Tiger Woods fell off his perch as the worlds top ranked player on October 31st 2010. It's been two years, four months and 20 days since he was Number One. It was a position that he held for an astonishing 623 weeks, including a 281 week run between 2005 and 2010. However, the 14-time major champion can set that right at one of his most-favoured venues, Bay Hill Club and Lodge, as the PGA Tour arrives at one of its most popular stops, the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

It's been a tumultuous few years for Tiger, and he defined his golfing rehabilitation at his Wednesday Press Conference as "A long process." The 37-year-old then described his journey in further detail: "I was hurt for a long time, I had to make swing changes that were drastically different than what I was doing before. It's taken some time."

Indeed it has taken some time. But five PGA Tour victories in a year would illustrate the significant steps that he has made. Woods can make another step in his resurgence by retaking the world number one spot. He will overtake Rory McIlroy should he win at Bay Hill for an eighth time. That in itself would tie Sam Snead's record of most wins in a single PGA Tour event.

But what of the man Tiger hopes to overtake, Rory McIlroy, who is not in the field this week. His absence generated a little controversy amongst some members of the media, but it has to be noted that McIlroy has never competed in this event. Whether he should have added it to his schedule, in preparation for the Masters, is debatable; but the notion that Rory "snubbed" the event is ridiculous, and a non-story if there ever was one.

However, such media attention, often negative in nature, is a a symptom of being the leading player in the game. Something which Tiger dealt with for years, and a factor which McIlroy is coming to terms with. It's partly for this reason, that should the limelight find itself fixed even more strongly on Woods; it could prove to be an unforseen benefit to Rory. With the world number one ranking comes added attention, expectation and pressure. All factors which Rory has admitted to have found difficult to adjust to.

Following Tiger's dramatic fall from grace in 2009, golf became desperate to crown its next leading player. Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Luke Donald all took the top ranking, but didn't have the profile, or consistent success in major championships to have the crown placed on their head. (Kaymer was the only one to win a Major). But then Rory came along and golf had seemingly found its next star in the post-Tiger era.

Such a position is unimaginably difficult to handle, and Luke Donald himself spoke recently suggesting that sitting third in the rankings was a benefit to his mentality as the Masters approaches. While being world number one is a barometer of your standing in the game, and a significant target; Rory could find himself feeling slightly more at ease should Tiger take and hold the spot. While the attention would never be fully off Rory, due to his profile, it would to such an extent that it could allow him to enter the largest tournaments slightly under the radar, and as he looks to find his consistent best form once again, a slightly dimmer spotlight could make that passage occur just a little more smoothly.

It's not a certainty that Tiger will win the Arnold Palmer for an eighth occasion, but it's a potential victory that would see him enter the 77th Masters Tournament as officially the best player in the world. With such a strong focus on Woods, the media won't desperately look for another potential winner as they have done in recent years. For the other leading players in the game, McIlroy in particular, that may well prove to be a positive development with the annual drive down Magnolia Lane just three weeks away.

But, firstly Tiger has to win this week. A result would increase expectation for the Masters even further.