ORLANDO, Fla. -- Every victory at this point in his career should be a coronation, another opportunity to celebrate what should be one of the most remarkable stories in sports. Vijay Singh won again Sunday, and the world mostly yawns.
What a shame.
His rags-to-riches tale should be one of the best in golf, but most of the talk is about his legendary work ethic, his tireless practice routine, his game getting better as he got older.
Singh, 44, won the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Sunday, shooting a final-round 67 at the Bay Hill Club to notch the 31st victory of his PGA Tour career and record 19th since turning 40 -- two more than the game's all-time victory leader, Sam Snead.
The fact that he did not join the PGA Tour until he was 30 and that he aspired to the No. 1 ranking in golf in his early 40s -- surpassing Tiger Woods -- is great stuff. So is making the World Golf Hall of Fame, which saw him inducted last fall. And overcoming numerous putting woes. And even becoming the first player in 2007 to win multiple times.
Sure, everyone knows that Singh is from Fiji, but a golfer from Finland or France might be afforded more amazement. Perhaps that says something about how routine Singh's accomplishments have become, how long he's been playing in America and at the top of his profession.
But just getting here was a story in itself, one often told but without a lot of detail. And that is too bad. How can you not embrace a man who grew up on a dirt floor, learned to play golf and went on to win $40 million? Maybe because he won't let you.
Singh had a big smile on his face and talked Sunday night about how honored he was to win Palmer's tournament, but you won't get him to delve much into the past. Maybe it's too painful. Perhaps it was too long ago or he just doesn't want us to know.
One of six children, Singh grew up across from an airfield in Fiji and learned to play golf from his father. He left to pursue a pro golf career in 1982, but encountered plenty of difficulty along the way. There is the well-known story of his banishment from the Asian Tour in 1985 for allegedly altering his scorecard at the Indonesian Open -- a charge he has repeatedly denied, called a "misunderstanding," but never fully explained. So much time has passed without incident that it deserves to be put to rest.
Whatever the circumstances, Singh had no place to play, and landed in the rain forests of Borneo, where he could do nothing else but give golf lessons to rich oil executives. And work on his game. Oh, and work on his game some more.
That is undoubtedly where Singh developed his work ethic and determination. He only offers hints of what it was like, never speaking of the desperation he must have endured, or the loneliness, or maybe even the joy of hitting balls in solitude.
By 1988, he had won the Nigerian Open and the Swedish PGA. In 1989, he won the Volvo Open and played the European Tour, but still had to take a second job as a bouncer at night club. Can you imagine Vijay bouncing Brits out of a bar?
After playing a few tournaments in the United States in 1992, Palmer gave Singh an exemption for the 1993 version of his tournament at Bay Hill. He tied for second and has never missed coming here.
"I owe it to this tournament," Singh said. "It was really my starting point on the U.S. tour. I did well enough to pretty much get my tour card and I always played here. I love this golf course now. It's Arnold's tournament, I love Arnold and it's just a nice tournament to come back and play."
Singh was surprised to learn that his 31 victories on the PGA Tour now are unsurpassed by any international player. He matched Englishman Harry Cooper (who won his titles between 1923 and 1942) and trails just 13 players on the all-time victories list.
And yet, how many of them could have told his kind of story?
"When I went back to Fiji, went back to my golf course and looked at where I played and practiced ... it's an eye-opener to go back and say, 'Wow, this is where I started the game and this is where I grew up,'" Singh said. "Those are the times you think and everything hits you a little bit.
"You have to go back to Fiji to really realize that. It's really unbelievable."
Yes, it is.
Bob Harig covers golf for the St. Petersburg Times and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached at harig@sptimes.com.