Tiger Woods' 1st 2 Rounds at 2013 Players Championship Confirm Return to Form

Tiger Woods erased any remaining doubt as to whether he's returned to top form with a second consecutive round of 67 on Friday at The Players Championship.

The No. 1-ranked golfer in the world sits just one stroke off the lead held by a red-hot Sergio Garcia, who won here back in 2008. A Saturday pairing between the two is imminent, and it's something that probably should have happened more often than it historically has.

The intimidation factor Woods once possessed may not be as prevalent these days, but he is already a three-time winner on the PGA Tour this season, and he even tied for fourth at The Masters. All of those venues fostered five of his 14 major titles, and 22 of his 77 career victories.

That is the nitpicking vitriol reserved for Woods' sternest critics. Having said that, it's somewhat of a fair assessment given the unusual, unrealistic expectations that Woods has been constantly saddled with.

A win at TPC Sawgrass in 2001 encompassed one of the most notable moments in Woods' career—the famous "Better Than Most" call, spurned by his mammoth, snaking putt on the daunting par-three 17th.

Otherwise, this week's event has traditionally been unkind to Woods.

It's a different story now. Woods had never even broken 70 in the first round, but he managed to shoot five under on the first and second days. This eagle at the par-five second hole highlighted his brilliant round from Friday (h/t PGA Tour's official Twitter page):

Justin Ray of ESPN documents just how hot Woods has been as of late:

The previous three years at The Players, Woods withdrew twice and wound up in a tie for 40th in 2012. It couldn't be more different this time around.

One of the trademarks of Woods' dominance—which is a good indicator that he truly is "back"—is his consistent capitalization on par-five scoring opportunities. Woods is playing par-fives at a ridiculous eight under-par this week. That's six birdies, one par and the aforementioned eagle.

What's really a great indicator that he's back is his driving accuracy this week. Now that Woods is healthy, he can make the typically athletic move he always does when exploding through impact while still staying in control.

That distance allows him to not need to hit the driver very frequently at the shorter TPC Sawgrass, and as a result, he's found just under 68 percent of fairways through the first 36 holes.

Oh, and Woods entered the week leading the Tour in strokes gained putting, is continuing to roll it well, and hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation. His GIR percentage of 75 is tied for 10th thus far, but as the course continues to dry up, it will allow the true world-class players to rise to the top.

Among them will be Woods, whose score right now may not top the leaderboard completely, but it is, well, better than most.

Note: All statistics and information, unless otherwise indicated, are courtesy of PGATour.com.