Rolling back the years, turning back the clock, digging into the archives? Whatever you want to call it, Tiger Woods is trying to do it as he seeks to recapture that majesty of old.
At 42 years of age, of course, the chances of him rediscovering those spell-binding glory days of yore may be somewhat fanciful but there are continued signs to suggest that he can at least contend in meaningful events again.
And if he can contend in those events, then what does that mean? That’s right, he can win too.
It’s easy to get swept along in the fevered Tiger tale but it’s hardly surprising. Having plumbed the kind of desperate depths that saw him hurtle past the stop on the elevator marked ‘rock bottom’, Woods continues to take tentative, baby steps towards a remarkable renaissance that would be as great as anything in sport.
His 12th place finish in the Honda Classic at the robust PGA National, in just the third fully-blown PGA Tour event of his eagerly analysed comeback, had flashes of flair, finesse and frailty in a mixed bag that can only be expected of a player who continues to file off the rust that has accumulated during a prolonged period of physical and psychological tumult.
There was plenty of predictable frenzy too, particularly when he got to within three shots of the lead at one stage on Sunday.
His meaningful presence on the final afternoon of a tournament was hugely captivating and alluring. The golfing world just can’t let go. The red shirt had a wee bit of lustre about it again and, thankfully, there were no signs of any aches, pains, hirples or hobbles. So far, so good.
“I had a shot at it, I was right there,” said the 14-time major winner and former world No 1 of his flirtation with the upper echelons of a leaderboard again.
“I feel like each time out I’ve got better and I’ve got more of a feel for playing tournament golf. The last couple days, it felt easy to play tournament golf.
“The warm up felt good, I got into the flow of the round, I could find the rhythm of the rounds faster. The more golf I’m playing tournament-wise, the faster I’m able to click into the feel of the round.
“I’m making some tweaks in my golf swing but also trying to understand what this body can do. It’s not like it used to be.
“Those angles are gone. So I’ve had to make a little bit of adjustments here and there and I think I’ve done that, and I think I’ve done a pretty good job of just kind of gradually building it together.
“My expectations have gone up. I’m hitting the ball better. I knew I could putt it, I knew I could chip it, but I didn’t know how well I was going to hit it.
“I just need to keep building on it, keep building my body and keep building towards April.
“That (the Masters) was the goal when I first came back and I feel like I’m right on track for that.”
Meanwhile, for those who like to scribble things down in the diary well in advance, the R&A have confirmed that the 2023 Walker Cup will be held over the Old Course as this cherished old event celebrates its 101st anniversary.
It will be the ninth time that the biennial, transatlantic tussle between the amateurs of GB&I and the US has been staged at the home of the game in St Andrews but it will be a first visit back to the Auld Grey Toun since 1975.
In that year, a GB&I team featuring the redoubtable Scottish quartet of Ian Hutcheon, Hugh Stuart, George Macgregor and Charlie Green went down 15 ½ - 8 ½ to the USA.
Elsewhere, June’s US Open will have a new two-hole play-off in the event of a tied finish after the USGA abandoned its 18-hole, next-day format.
The move, which comes into force immediately, brings the tournament into line with the governing body’s other major events.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here