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AUGUSTA, Georgia - Tiger Woods is back in green jacket contention, and from country-club bars to boardrooms, the former world No 1 is once again the tide lifting all boats in the golfing world.
The sport's TV ratings are trending upwards, so are equipment and ball sales and Augusta National tickets as a rejuvenated Woods returns to the Masters for the first time in three years.
Much of the buzz being generated around golf's first major is emanating from a 42-year-old legend who is closer to qualifying for the Seniors Tour (open to players 50 and over) than his last victory at Augusta in 2005.
But nothing gets the sporting public revved up more than a compelling comeback story, and Woods is writing one for the ages.
"This is a little bit like a Lazarus resurrection here with respect to where he was," said Steve Mona, World Golf Foundation CEO.
"Only last September he was talking about whether he would be able to comeback at all. Now he is one of the favorites at the Masters. It's just astonishing.
"He is certainly in form. I don't think anyone would be terribly surprised if he's right in the hunt."
The greatest player of his generation, Woods dominated golf like few athletes in any sport ever have.
A prodigious talent who first appeared on national television swinging a golf club at the age of 2, Woods grew into a champion by winning 14 majors in swashbuckling style.
He became a crossover celebrity and very wealthy, with career earnings (including endorsements) totaling $1.7 billion according to a 2017 report by Forbes magazine.
Having climbed to such great heights, Woods' fall from grace that started in 2009 has been all the more shocking.
A tawdry divorce, a DUI and years and years of injuries, surgeries and failed treatments sent sponsors scurrying.
The back that had caused Woods so much pain was getting no better and the golfer who had held the No 1 world ranking for a collective 683 weeks dropped out of the top 1,000.
Even the ever-positive Woods suddenly seemed resigned to a dour fate.
But after undergoing spinal fusion surgery last April, the dark clouds hanging over Woods began to slowly lift.
Highest ratings
Then suddenly Woods grabbed the spotlight as only he can, announcing his return to form with three impressive results - 12th at the Honda Classic, a tie for second at the Valspar Championship and a tie for fifth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last month.
Woods' back now appears to be strong enough to carry the hopes of an entire industry that is experiencing a 'Tiger Bump'.
With Woods back in contention, NBC/Golf Channel said the final rounds of both the Arnold Palmer and Valspar championships registered the highest ratings for a PGA Tour telecast, outside of the majors, since the 2015 Wyndham Championship. The golf industry has also seen a spike.
Bridgestone said that when Woods (who uses the company's ball) has been in the field in 2018, the average basket value with Bridgestone products increased by over 120 percent compared with the same period in 2017. "His endorsement that we make the best ball is more valuable than all of the science and data that we throw out to the consumers," said Angel Ilgan, president and CEO of Bridgestone.
"It is just ridiculous that we can show them hundreds and thousands of testings with robots and projectile guns that we're the best ball, the most accurate ball. And the consumer doesn't believe us until Tiger says, 'Yeah, that's true.'
"During his absence the entire industry, the PGA Tour, we were all kind of looking who is the next player.
"Then when Tiger came back, the entire industry is once again jumping on his bandwagon."
(CHINA DAILY)
