Tiger Woods sparks golf hysteria with miracle comeback at The Masters

The golfer, primed to return at Augusta just 14 months after a serious car crash, still moves the needle like no other, writes Jack Rathborn

Not only does it feel like the sport is yet to entirely outgrow Tiger mania, but the statistics prove it too (AP)

A swoosh as Tiger Woods crushed his driver on the range at Augusta National on Sunday came with his signature beaming smile.

The face of golf had finally validated weeks of speculation and rumours about secret visits to this hallowed turf, where The Masters, the first major of the men’s golf season, begins on Thursday.

The latest miraculous recovery for one of the most engrossing sporting figures of a generation is almost complete. It is just 14 months after a sickening single-vehicle collision in California, which threatened to leave Woods with no choice but to amputate one of his legs after sustaining multiple fractures.