Tiger Woods’ return to golf is ‘huge for the sport,’ says Phil Mickelson

Tiger Woods’ announcement he’ll return to the playing field at the Hero World Challenge later this month sparked the usual insane frenzy that anything the former world No. 1 does. Of all the well-wishers swarming to social media to welcome the injury-plagued superstar back to the fold, Phil Mickelson’s message stood out for its grace and simplicity — just Lefty, clad in Gary Player black, with a golf course as the backdrop.

“To have him back playing is huge for the sport,” Mickelson said of his long-time rival and old friend (more on that later) in a video posted on Twitter Tuesday.

Woods will begin his latest comeback some 10 months after he hit his last shot in competition in a miserable one-round stint at the Dubai Desert Classic in February. How Woods will perform after rehabbing from his fourth back surgery is the burning question on everyone’s mind and certainly a fair subject considering how the 41-year-old has done in his most recent attempts to revive the stalled career of the greatest player of his generation, if not all time (hint: not well).

Mickelson joined Woods’ ex-swing coach Hank Haney in forecasting a successful reentry to competitive golf for the winner of 14 major titles.

“It’s great to have Tiger back. He’s the biggest draw, he’s the guy that allows us to transcend the sports page and get to the front page. He’s the guy that has brought golf to the forefront, increases the ratings and, ultimately, the purses,” Mickelson said. “If he plays well, and I believe he will, that’s even better.”

Haney, who predicted his former student would launch the next phase of his playing career at the Hero, expressed confidence that Woods would acquit himself well in the Bahamas.

“It’s a great spot for him,” Haney said Tuesday on his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show of the “low-key” member-guest-like ambiance of the 18-player contest. “I think that what you’re going to see is something pretty good out of Tiger.

“I’m very optimistic,” added Haney. “I know a lot of people aren’t, but I’m very optimistic. I think that people’s expectations now are so low, I don’t think they really even care how he plays. I think people just want to see him out there playing and want to see this comeback if it has anything to it.”

As for Mickelson, he has often spoken in glowing terms about what his good buddy has done for the game and the popular southpaw’s vocation.

“Had Tiger not come around, I don’t feel I would have pushed myself to achieve what I ended up achieving, because he forced everybody to get the best out of themselves. He forced everybody to work a little bit harder,” Mickelson said ahead of August’s PGA Championship. “I don’t think I would have had the same level of success had he not come around.”

And for those who might believe Mickelson’s comments to be disingenuous considering the long-held — and apparently erroneous — perception the two leviathans of the links have had a chilly, at best, rivalry in the past, think again. Seems the duo has maintained a cordial relationship for some time.

“Tiger and I have been good friends and have gotten along very well in these team events for many years now,” Mickelson said during the recent Presidents Cup, in which Woods served as vice captain. “Just because it doesn’t get reported or shown, is irrelevant. We’ve worked very well in these team events, and to share in our success has been really fun for us.”

Woods, who vigorously supported Mickelson during the biennial match with the Internationals to the point of hugging the winner of his singles match in the tourney’s finale, concurred.

“I think the press has made it [the perceived chilliness between the two] out to more than what it has been,” noted Woods. “We’ve been friends for a very long time. We’ve gotten very close by being on these teams. We’ve played against each other a lot down the stretch, and we have both enjoyed it.”

We second Woods’ hope (assuming all goes well for him at the Hero and beyond) that “going forward, we can continue doing it.”