Tiger Woods shot a final round of 70 to maintain his significant advantage over the field at Firestone and stroll home to victory for the eighth time in the WGC Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone. After his extraordinary round of 61 on Friday provided him with a seven shot lead, Woods would effectively plot his way around the South Course in Akron in an effortless display of calculated professionalism as he ensured that the distant chasing pack would remain a mere footnote on the leaderboard.
Woods’ 15-under total of 265 dwarfed the 8-under totals of defending champion Keegan Bradley, and Henrik Stenson of Sweden who maintains his excellent run of form. It’s hard to put any runaway victory into perspective, particularly in such an illustrious event, but it is only very special players who are capable of doing so, and Tiger is certainly the most special of them all once again.
It’s taken four years, but Tiger Woods once again dominated on a Firestone South Course that had consistently been a field of victory for the 14-time major champion. Most of the focus will rightly be placed upon his extraordinary second round of 61 that pulled him clear of the field, and placed him firmly on the path to victory. However, it would be remiss to overlook the calculated manner in which he maintained his firm grip on the Championship over the final two days, ensuring that none of the talented players desperately chasing behind would ever come close.
What is it about this venue that has inspired Tiger to such dominance over his career? Even he isn’t definitely sure of the answer: “I don't know what it is. It just fits my eye; I've felt comfortable here. For some reason it just comes out and I put it together.”
For Woods, this victory marks his 79th win on the PGA Tour, a fifth of 2013, and, incredibly, his 18th World Golf Championship victory. It’s been fascinating to witness Woods’ golfing rehabilitation during the past two years, and this victory represents another significant milestone. It’s a win that sets him up perfectly for the year’s final major, the 95th PGA Championship that gets underway on Thursday.
With Woods’ nearest challenger Henrik Stenson not making an immediate move, he was able to effortlessly plot his around a blustery Firestone and calmly stroll to victory. Hitting 15 of the 18 greens in regulation on Sunday, Woods further sealed an already closed door on his rivals and ensured that it would be a comfortable afternoon. He would putt conservatively, removing the possibility of any rash mistakes, with his only blemish coming at the 14th, with a three-putt bogey. With one birdie at the 10th, Woods’ round of 70 certainly lacked the flair and excitement of his earlier performances, but it was equally impressive in terms of the calculated manner in which he compiled it.
“I was just trying to make pars. This was a perfect day to protect. It was hard to shoot a low number but it was easy to shoot a number around par.”
Ultimately, Woods could have won this Championship by a more significant margin if he had to. Clearly, a seven shot lead meant that overly aggressive play wasn’t required, but you always felt that had he wished to up a gear he would have easily been able to do so. It was a performance of an almost ruthless assurance, and similar qualities will be required next week if he wishes to claim a 15th major championship at Oak Hill Country Club.
In many ways, much like Phil Mickelson’s victory at the Scottish Open a week prior to the 142nd Open Championship, Woods’ victory at Firestone is the perfect warm-up for Oak Hill; not least, because the courses play very similar. Oak Hill, like the South Course in Akron, places a premium on finding the fairways, and they set up very alike, even if the Rochester venue is significantly more varied than the extraordinarily one-dimensional Firestone Country Club.
Keegan Bradley and Henrik Stenson would share second place at 8-under. Bradley, the defending champion, looks to have found the form that took him to this title last year, in addition to the 93rd PGA Championship two years ago. The 27-year-old will be alongside Woods for the opening two rounds of this year’s PGA Championship.
Stenson, 10 years Bradley’s senior, continued his resurgence in Akron. In recent weeks, the Swede has finished in a tie for third at the Scottish Open, and claimed runner-up at the Open Championship behind Phil Mickelson. Stenson had already risen to 20th in the World Rankings, from a low of 230th last year, and he will be buffeted further into the game’s elite and he will hope to maintain this trend at the PGA Championship.
They will hope for another story next Sunday, but for this week at least, the story is all about Tiger Woods. He has now won five times in a season the for the tenth time in his incredible career that has now continually amazed us for almost two decades. Having now claimed two World Golf Championships this season for the first time since 2007, in addition to his victory at Sawgrass in May, Woods has illustrated that he can once again dominant the world’s best players, and he will hope to continue to be a class above next week in Rochester.
All Woods has next on his radar is to win a major championship, which would signal his so-called comeback complete in every watching mind. Whether he will actually achieve that at Oak Hill, or not, of course, will be revealed a week from now. But we are witnessing a Tiger Woods whose skills are being consistently sharpened, and improving all of the time. That in-itself is a daunting prospect for anyone who contends alongside him, as the imposing name of Woods has once again developed an ominous aura.
One last opportunity for major glory this year is ahead, and it is now almost here. Tiger, and many of his passionate followers, will feel that it is now his time.