatest golfer ever," fans aren’t going to look back and claim that Tiger is better than Jack Nicklaus because he has more PGA Tour victories. Sure, the accomplishment looks attractive on the resume, but majors will ultimately decide the great debate.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

Follow @TheRealDDaniels.