Nick Westby: Resurgent Woods set to provide stiff test of nerve for leading trio

It did not occur on the dusty clay of Roland Garros where French Open honours were fought for.

Nor was it beamed back live from the remodelled stadiums of Eastern Europe, where the opening throes of Euro 2012 have been played out.

The particular moment was a warm embrace between the two greatest players in the history of golf – Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus. The occasion was the immediate aftermath of Woods’s victory at Nicklaus’s Memorial Tournament on an exclusive stretch of green belt in Ohio, middle America.

It was the 73rd PGA Tour win of Woods’s career, one which ties him level with the great Nicklaus.

Yet the relevance of the triumph has greater significance than mere statistics – no matter how poignant the moment and staggering the facts.

For Woods’s win was both ominous and exciting for golf.

Ominous in the way it sent a message to those who have made hay during the former world No 1’s fall from grace that while he may not yet be back to his best – he may never be – he still knows how to win tournaments.

And exciting because golf needs Woods. Whether you love him for his God-given talent and work ethic or loathe him for his ill manners and past indiscretions, the man who has done more than any other for the sport is pure box office.

This week’s US Open, which begins in San Francisco on Thursday, has gone under the radar thus far, with the French Open, Euro 2012 and the impending start to the Summer Olympics all taking centre stage.

But, a Woods win next Sunday night, four years after his last major triumph would once again turn the golfing world on its head and shift the focus to the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

The fact that this week’s US Open is played out eight hours behind UK time on the west coast of America, will hardly matter.

The final throes may not be contested until the early hours for those of us who have the stamina to watch the denouement, but a tantalising tournament awaits.

For as well as the latest resurgence of Woods, there are a numerous other compelling storylines, not least surrounding the three men who have now moved front and centre in Woods’s line of sight.

Luke Donald, Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood have one major title between them but any number of near misses.

McIlroy is the only one so far to have breasted the tape, doing so emphatically at last year’s US Open at Congressional, when he went wire-to-wire to quickly erase the nagging doubts that lingered after his Masters implosion two months earlier.

Not so long ago McIlroy was the name on everyone’s lips. Memories of his processional Congressional win were still fresh.

Then came missed cuts at Sawgrass, Wentworth and Muirfield Village, and all of a sudden the illusion was shattered. Just like Woods, golf’s new superstar was fallible.

Questions were raised over how much time he was spending with his tennis star girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki, though that is a convenient excuse for those who want a reason to go on the offensive. Rest assured, McIlroy will not be long in the shadows. As he has shown in Memphis over the last few days, he is getting back to his best.

If accolades were given out for the most top-three finishes in a major, Westwood would be hands-down the best player in the world.

He has risen to the top of the rankings before thanks to his consistency, but it is his putting and occasionally chipping that has so far let him down on the biggest stage. He is also without his bagman this week as Billy Foster nurses a broken leg.

Neither has won the major that defines a career, and as much as the heart would rejoice at Westwood finally getting what’s owed in San Francisco this week, there will be a small part that is tinged with sadness at Bingley’s Foster not being there to share in the triumphant moment.

The man best-equipped to win the US Open would be Donald.

Recently-returned to the top of the rankings after a successful defence of his BMW PGA Championship title, Donald – like Westwood – is missing only a major from his CV.

Accurate off the tee and sublime from the middle of the fairway, Donald’s greatest strength is his nerveless putting that is widely regarded as the best in the business. But, again like Westwood, the question remains over his mental strength down the stretch in the biggest tournaments of all, and until he delivers a major win the validity of his status as world No 1 will forever be called into question.

Away from the big names, there are any number of candidates to win the US Open. The last eight majors were won by first-time champions. Players have been vying for the title of the game’s greatest as the demise of Woods was played out before them. But, with two victories to his name this year and a return to fourth in the world rankings, Woods is showing that he is ready to announce his comeback.

He may be far from the finished article, but there are signs that the work he has done with new coach Sean Foley is starting to pay off.

The errant tee shots that blighted his Masters challenge have been reduced, though not altogether wiped out. And a confidence in his putting stroke appears to be returning. No longer would you put your mortgage on Woods holing anything from inside 10 feet, but the ridiculous three stabs from eight feet that were becoming common as he lost the fluidity of his stroke, also appear to be dwindling in frequency.

Should he find himself in the fray come Sunday, it will be a further test of the McIlroy, Donald, Westwood nerve.

Woods is on the verge of being back. An emphatic statement at the Olympic Club would only confirm that.