Tiger Woods looks to rebound at Hero World Challenge

Fresh off a disappointing loss to Phil Mickelson in The Match, Woods will host some of the world’s top players at the Hero World Challenge. How will Tiger handle yet another big stage?

This week’s Hero World Challenge marks one year since Tiger Woods’ return to competitive golf. The superstar has been busy, climbing from 1,199th in the Official World Rankings to his current standing at No. 13.

In 2017, Woods shocked the golf world by leading the field in birdies, but an up and down performance left him in the middle of the pack come Sunday. Rickie Fowler shot a final round 61 at the 2017 event and took home the ridiculous trophy.

Since then, Woods has rebuilt his game, piling up impressive outings at key events, including a runner-up finish to Brooks Koepka at the PGA Championship and a breakthrough victory at the Tour Championship.

Woods, a five-time winner of the Hero (most recently in 2011, though as an unofficial event these victories don’t count towards his career total), is getting a respectable 8/1 shot according to current odds. Despite a poor performance against Mickelson, the generous scoring conditions and limited field give Tiger a chance at notching another victory.

I’m hesitant to draw too many conclusions about the state of Tiger’s game from his play at The Match. He lost to Mickelson, but The Match itself lost to just about everything as the event was given away for free instead of the pay-per-view price. The spectacle of the Match was a distraction, and lingering effects of the circus act at Shadow Creek will affect his play in the Bahamas.

There’s just too much talent in the field to expect Tiger to walk away on top. Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose and Justin Thomas headline the field of 18. Tommy Fleetwood is my pick to win as the first of many high-profile victories for the Englishman this year.

The Hero, a tournament hosted by Woods to benefit his charitable foundation, counts towards the Official World Rankings but carries no FedEx Cup points. As such, a win for Tiger, as unlikely as that may be, would rocket him to sixth in the world, a remarkable achievement given his position just one year ago.

Regardless of the outcome, golf fans will be thrilled to see the best in the game competing again. After suffering through The Match, that’s something we can all be thankful for.