He comes back, he wins. Of course he does - nobody should have been surprised.
Tiger Woods is special. He wins majors with one good leg, so beating the world's 64th best golfer with two is precisely what we should all have expected.
Even opponent Brendan Jones was expecting it.
Even after eight months out of action.
Even though Woods himself claimed he was not sure what would happen in his first competitive test for so long.
What did happen was that he had a comfortable victory - comfortable not only in the three and two margin of it, but also and more importantly comfortable in terms of his reconstructed left knee.
Yes he was starting to look a little weary by the end, even taking his shoes off during a long wait on the 15th tee. But, like so often in his career, he had done what he needed to do by then.
A birdie-eagle start instantly dispelled any fears that he might not be the same golfer as before the surgery.
With all eyes on him there was the familiar twirl of his club on the opening tee as his ball not just found the fairway, but the section of the fairway to give him the best angle to the flag.
There was the familiar fist-pump when his four-iron approach to the long second ran up to within four feet of the cup.
It was the same old Woods and even if the following five holes saw three bogeys a bit of rust appeared the only problem. Nothing physical, nothing mechanical.
With another eagle on the 13th and birdies at the eighth and 15th (a hole he lost actually) he would have needed two closing pars for a four under par 68.
In match play it is all about holes won rather than shots taken, but in this case it is pertinent to record that only three of the other 31 winners on the day scored better than Woods - Zach Johnson was seven under and both Lee Westwood and Tim Clark five under.
It was Clark next up for Woods in today's second round and on paper a bigger test lay ahead.
But that is exactly how he would want it. Because, much though he would like to retain this title, the most important thing about the week is discovering how his body and game react under endurance and under pressure so that he can work on it in the build-up to April's Masters.
With a successful opening day under his belt now the big concern is actually not so much for Woods any more, but for the sport.
There is the recession to worry about first and foremost, but there is also the fact that nothing brings out the fans and the sponsors like fierce competition and does Woods really have it?
Gone already this week are Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington, second and fourth in the rankings, and Phil Mickelson, back to third in the world after his win last Sunday, looked shaky again in losing a four-hole lead before squeezing through against Angel Cabrera.
Harrington, winner of the two majors played in Woods' absence, has now made an early exit from his last three tournaments. He badly needs rounds under his belt before tackling Augusta.
Garcia, meanwhile, has blown the chance to take the world No 1 spot on Sunday week - and, for all we know with Woods back on the scene, he might never get as close again.
At the moment it remains fascinating to see what Woods can achieve at the start of his comeback.
But he is likely to play only a limited schedule as he eases himself back in. Most tournaments will still have to do without him and to attract sponsorship money in the current financial climate when Woods is not part of the entertainment on offer will not be easy.
Those who do have him, though, must be thrilled that he still looks capable of wondrous things.
We are still in the Woods era. It did not end at Torrey Pines last June.
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