LA JOLLA, Calif. — Every time Tiger Woods tees it up at a tournament, we take his temperature. We analyze the state of his game and the state of his mind.
We want to know if he's back.
Ever since the fire hydrant and the subsequent public unraveling of his personal life in 2009 evaporated the aura of dominance and invincibility around Woods, the answer has been a resounding, "No.''
No, Woods has not been the same since the end of '09, the end of his marriage and the unprecedented fall from grace that ensued.
Even in winning three tournaments last year — a career's worth for many players — Woods faltered in the events that matter most — the majors, in which he looked far more human than he ever did when he dominated, struggling in the late rounds.
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Tiger Woods
So Woods was not back last year, not even with the three wins, because he is not measured in mere wins, he is measured by the majors he wins.
Woods this week teased us again, yesterday finishing the job at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, his personal playground, cruising to a four-shot victory that was never in question for most of the week.
There was significance to the win in that, more than he did in any of his three wins last year, Woods looked like his old self, which is to say unbeatable.
"I don't know if anybody would have beaten him this week,'' said Nick Watney, the 2009 winner here who finished third at 9-under.
Hunter Mahan, who like Woods works with swing coach Sean Foley, said, "I think he wanted to send a message."
"I think deep down he did,'' Mahan said. "He looked strong. He had great control of his swing. He was hitting some strong shots, different from any other player I saw out here."
Woods' victory was the 75th PGA Tour win of his career, second only to the great Sam Snead's 82 Tour victories.
It was his seventh win of the PGA Tour event held at Torrey Pines and the his eighth overall on the course, counting his 2008 U.S. Open win on the course, his last major championship title.
With the tournament having been extended to a Monday finish because of the fog that nullified Saturday play, Woods took a six-shot lead into yesterday with 11 holes to play.
It marked the 54th career tournament Woods has carried at least a share of the lead into the final round and the 50th time he's converted it into a victory.
He built his lead to as many as eight shots after a birdie on the par-5 13th hole got him to 18-under. Giving back four shots in the final five holes (a bogey on 14, a double on 15 and a bogey on 17), blemished the rout he had going on, but Woods owned this tournament all week and yesterday was a mere coronation.
"In the end, I just started losing my patience,'' Woods said, referring to incredibly slow play in front of him. "I had an eight-‑shot lead, so I just needed to stay upright and I was going to be fine.''
Woods' win inched him closer to one of his primary goals, to return to the No. 1 ranking. Rory McIlroy, who was not in the field this week, has that mantle.
"Of course he's got [McIlroy] in his sights,'' Woods' caddie, Joe LaCava, said. "He loves Rory, but he knows he wants to get past him, sure. He's making headway. We don't really talk about it, but I know it's important to him. Nothing needs to be said.''
The next event Woods and McIlroy will be in together is the match-play championship next month in Arizona. The next full-field event they'll be in together is the Honda Classic in March in Florida.
Of returning to No. 1, Woods said, "That happens through a product of winning golf tournaments. That's how I got there in the first place. That's how [McIlroy] got there. In order for me to get back there, that's what I have to do. And this is a nice start.
"Does it feel good? Yes. Does it give me confidence? Absolutely.''
Did this win tell us that Woods is back?
"I never left,'' Woods said.
mark.cannizzaro@nypost.com
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