Even though I may be over 4000 miles away and five hours ahead of schedule, the fanatic fan that I am for Tiger Woods has not died down one bit. Entering the Tour Championship, the final event of the FedEx Cup and essentially the Superbowl of professional golf, Woods has a chance of eclipsing one of the greatest comebacks ever with a win this Sunday.
Woods, who hasn't played in this event since 2013 is still in search of a coveted first win in his comeback tour from injury. With a win here, on arguably one of the toughest golf courses in the world and against the top 30 players on the PGA tour, the legacy of Tiger Woods will forever be cemented in golf lure.
So yes, as I am in London studying for the fall term as an abroad student, my heart and soul are still intertwined with one of America's greatest sports icons. To demonstrate my commitment as a fan, I will share a little tale with how I have been able to keep up with Woods' play. On Thursday, the first day of competition, I strategically planned my day around when Tiger would tee off. Making sure to have computer access, I was able to watch his first three holes of the round. To say the least, I was mildly unimpressed. Starting off with a bogey and finding himself in the bottom half of the field, I figured I was only hurting Woods' performance by watching. I backed off, shut the computer down and went out for a meal.
I made a conservative effort to not stay glued to my phone for updates, feeling that if I let Tiger do what Tiger does best, then, sure enough, he would come around. I was right. Woods was able to turn around his bad start and with three holes left in his round he was tied for 2nd place and only two shots back. I had to see him finish out, I knew the good mojo was there.
I quickly made my way back to my dorm and was able to log onto a live feed just in time for Woods to tee off on the final hole of the day, a par 5. Sure enough, Tiger landed a beautiful shot on the green in 2, with a chance for eagle and a tie for the lead. It was all but too good to be true until it wasn't. With 30 feet to the hole, Tiger lined up his putt and gracefully took a tap at it as the world, and myself from the United Kingdom, watched him knock it into the hole and take a share of the lead entering the second day of competition.
The crowd erupted nearly as loud as I had from my dorm room. The energy was palpable and with a signature fist pump from our man, he took a gigantic step in the right direction towards capping off this unfathomable comeback.