Nobody in PGA Tour history has conquered more tournaments than Tiger Woods.
Woods tied Sam Snead for the most tournament triumphs of all time with a three-stroke win over Hideki Matsuyama at the 2019 Zozo Championship in Chiba, Japan, on Monday. Woods shot a three-under 67 in the final round, clinching the 82nd tournament victory of his illustrious career at 19 under for the tournament.
It is another notch on one of the all-time greatest resumes in sports history for the competitor who is second in PGA Tour history with 15 major championships. It was also a statement with the Presidents Cup quickly approaching.
This tournament was a test of endurance over everything else for Woods, who underwent surgery on his left knee for the fifth time just two months ago.
Cameron Morfit of PGATour.com noted Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club received 10 inches of rain, which delayed the second round before it even started. What's more, the final round was suspended for darkness and resumed Monday morning in Japan with Woods holding a three-stroke lead over Matsuyama.
Woods finished his third round at 1:12 p.m. local time on Sunday and then started his fourth round at 2 p.m.
"I think it's the mind," Woods said when asked what the most difficult part of the quick turnaround was, per Morfit. "Being in it for 10 hours is a long period of time ... the mind tends to wander a little bit and just got to grab it and make it come back and be 100 percent committed on the shot."
Matsuyama was the only credible threat to Woods when play resumed in the final round. Nobody else was within six strokes of the victor, who had seven holes left, while the nearest challenger pulled within three with birdies on Nos. 11 and 12 before the delay.
It was a welcome turnaround for the second-place finisher after he was inconsistent with two birdies and two bogeys on his way to even par on the front nine.
Still, Woods just needed steady play to finish the win after he shot a combined 16 under par in the first three rounds. He started strong with birdies on three of the first six holes but saw his lead drop to two with a bogey on No. 12.
