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ROCHESTER, NY -- By anyone elses standard, Tiger Woods has had a career season so far. Five victories, two of them World Golf Championship events along with the Players. You need a pretty sturdy mantle piece to hold the hardware from those events. Its the 10th time Woods has won at least five tournaments in a single year. To put it in perspective, Hunter Mahan, Tom Lehman and John Daly each has a total of five wins in their career. Stephen Ames, one of Canadas most successful players, has four. Great players all, but we definitely hold Tiger to a higher standard and he holds himself to that as well. For many years, Woods stated that no matter how many times he lifted trophies, if one of those wasnt a major, it simply couldnt be classified as a great year. Yet on Tuesday, when asked to assess his season so far, Woods seemed to soften that stance. Its hard to dispute his assessment, but it did signal a shift in his thinking. "I think winning one major championship automatically means you had a great year," said Woods Tuesday after an intense session on Oak Hills back nine where he methodically dissected each green. "Even if you miss the cut in every tournament you play in; you win one, youre part of history. This year, I think its been a great year so far for me, winning five times, and you look at the quality of tournaments Ive won, a Players and two World Golf Championships in there, thats pretty good." Pretty good indeed. Hes also leading the World Ranking, the PGA Tour money list and the FedEx Cup standings. He has the best scoring average on Tour and also is atop the All Around category, essentially a summary of the top stats. But there is no major. He might have another Green Jacket if he hadnt rung one off the post at Augusta National in April. And last month, he might have raised another Claret Jug if hed been able to figure out Muirfields greens on the weekend. Those arent the only times in his 17-tournament winless drought that hes come close. "Ive had, certainly, my share of chances to win," said Woods, who has been stuck on 14 majors since the 2008 U.S. Open. "Ive had my opportunities there on the back nine on those -- probably half of those Sundays for the last five years where Ive had a chance, and just havent won it. But the key is to keep giving myself chances, and eventually Ill start getting them." Woods said trying to get major No. 15 has been frustrating, especially after the first 14 seemed to come so easily and relatively frequently. While he has endured his own struggles with injuries and swing changes, the rest of the golf world has raised its game. Since Woods last won a major, there have been 18 different winners, 14 of them first-timers. Players are simply ready to win big events at an earlier age and younger players are no longer intimidated seeing Woods name up on the leaderboard. But ever the optimist, the worlds top players feels this week just might be the one where it all comes together. "Overall, I feel very pleased with where my game is at," said Woods, who tied for 39th the last time the PGA Championship visited Oak Hill in 2003. "Ive played well in the last two tournaments Ive played in, especially coming off a little bit of an injury at The Open and coming back and really played well in the last two tournaments, Im very pleased about that." Whether all that translates into a win here wont be determined until Sunday night. At that point, with the majors done, Woods and the rest of the world will assess his year and decide if its a great one or not. . - Connor McDavid scored 53 seconds into overtime as the Erie Otters came from behind to defeat the visiting Guelph Storm 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. The game started the same way the Vancouver game started the night before, with the Jets taking the first two penalties of the game and killing off the first, but the Oilers getting on the board first, scoring on the second man-advantage. .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. DAYTON, Ohio -- Mark Alstork, who started the season averaging 32.7 points a game, had 23 points on Monday night as Wright State drubbed Division II Ohio Dominican 109-54 to open the Men Against Breast Cancer Classic.Alstork, who was 7 of 11 from the field, also dished out four assists. Grant Benzinger was 3 of 5 from beyond the arc for 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Steven Davis added 14 points and Mike La Tulip chipped in 13 as 11 players got on the scoreboard for Wrright State (3-1).dddddddddddd The Raiders bounced back after dropping their first game to Toledo on Saturday night.Wright State hit 32 of 57 (56.1%) from the floor while holding Ohio Dominican to 20-of-55 shooting. The Raiders also nailed 13 of 26 from beyond the arc and won the rebound battle 43-27.Sam Hickey led Ohio Dominican with 11 points. ' ' '
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