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What a difference a year makes. This time last year at the Hero World Challenge, Tiger Woods was being carted around and talking about how anything beyond what he already accomplished in his career would be "gravy." He looked, for lack of a better term, like he was toast. This year, the optimism is flowing as a healthy Woods spoke on Tuesday about his goals for the week as well as his plan for the future.

"I'm going to try to do the same thing I always do," said Woods. "I'm entered in an event, I'm going to try to win this thing. I'm going to be focused, I'm going to do what I can do and put the ball in the correct spots, give myself looks and try to bury these putts and post, post scores, and get myself in that mix come Sunday afternoon.

"I know that's a tall order since I've been away from the game for so long and I've made a lot of different changes in my game, but the mindset is still the same. I know they're going to try and beat me. I'm going to try and beat them."

If this sounds a little preposterous, it should. Woods has not played since August 2015. He is not going to win the event. But what's important here is that Woods' outlook is positive. He is the same old Tiger, at least in the way he's speaking. That's a far cry from last December in the Bahamas.

"It was that period of a month or two where getting out of bed, I just couldn't get out of bed," said Woods on Monday. "I needed help. It was a tough, tough time. You asked me then, 'could I play?' No, I can't even get out of bed, how am I supposed to swing a club at 120 miles an hour? That's just two different worlds."

Woods has always been in his own world when it comes to talent and resume. The 14-time major winner is just one PGA Tour victory shy of 80 and three shy of tying the all-time record of 82 held by Sam Snead. He admitted that as he enters a different chapter in his life (Woods turns 41 in December), he has started to think differently about his legacy. This is why he set up his new company TGR, he said.

"... I'm setting up phase two of my life," said Woods. "I call it phase two because I can't play this game forever at a competitive, high level. Would I love to? Yes. Guys have played into their 70s and 80s, but they're not competing at a world class level. You can still play golf for a lifetime and I want to play golf for a lifetime, but also I know I can't compete out here for a lifetime.

"As far as how much golf I'm going to play, I don't know because I don't know what my back's going to be doing. Would I like to play a full schedule every year for the next decade plus? Yeah, I would, that would be great. Can I? I don't know. We'll see. I'm going to do everything I can."

What Woods can also do is have a great last hurrah. We have gotten so many epic moments and tournament out of Phil Mickelson in his 40s. Why could we not get the same from Woods? If we do, though, it's going to look different than it did when he was 20 or even 30. He's going to have to reshape his game to fit his aging frame.

"Winning is an evolution," added Woods. "It's going from at home on the range and then going out on my home course and then going into a tournament setting and then eventually on the back nine of an event trying to win it, and then the ultimate is a major championship and then the back nine of a major is a totally different animal. So it's a process.

"You see guys like Bubba and Dustin, they're just, 'How far to that bunker, 320? OK, right over the top.' It's different. You play golf differently and there's different ways to win. You can hit the ball as far as Dustin does or as far as Bubba does, or you can go out there and hit it as far as Jim Furyk did and shoot 58. There's different ways to get it done."

The big question this week will be whether Woods still has the goods to "get it done," as he said. I'm convinced he does. I'm certain there is something within him that remains spectacular. One last ride. I'm not sure how long that will last or how productive it will be, but there will be a few moments that make us feel those old Tiger feelings we all used to feel. I'm excited about that. I just hope his body lets us see them.