Michael Ventre

As career-defining disasters go, the one that Tiger Woods created is akin to the Hindenburg crashing into the Titanic.

And that means his comeback — which begins with the Masters on April 8 — will have to measure up to that magnitude. In fact, if Tiger manages to pick up where he left off on the golf course, save his marriage, win back his endorsements and re-establish a campaign of positive legacy-building, it might just be the greatest comeback of all time in sports.

Wisps of white smoke have been coming out of the Woods’ chimney for some time, leading up to this first tournament appearance since that fateful day when his SUV went awry, followed shortly after by his life.

Various sightings have been reported in recent weeks of Tiger jogging or hitting golf balls. His wife Elin and their kids moved back into the house, presumably for good. Tiger’s caddie, Steve Williams, had even opined on the topic of the golfer’s many affairs, and when the caddie’s comments made news all over the world, it was a clear sign the scandal had just about run out of fuel and it was time to play golf again.

Finally, after a highly uncomfortable delay, Tiger resumes his quest to become the greatest golfer ever. He is 34 years old and has won 14 majors. He needs only four more to tie Jack Nicklaus, who won his 18th major in the 1986 Masters at the age of 46.

Back in ’86, the tour wasn’t as dense with contending players as it is today, so you could argue Tiger might have had it tougher anyway, with or without the layoff and fallout from the philandering. On the other hand, if all he wants to do is match what Jack did, he has another 12 years to do so.

Special feature Timeline of Tiger’s sex scandal Timeline: A tabloid report, followed by an early morning car crash at Tiger Woods' Florida mansion, sets off a dark chapter in the pro golfer's life. NBCSports.com

But if he successfully makes a smooth transition from the depths of public humiliation back to the pinnacle of sports royalty, it will trump any comeback that has been done previously by a professional athlete.

One of the most storied comebacks in the annals of sports belonged to Muhammad Ali, who was stripped of his boxing license and prevented from fighting for almost four years after refusing to serve in the military on religious grounds. Eventually the Supreme Court ruled in his favor, he returned to the fight game and he went on to reclaim his stature in boxing.

But Ali’s personal integrity is not in doubt. Certainly he inspired contempt and racist vitriol in some quarters for his anti-war position at the time, but his legacy now is of a man who took a stand for his beliefs. He is not viewed today as someone who carefully constructed a squeaky clean marketing image that translated into millions in endorsement money only to throw it all away through reckless behavior, like Tiger.

Video   Players react to Tiger's return March 16, 2010: Jim Furyk and other PGA Tour players think Tiger Woods will be prepared for his return at the Masters and are hoping they'll be able to go back to business as usual.

And that means that Tiger has a longer road back, even though the actual time off wasn’t nearly as long.

Michael Jordan won three championships with the Chicago Bulls, took a couple of years off from basketball, then returned to win another three championships. But his hiatus was because of a baseball diversion, not any profound interruption in his life, so it isn’t viewed as a steep climb back to dominance.

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Lance Armstrong beat cancer and came back to become a multiple Tour de France champion, but again, his time off is looked upon more admirably by history because of his perseverance; he did not have return after squandering his place in cycling.

There are many other athletes who made memorable comebacks, like Ted Williams, who returned to baseball twice after serving first in World War II and later the Korean War, as well as names like Paul Hornung (gambling), Magic Johnson (HIV), Kobe Bryant (sexual assault charges) and others, for various reasons.