Tiger Woods Will Need Career-Defining Performance to Win Masters Sunday

Tiger Woods will enter the final day of the 2013 Masters as a long shot to win the tournament. But that doesn't mean it's impossible. It just means he has the opportunity to do something he's never done before.

Woods is always the center of attention because of everything he's accomplished in golf since the beginning of his illustrious career. It's not very often that he has a chance to add a new accomplishment to his resume.

As he goes into the final day of the tournament a few shots off the lead, he has the opportunity to earn his first-ever come-from-behind major championship (h/t CBS Sports). The fact that he's won all 14 of his major titles going into Sunday as the leader is a testament to his prior dominance in the sport for his supporters and a sign that he can't step up in the clutch for his detractors.

On Sunday, he has the chance to silence the haters with an improbable come-from-behind win.

Despite the competition ahead of him, the idea that he could come back and win isn't unrealistic. He's overcome plenty of adversity to get to this point. The scorecards may not show it, but he's been playing great golf at Augusta.

Things really started to unravel for Woods on the 15th hole on Friday. While Woods was cruising toward another good round that would put him squarely in contention, he suffered an unfortunate stroke of bad luck when his ball hit the pin and bounced into the water.

From there, Woods made a drop that would later be deemed illegal. While a forced withdrawal was in the cards, he instead received a two-stroke penalty. In essence, he took an eight on the hole despite hitting the pin on his third shot.

The frustration from an unfortunate turn of events like that would have knocked plenty of golfers out of contention completely. Instead, Woods came out on Saturday and shot a 70. It wasn't enough to allow him to make a move up the leaderboard, but it kept him well within striking range.

Most importantly, Woods still feels that he's in the hunt (h/t Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune).

Given all the adversity that he's overcome, Woods' mentality on Sunday will be vital to his chances. If he plays with confidence and avoids any more controversy, he will be an intriguing contender on the tournament's final day.