Tiger Woods watched Jack Nicklaus say goodbye on the Swilcan Bridge. He was here when Tom Watson did the same. He saw Arnold Palmer bid farewell.
Now, as he confessed he might never be back at the Home of Golf, Woods knows it might now be his turn. It’s a thought as painful as the injuries which have put him in this position. But it is reality. And Woods has been through too much to tell himself lies. It’s why he has done so much to be here.
The official R&A slogan for the 150th Championship is – everything has led to this. It could have been thought up with Woods in mind. Having survived a car crash that could have killed him the 46-year-old icon knows planning the future is an unwise vocation. But Woods is accepting of the fact he may not ever return to his favourite place.
It will be at least five years before The Open is back and he said: “I don’t know, if it is that long, whether I will be able to physically compete at this level by then. I don’t know how many Open Championships I have left here at St Andrews but I wanted this one. It started here for me in 1995 and if it ends here in 2022, it does. If it doesn’t it doesn’t.
“If I get the chance to play one more it would be great but there’s no guarantee. Everyone has seemed to have made their farewell there. I got a chance to watch Arnold hit his first tee shot on the second day in 1995 and that was quite special.
“I was going on the range and next thing I hear Ivor Robson on the tee announcing: “From USA, Arnold Palmer.” He gets up there, gives it the big ol’ waggle and hits it up the middle and his head is bobbing all over the place.
“And I played probably about four or five holes behind Jack and Tom when Jack retired in 2005, hearing the roars get louder and louder and louder as we came towards the finish. You could hear the ovations that Jack got coming up 18 for the last time and then the roar because obviously he made the putt. I mean, he wasn’t going to miss.
“We were talking about that yesterday. He claims he’s never missed a putt. And I said, well, that he can recall.
“It’s great to be a part of this Open. It feels historic. It means a lot. This is where it all began for me as an amateur.
"My first chance to play in The Open was here. I’ll never forget I played with Ernie Els and Peter Jacobsen the first two days.
“We had a chance to play with some greats in practice rounds, Freddie, Raymond, Ollie, Langer. I had a great time as a young little kid and they showed me the ropes.
“I think this is my sixth Open here. Just to have that experience and the ability to play at the Home of Golf is always quite special.
“Then to have won it twice makes it that much more special.”
There’s so much around this week for Woods, the Celebration of Champions on Monday, last night’s Champions Dinner. Playing and sitting among heroes of his in surroundings they cherish.
If it is goodbye, it couldn’t be any-more perfect. Woods said: “There’s so much that’s going on. To be able to play yesterday with Lee Buck [Trevino] and to hear him chatting the entire time over every shot as he’s hitting. Then our Champions Dinner because we only do it here.
“It’s been 150 years we’ve played this tournament. The history behind it is incredible, the champions that have won here.
“This is where I completed the career Grand Slam. At the time I had the record in scoring in all four Major championships. This venue has meant a lot.
“I have a photo in my office of when I first played my first practice round. Me sitting there, the history and the people that have walked over that bridge.
“I tell you what, honestly, now I’ve got to be a little more careful with spikes on that bridge. I don’t quite have the agility that I used to. I almost ate it today!
“On Monday, to have Lee and Rory and Jack and just stand there with them, that’s history right there. I watched them play this Open. The telecast would come on at 5am to get a chance to watch them. We’re going to have these opportunities to talk about things like that and that’s what makes it so special.”
Woods might be enjoying the ambience of the event but the fact of the matter remains he is as competitive as hickory clubs are old. The drive just to even get here is what means there isn’t a single rival who will write him off going into tomorrow’s opening round.
Woods is determined to compete. Yet for the first time ever you get the impression that merely competing will be deemed victory on its own.
He said: “For the most part of my rehab I was just hoping that I could walk again, have a normal life and maybe play a little hit-and-giggle golf with my son or my friends at home.
“But lo and behold, I’ve played championship golf. And once I realised that I could possibly play at a high level, my focus was to get back here.
“I just didn’t want to miss this Open at the Home of Golf. It’s hard to believe it’s more historic but it really is. It does feel like that. This does feel like it’s the biggest Open Championship we’ve ever had.”
