Surrounded by spectators, Tiger Woods tees off on No. 17 during the Greenbrier Classic Pro-Am Wednesday.
A column by Mitch Vingle, sports editor of The Charleston Gazette
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Tiger’s back.
That’s not the news, although he’s in today’s Greenbrier Classic for only the second time and first since 2012.
No. The subject is Tiger Woods’ back. And the focus is its health.
See, the Classic has had a nice run since starting in 2010. Its popularity within the Mountain State has been tremendous. But nothing would take the top off the event like a Woods victory this week. Nothing.
You probably know about the golfer’s struggles. Once called a “Mozart” of golf by his first instructor at age 14, Woods burst onto the sport’s scene like the crescendo in “Piano Concerto No. 21.” He won 79 PGA Tour events, second only to, appropriately enough here, Sam Snead, who had 82. He won 14 majors.
And then there was the fall from grace. There was the scandal involving women, including his divorce from Elin Nordegren. There were injuries, including to the aforementioned back.
If anyone has had a whirlwind life, it’s been Eldrick T. Woods. He dated Lindsey Vonn. He just built a $50 million golf course named Bluejack National around Houston. The man is estimated to have a fortune of around $650 million.
Yet he’s on what some have called a magical mystery comeback tour. Or at least he’s trying to have one…
