ATLANTA – With his black glasses, his black Nike hat in the back and a black tank top that revealed massive arms, Tiger Woods, carrying his red Sunday in one hand, went to the East Lake Golf Club for the last time. championship round.

It was a picture of trust, a daunting image, an image of a man who totally controlled and knew what was ahead of him.

Six hours later, after a change of wardrobe, Woods posed with the material of the championship, a portrait that seemed impossible 18 months ago.

With a two – shot win in the season finale, a win that dates back to his finest days of the past, Woods has managed a comeback and managed to come out of an abyss of life. physical agony, mental anguish and spiritual loss. The 14-year-old champion also continued his remarkable climb up the official world rankings to 13th place after starting his 1199th rankings.

"I had a hard time not crying until the last hole," said Woods, who finished second at FedExCup and won a $ 3 million bonus. "At the beginning of the year, it was a big challenge. But as the year progressed, I put the pieces together again and knew that I could do it again.

"I just can not believe I did it after the season I went through," said Woods, who began to tear up. "I had a few not so easy years, but I made my comeback. It is hard to believe that I won the championship. "

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Woods was not the only winner at East Lake. Finishing tied for fourth place, world No. 1 Justin Rose finished first in the FedExCup standings and won the $ 10 million bonus. Knowing that he had to birdie on the 72nd hole, Rose produced a titanic drive, then hit a 7-iron on the green and two 30-foot shots for the title, or $ 333,333.33 per foot.

But this day belonged to Woods and his legion of fans who hoped that it would come for a while. Even Woods was among those who did not know if that day would come, with his body being punished enough to require four left knee surgeries and four back operations.

Seventeen months after undergoing a spinal fusion operation and 16 months after being hit and the world saw the blow alarmed by his arrest for suspicious driving, Woods was a health image his first since 2013 , or in 1 876 days.

After starting his last comeback with temperate expectations and doubts about how long he could play, how often he could play and how much he could play, Woods gradually pieced together his swing and play.

First, there were no baby steps to make sure his body was whole. Then the small strides with his swing. Then, trustworthy boosters and moral victories, one tournament at a time, a few moments too.

A key moment came in February after Woods missed the cup in the Genesis Open. It was then that Woods realized he was healthy enough to add a tournament to his schedule instead of subtracting it, which he feared should not be the case at the beginning of the tournament. year. At the time, Woods knew that if he stayed healthy, he would put in place a swing that would work at the highest level in golf.

Every month, Woods tinkers with his equipment to coincide with his swing. Later in the year, he used three different putter models in three consecutive starts.

And before the start of the FedExCup playoffs, Woods changed his manager's sleeve and attic, losing a bit of distance but gaining in precision and confidence. With a tie in the fourth place of the BMW Championship at his last start, Woods came up with all aspects of his game and a look at him who said he knew it would be the week.

After being open with a 65 to take a lead and then a 68 to maintain it, Woods took command with a Saturday blitz in which he managed six birdies on his first seven holes.

Armed with a lead of three strokes after 54 holes, Woods became old Woods, now his pursuers at a distance with a conservative approach that was still deadly while the others jostled for birdies. After making the birdie first to extend his lead, Woods targeted the fairways and the middle of the greens and put the field to submission.

Woods increased his lead to five, but he fell to two after consecutive bogeys on holes 15 and 16. But he climbed and won with thousands of fans walking behind him on the 18th fairway. After his final blow, a tap-in, he raised his hands in the air, then kissed his younger brother, Joe LaCava, his girlfriend, Erica Herman, and his playmate, Rory McIlroy.

Woods finished 11 under with a 71. Billy Horschel, the 2014 FedExCup champion, shot 66 to finish second. Dustin Johnson (67) was third and Rose (73), Hideki Matsuyama (65) and Webb Simpson (67) tied for fourth.

Just as he was back at his peak, Woods with the 54-hole lead is money and extremely hard to catch. With that win, he is now 54-4 years old when he holds at least a 54 – hole lead and 24 – 24 when that lead is at least three shots.

For this week, Tiger Woods was again Tiger Woods, the best player on the planet who knew that he was the best player on the planet.

And now, the world of golf is waiting for its recall next season.

"It's a miracle what he did this year," said Paul Azinger. "It was not a walking ceremony at sunset. This guy has a game, a serious game. I'm shocked. He has no way of doing what he does. He is a living and breathing medical miracle. To do what he does at the highest level of golf, it's really amazing. "

And in a series of tweets, Jack Nicklaus, his record of 18 majors, a Woods reference, has continued his entire career, congratulated Woods.

"I never dreamed that @TigerWoods could come back as it did after the surgery," tweeted Nicklaus. "I think you could say he's fighting better than he has ever been." He played fantastically!

"I think that throughout the year, some @TigerWoods issues have occurred between his ears because he had to remember how to win again. Tiger was close, almost there. You knew he was going to win soon and this week he did it.

Phil Mickelson said Woods's latest win was not a shock to him either.

"He's played so good golf all year round that it's not surprising," said Mickelson. "It was just a matter of time before he won."