The PNC Championship strummed up a historic amount of interest this past weekend. The return of 15-time major champion Tiger Woods was the headline in this weekend’s competition at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Carding a final round -15, Team Woods fell two strokes short of Team Daly, scoring 27-under for the tournament.
The Injury
After a brutal car wreck on the morning of February 23, Woods’ golf game was the last priority in his return to normalcy. He told reporters in November that he was “lucky to be alive and still have the limb. I’m very grateful that someone upstairs was taking care of me.” Woods later stated that amputation was “on the table”. This was an eye-opening statement for the general public as the severity of his injury was never uncovered.
Months after sustaining multiple injuries Woods told reporters “This has been a completely different animal,” he said of the rehab process. “this was more painful than anything I have ever experienced.” During Woods’ rehabilitation process, doubts began to creep into the minds of most golf journalists and media members alike. After the wreck he suffered in February, a comeback to competitive golf seemed out of the question at the time.
The Comeback
On November 21, Woods posted a three-second video of him hitting a single ball at an unknown practice facility. This was enough to send golf Twitter into a frenzy. “Great to see the Big Cat back swinging the sticks!” PGA Pro Tony Finau tweeted out shortly after. Tour Pro Max Homa had an inkling that Tiger’s team was relishing the moment. Homa sent out a tweet saying ” I wonder if Tiger and his crew laugh right before they post a swing video knowing the entire free world is about to lose their damn minds”. Safe to say that the golf world was ecstatic for this daunting comeback.
In under a calendar year, Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods showed the world that he’s still got gas in the tank. When the final round ended, he and his son Charlie cruised their way to a second-place finish in the PNC Championship. Although the PNC tournament has no monetary or World Golf Ranking implications, Tiger and Charlie put the world on notice. Outplaying everyone’s expectations, the duo produced a surplus of highlights. When asked about their Sunday finish, the elder stated “We got on a nice heater” in reference to a tournament record 11 birdies in a row scored by him and Charlie. “We made it interesting for the Daly’s back there,” Tiger said with a grin, clearly soaking in the moment with the press.
John Daly 2.0
Lost in the shadow of the spotlight is John Daly Jr. JD II has an intricate feel for the game with launch power similar to his father’s. The University of Arkansas freshman guided Team Daly to 13 birdies and an eagle in Sunday’s -15 finish. The 36-hole total of 27-under secured the tournament scoring record by one stroke and resulted in Team Daly attaining the Wille Park Winners Belt. The 18-year-old has been competing in this event since he was 12, finishing top-10 every year. After tying for second in 2018, the Daly crew bounced back with a big win in 2021.
The 2021 PNC Championship tournament should prove to be a memorable milestone for young John Daly Jr., who looks to follow in his father’s footsteps and walk amongst the greatest the PGA has to offer. Moving forward, both Daly Jr. and Charlie Woods look to continue carrying the torch passed by the generation before them, and golf fans couldn’t be more grateful.
Looking Forward
While spectators digest the magic that was 2021’s PNC Championship, the question has to arise in everyone’s mind: What’s next? While young Charlie set Twitter ablaze, John Jr. etched his name in the stone of PGA tour relevancy. Though Jr. isn’t on tour yet, his skillset and nihilistic approach that mirrors his father’s should play well for PGA ratings in the coming years. After the last pin was pulled Sunday, smiles emerged from all fans of the game. All of whom realize the next generation of PGA legends is on the horizon.
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