What we learned from Tiger's strong play this week
After 72 holes and 280 swings at the Hero World Challenge, Tiger Woods' first tournament back is in the books.
Woods fired three sub-70 rounds for the week, looking like the Tiger of old at certain points and generating plenty of excitement on social media. All in all, it was a successful showing for the 14-time major champion, as he finished in a tie for ninth place at 8-under par.
The former world No. 1 didn't say when he'll play next, but in the meantime, here's what we learned from his play in the Bahamas:
Accurate with the big stick
Remember when Tiger couldn't find a fairway to save his life? Well, that certainly wasn't the case for the 79-time PGA Tour winner this week. Sure, there wasn't much rough at Albany, and the course isn't exactly Torrey Pines or Riviera, but Woods was fearless with the big stick, missing just one fairway on Sunday - and that drive eluded it by only a couple of feet.
Bombing it
The slow, powerless golf swing we witnessed back in January at Torrey Pines is gone, as Tiger wasn't just finding the short grass this week - he was finding it well down the fairway. Woods played two rounds with Justin Thomas, and more than kept up with the long-bombing 24-year-old. On Sunday, Tiger hit a 277-yard approach with a 2-iron over the green, and drove the green at the 336-yard par-4 seventh to set up a 25-foot eagle putt.
Justin’s ball speed: 178 mph
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 3, 2017
Tiger’s ball speed: 178 mph
Justin’s apex: 96 ft
Tiger’s apex: 140 ft
Justin’s carry: 273 yards
Tiger’s carry: 285 yards pic.twitter.com/TcZjv0kWc8
Beat some talent
It wasn't an official PGA Tour event, it was just one tournament, and it was an 18-player field, but the 1,199th-ranked golfer beat some pretty recognizable names. Woods finished better than current world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, PGA Tour Player of the Year Thomas, world No. 8 Henrik Stenson, and U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka.
He can win in 2018
Woods tied for ninth after being away for over 300 days, and he's only going to improve with more reps. Just imagine Tiger's game four months from now at Augusta National, where he's been able to contend almost every year regardless of his play coming in.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)