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By John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor

On Sunday at the Memorial Tournament, Kenny Perry announced that he was still a force to be reckoned with on the PGA TOUR.

Kenny Perry's 63 was the best in the final round by a full two shots. (WireImage)

On a day he described as "magical," Kenny missed just two fairways and shot 63. He started the day nine shots behind the 54-hole leader, Rod Pampling. Winning seemed unlikely but when Kenny holed out from the fairway on the par-4 sixth suddenly, he was 5 under through six holes.

The good play continued through the back nine. Kenny said that he never thought about backing off Sunday. He didn't think that he had a chance to win but that he wanted to keep the "pedal to the metal and see what happened."

What happened for the man from Franklin, Ky., was tied for third for his best finish in nearly two years. It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.

There has never been any doubt about Kenny's competitive spirit. You don't spend two decades on TOUR without fire in your belly. But there are few people in professional golf who have earned the respect of their peers like he has. Guys like Kenny and Joey Sindelar are examples for the young guys on how to conduct yourself while maintaining your competitive edge.

Kenny said he had been "battling for the past 18 months," and the results certainly bore that out. Coming into the Memorial, Kenny Perry had not had a top-10 finish since August of 2005. He was sidelined with a nagging knee injury that eventually required surgery in March 2006.

Since the knee surgery, Kenny has had to re-train his right knee to drive through the golf ball. Kenny has always had a bit of an unusual move. The homemade swing sets the club in a strong position at the top from which Kenny can accelerate and drive through the ball. He keeps his right heel on the ground through impact longer than any player on the PGA TOUR. That simple move creates a consistency through the hitting area that has earned Perry nine TOUR titles.

Kenny won the prestigious Memorial crown back in 1991. It was his first title and one that he would repeat again 2003, a three-win season that was the best of Kenny's long PGA TOUR career. He ended the year sixth on the money list. Two years later he won twice more and matched that career-best finish on the money list.

However, since the knee surgery, little had gone well for Kenny's career. As he moves ever closer to the Champions Tour, there is as much salt as pepper around the temples underneath his TaylorMade cap. At 46, it would hardly be a sin to call it a career and mail in the last few years. But that simply isn't Kenny's style.

After a third-round 67 at Jack's place, Kenny said that he hit the ball as well on Saturday as "any time in my career." He said that he thought that he had found something the week before at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. The change that has helped him keep the club from dropping underneath the line on the way down was noted as a contributing factor to the improved ball-striking.

Most players on TOUR maintain a very high level of professionalism. However, Kenny takes it to another level. It is no surprise that in 2002 the Golf Writers Association of America honored Kenny with the Charles Bartlett Award given each year to a player for his unselfish contributions for the betterment of society.

The PGA TOUR is a better place because of Kenny Perry. It certainly is wonderful to see him playing well again.