Then, on May 29, 2017, he was arrested for driving under the influence of opioid painkillers and four other prescription drugs, including Xanax and Ambien. And promptly, all of his adoring admirers in the media who once hailed him as the second coming were eulogizing his career, insisting it was time for him to retire.
Woods agreed to enter a diversion program, after which the charge would eventually be dropped.
Friends and sports writers concluded in hindsight that his unparalleled mental toughness on the course never translated to his personal life, that he had never really dealt with outside issues, instead always choosing to power through on the course. Facing the possibility of retirement, Woods would have to figure out how to finally deal.
But what do you know? As soon as there were whisperings of Woods possibly returning to competition after healing from lumbar fusion surgery... the sports world was stoked to see him tee off at the Hero World Challenge in 2017, 301 days since he'd last played in a pro tournament.
Who said anything about retirement?!
Now his observers sensed a joy that hadn't been there in years, a sense of gratitude in how he carried himself. And that's how he felt, playing without intense pain for the first time in ages.
"I don't need to win again," he told reporters, but "I really want to."
Tiger's years-in-the-making resurgence was finally complete when he won the 2019 Masters, his first Major championship in almost 11 years and the site of his first Major win at the tender age of 21. Better yet, his mom and his kids were right there, cheering him on.
Now, the narrative of a washed-up fallen star playing past his prime was a Cinderella story, "a return to glory."
"A lot of people would spin it, like he was different man now, he's the conquering hero," McDaniel said. "But these are the same people that when he was riding high, they were pulling for him to fall. And when he failed, they jumped on him with both feet. And when he rose again, all of a sudden he is a virtuous man now. Which to me, is bulls--t. He's a human being, with frailties like everyone else. The problem is, we always tried to make him out to be more than he is—and that goes all the way back to Earl."