Tiger Woods is a man who, for one reason or another, is never far away from the headlines.

But the American - a 14-time major winner - is dominating the news agenda in a positive sense after triumphing at the Tour Championship on Sunday, his first PGA Tour title in five years.

It marks a stunning achievement for Woods, who has undergone four major surgeries on his troublesome back injury since winning his last title, with his lack of activity seeing him plummet down the rankings.

Here, we take a look at the timeline of Woods' dramatic, albeit largely injury-inflicted, fall and rise to becoming a winner again.


September 2013 - Woods was named PGA Tour Player of the Year after winning five titles, while Jordan Spieth won Rookie of the Year. He ended the year as world number one.

March 2014 - Underwent surgery to treat a pinched nerve and missed that year's Masters.

June 2014 - Returned to play Quicken Loans National in June but missed the cut. He played The Open, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and US PGA Championship but struggled at all three and ended the year ranked 32nd.

February 2015 - After withdrawing from the Farmers Insurance Open, Woods announced an "indefinite break" due to poor form including shooting an 11-over-par 82 at the Phoenix Open.

April 2015 - Returned to play the Masters and showed signs of promise - finishing tied-17th after going five under par for the tournament.

September 2015 - Having missed the cut at the U.S. Open and the Open Championship, the first time he had failed to make the weekend at back-to-back majors, Woods confirmed he had undergone a second major back surgery to correct a pinched nerve.

October 2015 - A month later, Woods underwent a follow-up procedure to his previous surgery to help relieve discomfort.

September 2016  - Woods filled the role of non-playing vice-captain in the United States' Ryder Cup victory at Hazeltine.

December 2016 - After a 15-month absence, Woods finally made his comeback at the Hero World Challenge and placed 15th.

February 2017 - Having failed to make the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open a week previously, Woods withdrew from the Dubai Desert Classic on the European Tour ahead of the second round with his agent citing back spasms.

April 2017 - Woods announced he would miss the Masters for a second year running, and later that month undergoes a fourth major surgery to help ease pain in his back and leg.

July 2017 - Woods' inactivity led to him dropping out of world's top 1,000.

October 2017 - Pleaded guilty to reckless driving at Palm Beach County, having been arrested the previous May.

December 2017 - Made his latest comeback at the Hero World Challenge and finished tied-ninth, before he showed more good form at the Valspar Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational early in 2018.

July 2018 -  Finished three shots behind winner Francesco Molinari at The Open, having held the lead midway through the final round at Carnoustie.

August 2018 - Carded a 64 - his lowest final round in a major - on the last day of the US PGA Championship to claim second place, two shots behind winner Brooks Koepka.

September 2018 - Woods secured the Tour Championship at East Lake, his long-awaited victory coming after he was named by captain Jim Furyk as a wildcard pick for the US team to face Europe in the Ryder Cup at the end of the month.