Tiger Woods came back from four shots down to win the Memorial in 2012. (Condon/PGA TOUR)

By Jeff Shain, PGATOUR.COM contributor

FIELD LIST: The Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance

• COURSE: Muirfield Village Golf Club, 7,352 yards, par 72. Built with an eye on significant events, Jack Nicklaus’ showpiece opened in 1974 and has left an indelible imprint on the Hall of Famer’s hometown. The Memorial remains one of the PGA TOUR’s top “regular” stops, and Muirfield Village was the site of the 1987 Ryder Cup and 1992 U.S. Amateur. The LPGA’s Solheim Cup came to Jack’s Place in 1998, and the Presidents Cup’s arrival in September will make Muirfield Village the only venue to host all three team match-play showcases.

• FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 points.

• CHARITY: Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation, which serves as primary supporter of Nationwide Children’s Hospital along with other Central Ohio charities. Additional donations are given to James Cancer Hospital, The First Tee, Central Ohio Junior Golf Association, Fore Hope and others.

• FIELD WATCH: Defending champion Tiger Woods and Masters winner Adam Scott head to Jack’s Place in what has traditionally one of the strongest fields outside a major or World Golf Championships event. Only eight of the top 25 players in this week’s world rankings aren’t entered. … Woods (78) and Vijay Singh (34) head a list of eight players with at least 12 PGA TOUR victories. … Kenny Perry, whose three Memorial wins rank No.2 behind Woods’ five, steps over from the Champions Tour to tee it up again. … U.S. Amateur champ Stephen Fox and Chinese teen Guan Tianlang will play on special invitations. Guan made headlines when he made the cut at the Masters and New Orleans, but took an early exit from the Byron Nelson Championship.

• 72-HOLE RECORD: 268, Tom Lehman (1994).

• 18-HOLE RECORD: 61, John Huston (2nd round, 1996).

• LAST YEAR: Aided by a chip-in at No. 16 that recalled old times, Woods overcame a four-shot deficit for a 73rd career win that tied Nicklaus for No. 2 on the PGA TOUR’s all-time list. Woods still trailed Rory Sabbatini by two when he birdied the par-5 15th and then conjured up a shot that left even Nicklaus gushing. From deep rough behind the 16th green, Woods risked coming up short with a rolloff away from the hole, or going long into the water. Instead his flop shot had just the right touch, landing softly and running into the hole. A closing birdie gave Woods a 5-under 67 and two-shot triumph over Sabbatini and fast-closing Andres Romero.

• STORYLINES: Woods, with four wins in 2013 after his triumph at THE PLAYERS, seeks a sixth Memorial victory that also would be his third in the past five years. He also won three straight Memorials from 1999-01. … The Memorial will serve as a dry run of sorts for upgrades at Muirfield Village in advance of the Presidents Cup. The clubhouse has added an expanded locker room and fitness facility. … Fred Couples, the 1998 champion and U.S. Presidents Cup captain, makes his 22nd Memorial start and first on the PGA TOUR since Hall of Fame enshrinement earlier this month.

• SHORT CHIPS: A Woods victory would complete a second consecutive Arnie/Jack “double” and sixth of his career. Woods picked up an eighth Arnold Palmer Invitational title in March. … Raymond Floyd, winner of four major championships, is this year’s Memorial honoree. His career will be celebrated during Wednesday ceremonies. … Four of the Memorial’s past nine champions have been international players. Before that, just three of the first 27 came from outside the United States. … None of the four players who finished closest to Woods last year – Sabbatini, Romero, Daniel Summerhays and Spencer Levin – are part of this year’s roster.

• TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 3-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday, 12:30-2:30 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS). Sunday, noon-2 p.m. (GC), 2:30-6 p.m. (CBS).

• RADIO: Thursday-Sunday, noon-6 p.m. ET (SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio).

Guan Tianlang has made two cuts in three PGA TOUR starts this year. (Revere/Getty Images)

By PGATOUR.COM 

Guan Tianlang has accepted an exemption to compete in the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. The event will take place May 27 to June 2 at Muirfield Village Golf Club.

Guan, 14, last month became the youngest player to make a cut in a major championship in PGA TOUR history when he finished 58th at The Masters Tournament with a 12-over-par 300 aggregate. His invitation to the first major of the season came by way of his victory at the 2012 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship. A native of Guangzhou, China, Guan followed up his performance at Augusta National Golf Club by making the cut two weeks later at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he finished 71st at 4-over 292. Last week he missed the cut at the HP Byron Nelson Championship after rounds of 70 and 77.

Fans will be able to watch Guan's first two rounds at the Memorial through PGATOUR.COM's LIVE@ coverage.

“I am very excited to accept the invitation to play at the Memorial Tournament,” Guan said. “It is Jack Nicklaus’ event, and the same as all the golf fans out there I have very high respect to Mr. Nicklaus, not just as a golf legend, but also as a great person. He has been actively involved in the development of golf in China, and junior golf development worldwide, and as a junior golfer myself I appreciate what he has done to help us grow. My parents and I got the chance to meet him in person at the Masters, and that was one of the highlights of my week at Augusta National. I appreciate a lot the Memorial Tournament for having me there, and it is going to be a great week.”

Guan is ranked No. 78 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

“The Memorial Tournament has been a strong supporter of amateur golf since its inception, and each year the winners of both the U.S. Amateur and British Amateur are always invited to participate,” said Memorial Tournament Founder and Host Jack Nicklaus. “With the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship becoming such an important event in the game of golf, and with the winner earning an invitation to the Masters and a spot in International final qualifying for the British Open, the Captains Club thought it was only appropriate to offer an invitation to the Memorial Tournament. We hope that in the future, we can make this a standard policy with our exemptions."

14-year-old Chinese sensation @guan_tianlang joins the field for the 38th Memorial Tournament! #MTGolf

— Memorial Tournament (@MemorialGolf) May 20, 2013

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

Tiger Woods officially committed to the Memorial tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance on Tuesday.

"I always look forward to playing in Jack's tournament," Woods said on his website. "It's a wonderful course, and we are always treated well. We, as players, are very appreciative of what he has meant to the game."

The tournament is May 30-June 2 at Muirfield Village.

Last year, Woods shot a final-round 67 to win by two, becoming the first player in the tournament's history to win it five times. He also won there in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2009.

Woods is coming off his fourth victory of the season Sunday at THE PLAYERS Championship. He has four wins in seven starts this year and 78 for his career on the PGA TOUR.

Last year's victory at Muirfield Village was his 73rd, tying him at the time with tournament host Jack Nicklaus. Woods has won five times since and is second to only Sam Snead and his 82 career wins.

World No. 1 @tigerwoods committed to @memorialgolf: “It’s always great to win a tournament, but when it’s Jack’s, it’s extra special."

— Jack Nicklaus (@jacknicklaus) May 14, 2013

Tiger Woods won for the 73rd time on the PGA TOUR and second time this season Sunday at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. With this victory, Woods:

• Collects 500 FedExCup points and moves from No. 17 to No. 3 in the latest standings. He trails leader Jason Dufner by 331 points.

• Ties Jack Nicklaus for No. 2 on the TOUR's all-time wins list with 73 victories. Sam Snead leads with 82.

• Wins for the second time on the PGA TOUR in 2012 (Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard), marking the 13th season in which he had posted multiple victories.

• Wins the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Memorial Tournament in the same season for the fourth time in his career (2000, 2001, 2009 and 2012).

• Becomes tie first player to win the Memorial Tournament five times (1999, 2000, 2001, 2009 and 2012).

• Earns 21st come-from-behind victory on the PGA TOUR and first since the 2009 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.

This victory is Tiger's 73rd in 283 PGA TOUR starts. Here's a list of Woods' 73 victories:

With Sunday’s victory at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, Tiger Woods tied Jack Nicklaus with 73 career wins for second all-time on the PGA TOUR. Woods trails only Sam Snead, who has 82.

This was also the second win of the season for Woods, who moved to third in the FedExCup standings.

Woods reached 73 career wins at 36 years, 2 months and 25 days old. Nicklaus reached that number at 46 years, 2 months, 23 days, while Snead got his 73rd win at 43 years, 9 days.

Woods also became the first player to win the Memorial Tournament five times. Twelve of Woods’ 73 TOUR victories have come in the state of Ohio.

Tiger Woods tournaments with six or more victories (professional starts only)

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

DUBLIN, Ohio -- Rickie Fowler had been the hottest player on the planet, winning the Wells Fargo Championship last month and finishing 10th or better in his last four starts.

Not Sunday at the Memorial Tournament, though. Fowler started the final round in third place, three shots off the lead, but ended up shooting an 84 that tied for the the high score of the week and dropped him 49 spots down the leaderboard.

Fowler only made four pars in 18 holes on Sunday. He had three double bogeys, eight bogeys and two birdies in shooting his highest score on the PGA TOUR. Fowler's previous high was a 79 in the final round of the Northern Trust Open earlier this year.

"One of those days," Fowler said. "I made birdie on the first hole and I pulled one on 2 and just kind of got behind the eight-ball. I really didn't make that many bad swings. I felt like I hit some pretty solid golf shots. Out here if you don't hit your number perfectly, within one or two paces, you're either in the bunker with a tough up and down or long on a downslope out of the rough and you're not getting up and down.

"Going to get a lot of Sundays from now on, some good ones and some bad ones, and this is not going to be the last bad one."

Fowler was playing with Tiger Woods, who birdied three of his last four holes to shoot 67 and seal the 73rd victory of his career. Fowler said he was just trying to stay out of Woods' way on the back nine and agreed that Sunday was vintage Woods.

"I wasn't counting," Fowler said when reminded Woods made up a two-stroke deficit over his final four holes. "I had too many strokes of my own to count. ... He was playing good. He was hitting some solid golf shots, and it was fun to see him finally out there making some swings like he does when we're at home.

"He looked very comfortable and hit a lot of good shots, and like I said, the times where he's in the moment and in the heat of contention is where he really shines."

All in all, Fowler didn't appear overly concerned by his performance on Sunday. He knows he's been playing well -- ranking 10th in the FedExCup and ninth in earnings on the PGA TOUR – and sees the final round at Muirfield Village as something of an anomaly.

"It kind of shows you the fine line out here," Fowler said. "If you're not hitting your numbers, especially coming down Sunday, it separates the men from the boys, and today I just was a little off.  I didn't hit too many mis-hit shots. I hit some that were solid golf shots that whether the wind died or picked up, just tough luck."

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

DUBLIN, Ohio -- For the second time this year, Spencer Levin saw his shot at that elusive first PGA TOUR victory unravel on the back nine.

On Sunday, Levin, who started the final round of the Memorial Tournament with a one-stroke lead, birdied his first hole, then ran off eight straight pars and was still ahead by two strokes when he made the turn. That lead evaporated, though, with a back-nine 40 as the indomitable Tiger Woods charged to his 73rd  career victory and his second in four starts.

It was an unfortunate case of deja vu for Levin who had taken a six-stroke lead into the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February only to shoot another 75 that included a back nine 39. Kyle Stanley was the winner there, a week after he, too, had squandered the final-round lead.

"I don't know," the disappointed Levin said. "I just got to find a way to get a little tougher there on the back nine. That's it. I've just got to find a way to trust myself a little more. The mind starts wandering, and it's easy to do. I tried my hardest obviously ... just got to drive it better. That's the bottom line. Today if I would have drove it well on the back nine, I would have had a chance to win."

Levin missed four fairways on the back nine Sunday and hit just 50 percent for the day. He made three bogeys, one double bogey and just one birdie in his final nine holes.

At the same time, Levin led the field in strokes gained-putting and putts per round while finishing second in putts per green in regulation.

""Maybe just a couple of doubts here and there in your swing once in a while," Levin said. "I don't know. I didn't have it on the back nine. Everything was fine going to 10, and bad swing on 10, bad swing on 11, still made par, bad swing on 13, bad swing on 12. Bad swing on 17.
   
"I mean, I knew Tiger was going to play good today. He always does. And I knew Rory (Sabbatini) would play good, too, and Rickie (Fowler). I figured everybody would play good like they always do.

"I'm not naïve. I knew I had to play good to win. If I would have shot under par today, I would have won. I mean, the course is hard, but I knew I was going to have to play well, and under par today would have been a really good round. That's just the way it is out here. You've got to have one real low one and then two good ones or play every round good pretty much to win out here."

Levin said he was headed back to the hotel to get some much needed sleep. He'll be playing in a 36-hole qualifer for the U.S. Open on Monday at Ohio State's Scarlet Course.

Tiger Woods’ pitch-in for birdie on the par-3 16th hole Sunday was the “most unbelievable, gutsy shot I've ever seen,” said tournament host Jack Nicklaus. Tell us what you think of the shot below.