CARLSBAD, Calif. — Tiger Woods completed his sweep of the World Golf Championships on Sunday, building a big lead and then holding off a gritty comeback from David Toms to win the Match Play Championship.
Leading by as many as five holes, Woods finally closed out Toms with a 3-foot par putt on the 35th to win, 2 and 1.
“It was a tough day for all of us,” Woods said.
It figured to be a breeze for Woods, especially after he had a 5-up lead and had 8 feet for birdie on the second hole. Toms rolled in a 35-foot birdie putt to swing the momentum, and slowly pieced together a charge that made Woods look vulnerable.
Woods won a record three straight U.S. Junior Amateur titles and three straight U.S. Amateurs, but he was 0-4 as a professional.
That changed during a dominant week at La Costa, where he made only five bogeys on a tough course and played only 112 holes, the fewest of any winner in the five-year history of the tournament.
He also became the first player to win all four of the World Golf Championships since their inception in 1999 — three times the NEC Invitational, twice the American Express Championship and the 2000 World Cup with David Duval.
The missing piece was the Accenture Match Play Championship, a format Woods enjoys the most. He finally showed why, hitting smart shots down the stretch when his game was off and making Toms come after him.
Woods won for the 36th time on the PGA Tour and earned $1,050,000, his largest paycheck on tour.
Since returning from knee surgery after a two-month rehab, Woods has won twice and tied for fifth. His game looks better than ever as he starts preparing for the Masters.
Toms, who missed the cut his previous two tournaments, made $600,000.
“Tell me this: If we’re all on our games and they’re hitting three less clubs than me, who’s got the better chance?” Toms said at Hazeltine after playing the first round with Woods and Ernie Els.
That’s exactly how it shaped up at La Costa.
Even so, this was Woods’ match to lose. He hit into 3 feet for birdie on No. 6, exchanged pars on the next hole and was 4 up with 11 holes to play.
Toms didn’t go away. He simply ran out of holes.