Tiger's roar

International Sports

The rebuilt Woods is facing a tricky exam as he bids to clinch the US Open titleTIGER WOODS has proven beyond all reasonable doubt – he is finally and definitively back at the 112th US Open. But to golf’s serial winner that will mean nothing unless he ends his long wait for a Major Championship victory at Olympic today.

On the two previous occasions he has led the US Open at the halfway point – in 2000 and 2002 – he has won. Indeed Woods has only failed to close the deal once on the nine occasions he has been in such a position of strength in a Major.

Since he last attempted to do so, though, much has changed. He has endured career-threatening surgery and personal turmoil. He has a different coach, a different caddie and a different swing.

How the rebuilt Woods copes under the pressure of Major Championship Sunday at a US Open which has proved a throwback in terms of its punishing demands will be a revealing exam paper.

If he comes through it to land Major No 15 – four years after he beat Rocco Mediate on one leg in a memorable Monday US Open play-off south along the Californian coast in Torrey Pines – the great comeback will be complete.

Woods has navigated his way superbly around a course which brought the likes of World No 1 Luke Donald and World No 2 Rory McIlroy to their knees.

His playing partner for the first two rounds, Phil Mickelson, summed up what had impressed him most with one word. Control.

Finally, it seems, the World No 4 has a grip on the techniques he and his Canadian coach Sean Foley have been working on and if the putts drop today, a fourth US Open title could be his.

He has a shot at a prize many dismissed as unattainable for him again – particularly in 2011 when he experienced his worst year as a professional, finishing 128th on the PGA Tour money list and missing the US Open through knee and achilles injuries.

Tiger summed up his fight back to the top like this: “Last year was a tough year battling those injuries. It’s hard to get any momentum when you can’t practice,” he said.

“But the end of last year was big for me. For Freddie Couples to believe in me and give me the nod for the Presidents Cup helped a lot.

“I think I’ve played really well in spurts this year and then I finally put it together at Bay Hill. I lost it for a little bit after that but got it back together at Memorial.

“I was excited after that because I hit it there how I knew I had to hit it here.”