Woods targets another Tiger feat after 74th tour win

With the British Open Championship only two weeks away and another win under his belt, Tiger Woods can achieve yet another milestone this Sunday.

Woods goes straight back into action after capturing the AT&T National and if he now adds the Greenbrier Classic the 36-year-old will take his PGA Tour earnings through the $100million (€79.4m) mark.

He is, of course, already in a league of his own with his $99million.

Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson are next best with $66million and then comes Jim Furyk on $51million.

As for Jack Nicklaus, whom Woods has now overtaken with 74 victories on the circuit, he finished his career with total winnings of $5.7million, good enough only for 209th place on the table now.

Woods remains four behind Nicklaus, though, in what matters most – Majors – and has been stuck on 14 since he won the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines on a shattered left leg.

At this rate, Woods is more likely to get to Snead’s record of 82 tour wins than the record that means the most to him — the 18 Majors won by Nicklaus. Even with four wins in the last seven months, more than anybody else in the game has managed, he knows that Royal Lytham is where people will be judging him again.

“It’s going to be totally different shot-making and preparation,” said Woods.

“I’m going to have to start practising some different shots and getting used to hitting the ball a little bit lower.

“It’s a totally different game playing links golf.”

He does have the comfort of knowing he has mastered it three times already – St Andrews in 2000 and 2005 by eight and five-shot margins and Hoylake in 2006 by two – and he has one good memory of the Lancashire course.

It was there in 1996 that he took the silver medal as low amateur, finishing 22nd, and his second round 66 matched the best score by any amateur in Open history at the time. Tom Lewis went one better last July.

When the event returned to Lytham in 2001 Woods was “only” 25th, but he had just completed his “Tiger Slam” three months earlier, so he can be cut some slack there. In terms of PGA Tour titles only Sam Snead is ahead of him now with 82.

“I’ve had a number of good years in my career so far and I feel like I’ve got a lot more ahead of me. It feels great to get to 74 wins and obviously pass Jack. It’s something I’m very proud of.”

The American went into The Masters on the back of a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and then the US Open on the back of victory at the Memorial Tournament, but the Majors were disappointing – 40th at Augusta and 21st at the Olympic Club.

More Tour wins can only add to his confidence, however, and he has not forgotten that prior to his victory at the unofficial Chevron Challenge in California he had gone over two years without a title and had seen his marriage end after all the revelations about his serial adultery.

“I remember there was a time when people were saying that I could never win again. That was what, six months ago? A lot of media people didn’t think I could win again and I had to deal with those questions for quite a bit.

“It was just a matter of time. I could see the pieces coming together.

“If you look at my ball-striking so far this year it’s gotten more and more consistent.”