2008 U.S. Open: Tiger's Greatest Accomplishment Thus Far

This past weekend, Eldrick "Tiger" Woods pulled off one of the greatest feats in golf history.

As most people know, a torn ACL will sideline even the toughest athletes for quite some time. Tiger tore his ACL late last July while jogging after the British Open. He then had arthroscopic surgery this February to clean out his injured left knee.

We all know that he took the last two months off before the U.S. Open. Many were skeptical, including myself, that he could ultimately come out victorious, but Tiger never ceases to amaze, and in the fashion of five days and 91 holes. This man (hate me for calling him merely a man) walked roughly 39,000 yards or 22 miles of course over the five days. That would be enough to make any man sore.

Tiger's numerous accomplishments are well-known: 14 majors (second all-time), 65 tour wins (third all-time), but what an accomplishment it was this past weekend.

Tiger could be seen wincing and limping throughout the tournament, but the true will to succeed and the fight inside could not stop Tiger from getting that 14th major win.

The left knee is what takes on all the torque in the downswing and when you swing as hard as Woods does, you know it must hurt.

And to think I was complaining of knee pain after hitting about 100 balls at the range... pathetic. Tiger has played seven events in 2008. He has five victories and twp top fives (second at the Masters). It is amazing to think that he has done all this on a bad knee, so bad that he is done with golf for the rest of 2008 as he has decided surgery is the best option for the long-term.

One must also consider the mental toughness of Tiger. Golf is the most mentally demanding sport and to be as mentally tough as he was at Torrey Pines this past weekend, makes the 2008 U.S. Open his greatest feat yet.