Tiger repays Fred's faith

Fred Couples copped criticism for choosing Tiger Woods with one of his captain's picks for the Presidents Cup but the former world No.1's display on the final day at Royal Melbourne, as the Americans retained the trophy, proved to Couples it was the right move.

Woods did not have it all his own way over the four days at the famed sandbelt course, losing his first two matches playing with Steve Stricker and then Dustin Johnson on Thursday and Friday respectively.

But after getting on the board on Saturday morning again partnered with Johnson, Woods showed further signs that his game is returning to its pre-scandal best when he dusted off Aaron Baddeley 4 and 3 in singles action on the final day.

"He was ready to go this whole week, he was ready for a month," Couples said of Woods, who had six birdies and a lone bogey through 15 holes on Sunday.

"A lot of people have asked why I picked him and how he was going to play."

"Certainly I couldn't answer how he was going to play but this week I think he showed to himself that his swing is back and he's healthy."

"And that's more important to me obviously we want to win the Cup but it's more important for me to have people realise that he can play the game and not worry."

No doubt buoyed pre-tournament by the words of friend and USA captain's assistant John Cook, who declared he would return to the top, Woods was delighted with his final-day display in which he sealed the Americans' 19-15 win a week after finishing third in the Australian Open.

"I played really well last week, I just had one bad day and one bad putting day," Woods said of the start of his fortnight in Australia.

"This week I played even better and a lot of putts they just didn't go in."

"But today was a different deal, Stricks (Stricker) gave me a little lesson on the putting green and whatever he says about putting I'm going to do."

"So all of a sudden I found my natural body position, I started seeing the lines, my toe started moving again, I could feel the release and just felt really good."

While Baddeley was left to lament his own failure to compete against Woods with the putter, International captain Greg Norman said he was pleased to see Woods returning to form even though it cost his team and came after he had questioned Couples' decision to pick him.

"It was very much a balance or a push, he stepped up to the plate, he putted extremely well and we all knew that, Tiger head-to-head is Tiger," Norman said.

"When you get up against a player like that with a history of wanting to win and beat you, it's a tough match."

"I said to Tiger here, 'great tournament in Sydney, you need golf just as much as golf needs you so basically get yourself back out there'."

"Any player hates to see another great player struggle, because we all know what it's like to go through the ins and outs of the game."

"You want to see a player who dominated the game come back to where you can feel like OK when I beat him I really know I beat him at the top of his game."

"I hope he comes back, there's no question about it."