Tiger Woods, one of the biggest names in golf, has committed to play in the 2015 Waste Management Phoenix Open. The last time Woods played in this tournament was in 2001. You may remember in 1997 when he famously, hit a hole-in-one on the 16th hole. The par 3, 16th hole is set up with stadium style seating. If you were anywhere on the course that day, you could hear the crowd cheering.
Woods wrote on his blog, “It will be great to return to Phoenix, the crowds are amazing and always enthusiastic, and the 16th hole is pretty unique in golf.”
And speaking of cheering, the organizers and sure to be cheering because with Woods playing this year, the attendance at the 2015 Phoenix is bound to break records.
Woods is returning to golf after injuries kept him from playing most of the season last year. Speculation is that he is using the Phoenix Open and the Farmer’s Open as tune-ups and confidence builders in order to have a strong showing for major tournaments this year.
Many remember the messy divorce and separation of Woods and his wife and since then, Woods has not played to his earlier capabilities. The question remains, will he ever win more majors than Jack Nicklaus’ 18?
He has been a very solid player, winning an extraordinary number of tournaments. For a list of his wins, check out the list below:
Complete list of Tiger Woods Tournament Wins
2013 (5- Wins)
79. WGC Bridgestone Invitational
78. The Players Championship
77. Arnold Palmer Invitational
76. WGC Cadillac Championship
75. Farmers Insurance Open
2012 (3- Wins)
74. AT&T National
73. The Memorial
72. Arnold Palmer Invitational
2009 (6- Wins)
71. BMW Championship
70. WGC Bridgestone Invitational
69. Buick Open
68. AT&T National
67. The Memorial
66. Arnold Palmer Invitational
2008 (4- Wins)
65. U.S. Open
64. Arnold Palmer Invitational
63. WGC Accenture Match Play Championship
62. Buick Invitational
2007 (7- Wins)
61. The Tour Championship
60. BMW Championship
59. PGA Championship
58. WC Bridgestone Invitational
57. Wachovia Championship
56. WGC CA Championship
55. Buick Invitational
2006 (8- Wins)
54. WGC American Express Championship
53. Deutsche Bank Championship
52. WGC Bridgestone Invitational
51. PGA Championship
50. Buick Open
49. British Open
48. Ford Championship at Doral
47. Buick Invitational
2005 (6- Wins)
46. WGC American Express Championship
45. WGC NEC Invitational
44. British Open
43. The Masters
42. Ford Championship at Doral
41. Buick Invitational
2004 (1- Win)
40. WGC Accenture Match Play Championship
2003 (5- Wins)
39. WGC American Express Championship
38. Western Open
37. Bay Hill Invitational
36. WGC Accenture Match Play Championship
35. Buick Invitational
2002 (5- Wins)
34. WGC American Express Championship
33. Buick Open
32. U.S. Open
31. The Masters
30. Bay Hill Invitational
2001 (5- Wins)
29. WGC NEC Invitational
28. The Memorial
27. The Masters
26. Players Championship
25. Bay Hill Invitational
2000 (9- Wins -AMAZING)
24. Bell Canadian Open
23. WGC NEC Invitational
22. PGA Championship
21. British Open
20. U.S. Open
19. The Memorial
18. Bay Hill Invitational
17. AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am
16. Mercedes Championships
1999 (8- Wins)
15. WGC American Express Championship
14. The Tour Championship
13. National Car Rental Golf Classic/Disney
12. WGC NEC Invitational
11. PGA Championship
10. Motorola Western Open
9. The Memorial
8. Buick Invitational
1998 (1- Win)
7. BellSouth Classic
1997 (4- Wins)
6. Motorola Western Open
5. GTE Byron Nelson Golf Classic
4. The Masters
3. Mercedes Championships
1996 (2 – Wins)
2. Walt Disney World/Oldsmobile Classic
1. Las Vegas Invitational
Regardless of how he plays, he will not only draw participants to the Phoenix Open but he will single-handedly increase TV viewership as well.
For Phoenix and Arizona Tourism, this is an awesome week. Both the 2015 NFL Super Bowl and the Phoenix Open are being played in the Phoenix-metro area the same week. If you’re coming to town, make sure you make reservations well in advance. And for those of you that live in the midwest or northeast, the temperature in Phoenix will be in the mid-70s.
This tournament is the perfect set up for the Super Bowl; watch the final round of play which finishes just before the kick off. What could be better for avid sports fans.