TIGER WOODS has won the Arnold Palmer Invitational for a record eighth time to recapture the world number one spot after three years in the golfing wilderness.
After a disrupted final round delayed a day by storms, Woods bogeyed the last at Bay Hill in Orlando, Florida, to cement a two stroke win over Justin Rose.
In doing so he equalled the US PGA TOUR record held by Sam Snead for 48 years of most wins at a single event.
“I don’t really see anybody touching it for a long time,” golfing great and tournament host Arnold Palmer said while Woods made his way up the 18th fairway. “I had the opportunity to win a tournament five times, and I knew how difficult that was.”
The win catapulted Woods back into the number one spot for the first time since October 2010, when the public scandal over his private life and injuries saw a decent that bottomed out at 58th in the rankings. He has previously spent a record 623 weeks in the top spot.
It is Wood’s third win this year, his sixth since this event last year, his 77th tour win and puts him on top of the FedEx Cup standings.
“It’s a by product of hard work, patience and getting back to winning golf tournaments,” the 37 year old said.
Next up for Woods is one he really wants, the US Masters on April 11 to 14. There, he will have a chance to add to the 14 Major titles already in the cabinet. That statistic hasn’t changed in five years.
In the Official World Golf Ranking, Rory McIlroy had been number one since he claimed the 2012 PGA Championship last August. He can reclaim the number one spot by winning the Shell Houston Open this week.
John Senden (74) was the best-placed Australian, finishing in a tie for 27th at 1-under, 12 behind the winner.
Geoff Ogilvy made his chances of qualifying for the Masters a lot more difficult by missing the cut.
2013 Arnold Palmer Invitational Final Results