Buzzin Golf

After all of the hype surrounding Tiger Woods’ return to competitive action, it has been a relatively disappointing start to 2009 for the American.

Defeat in the Accenture Match Play Championship second round was followed by a struggle for consistency at the WGC-CA Championship a couple of weeks ago.

The latest twist is that, ahead of the US Masters, he could be overtaken in the rankings by Phil Mickelson. The gap between the two has decreased to 0.2 points in the last few weeks, presenting Phil Mickelson with an opportunity to become the No.1 ranked golfer for the first time.

The scenario for this to happen is for Tiger Woods to finish outside the top two of this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational in Bay Hill. Then, when Phil Mickelson returns to action next week, he will have the chance to leapfrog his fellow American at the Houston Open.

It would mean that Tiger Woods would be stripped of his No.1 ranking for the first time in 198 weeks. Even though it comes on the back of being eight months out injured, this will still be significant for both players.

Tiger Woods – who managed to hold onto the No.1 spot throughout his injury – will not enjoy the fact that his great rival Phil Mickelson could overtake him in the rankings.

Phil Mickelson on the other hand will be ecstatic. It is what he has been aiming for during the last few years and you just know he is going to enjoy every moment should the next couple of weeks work in his favour.

Nothing is certain as yet though as it all depends on where Tiger Woods finishes in this week’s Arnold Palmer event. It would come as no surprise if the 33-year-old turned on the style and won the tournament to prevent Phil Mickelson having his moment of glory.

Tiger Woods often performs when he really, really needs to and this may well be the case again in the next few days. He may see victory in Bay Hill as the springboard for his return to form and this can only be a good thing for golf.

Good luck Tiger!