Tiger wins tense Masters play-off

After 10 majors without a win and five where he had not even been in contention in the last round, Tiger Woods achieved an amazing fourth Masters victory at Augusta tonight.

He beat Ryder Cup team-mate Chris DiMarco with a 15-foot birdie putt at the first hole of a sudden-death play-off.

Woods seemed to have their duel in the bag following one of the most dramatic shots of a dramatic career on the short 16th.

Having sent his tee shot long and left, Woods chipped up the slope beyond the flag and watched the ball come back down, stop on the lip and then fall in.

It put him two ahead, but he was in the trees at the 17th and a bunker on the last, and could not save par either time, pulling a 10-footer wide at the 72nd.

They tied on the 12-under-par total of 276, an incredible seven clear of Britain’s Luke Donald and South African Retief Goosen.

Donald had two eagles and two birdies in the last eight holes for a finish only ever bettered by eight players on their first attempt in the event.

Woods and DiMarco, showing great courage after a difficult morning in which he fell from four ahead to three behind when the third round had to be completed, returned to the 18th tee – the first time sudden death has started there.

DiMarco had hit the hole with his chip at the last and from almost the same spot, after coming up just short again, he got his ball to within inches.

But that left Woods with another chance – and he took his career play-off record to an incredible 10 wins and only one defeat. Nobody has ever been better under pressure.

With the win Woods not only returned to the world number one spot but also improved his collection of major crowns to nine. He is know halfway to the record set on the same course by Jack Nicklaus 19 years ago.

The 29-year-old is now joint third in the all-time list alongside Ben Hogan and Gary Player. Tom Watson has been left behind and only Walter Hagen with 11 and Nicklaus lie ahead.

Moreover, four green jackets is an achievement he now shares with Arnold Palmer. Again only Nicklaus – inevitably – has more with six.

The day had begun with Woods four behind DiMarco nine holes into the delayed third round, but within 30 minutes the picture had changed.

Woods, resuming on the 10th fairway, hit a six-iron to 10 feet and made what was his fourth successive birdie. DiMarco, in the group behind, squirted his approach into a bush, took a penalty drop and came off with a double-bogey six.

The gap was instantly down to one and Woods then took his run of birdies to a record-equalling seven in a row, holing from 15 feet, seven feet and seven again - after almost dumping his five-iron into Rae’s Creek.

The first-ever 62 in majors was a real possibility at that point, but he three-putted the 14th and went from trees into the lake for a bogey six at the 15th and had to settle for a 65 on top of his second-round 66.

It seemed far more than three days ago that he putted into the creek on the 13th and hit a drive only 100 yards on the second.

DiMarco could find no answer, coming home in 41 and falling three behind with a bogey on the 17th.

Four hours later they set out for the final lap – and Woods birdied the first two holes to get to 13 under.

DiMarco, however, matched his four on the long second and was back to only three behind when Woods three-putted the fifth.

All Woods’ previous eight major championship victories had been played from the front and with 16 birdies in his last two rounds – a 13-under 131 which equalled the record he established in 1997 – he was an odds-on favourite.

In the weekend that saw Nicklaus bring the curtain down on his Masters career Woods could take that as a lucky omen.

Nicklaus’ last US Open was in 2000 and Woods won by a major record 15 shots. The Golden Bear’s farewell to the US PGA was two months later and Woods won that in a play-off against Bob May.

Woods also thought that Nicklaus was playing his last Open when he won at St Andrews in 2000, but Nicklaus has now said he will play again on the Old Course this summer.

That was down the road. Today, barring a nightmare somewhere, he was in a straight head-to-head with DiMarco.

That was because Dane Thomas Bjorn, four behind with a round to go, went into the trees on the second, was forced to take a penalty drop and ran up a seven en route to a nightmare 81.

Woods was four clear when he birdied the ninth, but DiMarco followed him in and then got a sniff of a chance when his playing partner fluffed a chip at the 10th.

Loser of a play-off to Vijay Singh in the US PGA last August, he made a 30-footer at the 11th, but bogeyed the 12th to fall two behind again.

It was far from over, though. DiMarco hit a glorious approach to the 14th and when he birdied the 15th after laying up he was on level terms.

It was only for a few seconds. Woods was on in two and two-putted, then produced his heroics on the 16th.

Again it looked over. But it wasn’t – not yet.

DiMarco said: “To be in the thick of it was awesome and to make my five-footer on the 18th was great. The difference was his chip on the 16th went in and mine on the 18th lipped out.”

Singh could not hold on to the world number one position despite a closing birdie for a share of fifth - South African Trevor Immelman was among the four alongside him after a hole-in-one at the 16th.

Defending champion Mickelson double-bogeyed both par-threes on the back nine, the 12th and 16th, and fell back to 10th.

Just behind him was American amateur champion Ryan Moore, who matched the 13th-placed finish of Casey Wittenberg last year – the best two performances by amateurs since Charles Coe was ninth in 1962. But this weekend belonged to Woods.

Incredibly, the tournament began with him putting into Rae’s Creek on the 13th, hitting a 100-yard drive on the second hole (his 11th) and handing in a card for 74.

He was 33rd after that, but his middle rounds of 66 and 65 equalled his own best mark and a closing 71 got it done.

“Chris has no back-off in him,” he said afterwards.

“This was such a hard-fought week with the rain delays and everything. And I didn’t get off to the greatest of starts.”

Woods dedicated his play-off victory to his ill father, Earl.

“He was not healthy enough to come out (to the course) today,” said the 29-year-old.

Turning to the TV cameras, he said: “This one’s for you pop.”

Woods added: “The troubles he has gone through he was not looking good and he is having a hard time right now. But there’s a big bear-hug waiting for him and I dedicate this to him.”

Woods senior suffered a heart attack a few years ago and has recently been receiving treatment for cancer.

Ireland’s only remaining representative, Darren Clarke, finished with a round of 71.

Collated final totals in the Masters tournament at Augusta National, Augusta, Georgia, United States:

(USA unless stated, par 72): (x) denotes amateurs

276 Tiger Woods 74 66 65 71, Chris DiMarco 67 67 74 68 (Woods won play-off at first extra hole)

283 Retief Goosen (Rsa) 71 75 70 67, Luke Donald (Gbr) 68 77 69 69

284 Rod Pampling (Aus) 73 71 70 70, Mike Weir (Can) 74 71 68 71, Mark Hensby (Aus) 69 73 70 72, Vijay Singh (Fij) 68 73 71 72, Trevor Immelman (Rsa) 73 73 65 73

285 Phil Mickelson 70 72 69 74

286 David Howell (Gbr) 72 69 76 69, Tim Herron 76 68 70 72

287 Tom Lehman 74 74 70 69, (x) Ryan Moore 71 71 75 70, Justin Leonard 75 71 70 71, Thomas Levet (Fra) 71 75 68 73

288 Darren Clarke (Irl) 72 76 69 71, Kirk Triplett 75 68 72 73, Chad Campbell 73 73 67 75

289 Jeff Maggert 74 74 72 69, Bernhard Langer (Ger) 74 74 70 71, Stewart Cink 72 72 74 71, Jerry Kelly 75 70 73 71, Scott Verplank 72 75 69 73

290 Joe Ogilvie 74 73 73 70, Craig Parry (Aus) 72 75 69 74, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 71 67 71 81

291 Jim Furyk 76 67 74 74

292 Steve Flesch 76 70 70 76, Kenny Perry 76 68 71 77

293 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 74 74 73 72, Mark O’Meara 72 74 72 75

294 (x) Luke List 77 69 78 70, KJ Choi (S Kor) 73 72 76 73, Adam Scott (Aus) 71 76 72 75, Shingo Katayama (Jpn) 72 74 73 75, Casey Wittenberg 72 72 74 76, Ian Poulter (Gbr) 72 74 72 76

295 Fred Couples 75 71 77 72, Tim Clark (Rsa) 74 74 72 75, Ryan Palmer 70 74 74 77, Todd Hamilton 77 70 71 77

296 Jonathan Kaye 72 74 76 74, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 69 76 72 79

297 Stephen Ames (Can) 73 74 75 75, Nick O’Hern (Aus) 72 72 76 77

298 Ernie Els (Rsa) 75 73 78 72

301 Jay Haas 76 71 76 78

304 Chris Riley 71 77 78 78

306 Craig Stadler 75 73 79 79.