Tiger Woods emerges victorious at Tour Championship

TIGER WOODS is playing back to his best and can light up the Ryder Cup at Le Golf National this week, according to his former coach Butch Harmon. Woods stormed to his first victory in over five years at the Tour Championship - the final event of the season on the PGA Tour - last weekend.

It marked his comeback from injury after going close a number of times during the season.

He finished second in the PGA Championship and at the Valspar - with seven top tens through the season.

Tiger Woods’ Ryder Cup record - 13-17-3 - is not one to shout about though.

But Harmon thinks his eighth event, and first since 2012, could be different if Jim Furyk gets his pairing right.

“Talking to a lot of American players, they have often struggled being Tiger's partner,” Harmon told Sky Sports.

“It's not so much that Tiger has played poorly in Ryder Cups, the guys often say how they tried too hard because they didn't want to let him down.

“If you look at all the combinations they had, because they seemed to try most players on the various teams, I think Tiger played fine but he just didn't get any help.

“It went wrong when Phil Mickelson played with Tiger in 2004 because in those days, they barely talked to each other. They lived separate lives in different parts of the country and didn't really play any practice rounds together.

“In those days, if you put Woods and Mickelson together then you ruined two other teams. At that point in time that was a disaster not only in the morning, but they put them out again the afternoon which I really didn't understand.

“If you put them together now, which I hope they don't because I think you take away two teams, I think it might work now as they get along fine. This has the potential to be the most exciting Ryder Cup ever.”

Woods’ return to the winners circle has added even more excitement to the build up for the week ahead in France.

He arrived with the American players on Monday and was out on the course practicing yesterday.

Le Golf National is expected to challenge the big hitters on the US team with its tight fairways and small green.

But Harmon reckons the sight of Woods in full flow will excite the crowd - and he even thinks he’s back towards his best.