Tiger Woods looks for a fifth Masters title this week. The first major golf tournament of the year, theMasters, tees off Thursday at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgiawith world number one Tiger Woods looking for a fifth Masters title. Woods is playing in his first majortournament since undergoing reconstructive knee surgery.
Tiger Returns
The lasttime Tiger Woods won a major tournament, his left knee was inexcruciating pain. Woods had stress fractures and a torn cruciateligament in the joint, but was still able to win the U.S. Open atTorrey Pines last June in a 19-hole playoff.
Tiger underwentreconstructive knee surgery, and was off the golf course for nearlyeight months. He returned to play at the Accenture Match Playchampionship, but lost to South African Tim Clark in the second roundin February.
In Tiger's next tournament - the CA Championships inMiami last month - he finished tied for ninth. Then he won the ArnoldPalmer Invitational March 29th, rolling in a birdie putt on the finalhole to take the title. Woods says he never lost his competitive fireduring his rehabilitation, and he is ready to take on the world.
"I was surprised how fast I got the feeling," Woods said. "It came back tome at the Match play." Tiger said he feels just like he did when he prepared for other major tournaments.
Lefty's challenge
For Tiger to win a fifth Masters title, he will have to beat thebest players in the world, including two-time Masters winner andcountryman Phil Mickelson. The man known on the tour as "Lefty" wonthe CA Championships in March and says he is confident headed into thisweek's event.
"I feel very comfortable and confident in mygame and in my equipment. And I feel like I'll be able to in the nextfive years achieve levels of play that I haven't achieved earlier inmy career," he said.
Mickelson said he doesn't want any uncertainties in his path to see how far he can go in golf.
Three straight for Harrington?Padraig Harrington of Ireland looks for a third straight major title.
Three-time major tournament winner Padraig Harrington of Irelandwill try to win his first Green Jacket this week. Harrington won the British Open and the PGA lastyear and will be going for his third straight major title. But theIrishman says any time he plays in a grand slam event, there'spressure.
"It's a major. It's a chance to win anothermajor," he said. "It's a chance to win the Masters. All those things bring theirown pressure."
The Irishman said the chance to win his third straight major adds some pressure, but all major tournaments have pressure, especially the Masters.
Harringtonwill tee off with former Masters winner Mike Weir of Canada and RyujiImada of Japan. Third-ranked Sergio Garcia will play with Australia'sStuart Appleby and Britain's Oliver Wilson.
Fiji's Vijay Singh, the2000 Masters champion, starts play with three-time major tournamentwinner Ernie Els of South Africa and world number four Geoff Ogilvy ofAustralia.
The tournament is being played on the Augusta National GolfClub course, a par-72 layout that measures 6,799 meters. Last year,Trevor Immelmann of South Africa won the title by three strokes overTiger Woods. But this year, Woods has something to prove - that he isstill the man to beat any time he steps on the course.
