New-found drive sees Woods get back to his best

Having been able to summon little more than a weak growl for most of the year, Tiger Woods finally found his roar going into the second round of the £4million American Express World Championship tournament here.

Rejuvenated by a month's holiday, and with a new driver stirring his competitive juices, Woods was in contention two shots off the lead held by Sergio Garcia and one behind fellow Americans Rocco Mediate and Tim Herron.

On paper, a three-under-par first-round score of 67 at the Capital City course was the very least that might have been expected of the defending champion.

But while Woods has won four tournaments this season and remains world No1, he is without a major title for the first time in five years. Yet in spite of fierce denials that his form has slipped into even a minor trough, Woods has been forced to concede this has not been one of his better campaigns.

Much the blame has fallen at the door of Nike, his equipment supplier and major sponsor, whose driver introduced nearly two years ago never really satisfied Woods' demanding standards.

Mid-summer he returned to the old Titleist driver, with which he enjoyed so much success early in his professional career. But this week a new Nike model, the Ignite, appeared in Woods' bag. To say it has lit up his game would be an understatement.