Woods wins on PGA Tour for first time since 2009

After 30 months without an official Tour victory, Woods easily in the end held off the challenge of Graeme McDowell to claim his seventh Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.

The five-stroke win, achieved on 13-under-par with a closing 70, came just two weeks after there were fears for the 14-major winner’s career again when he withdrew from the Cadillac Championship in Miami.

That latest injury proved to be only a mild Achilles tendon strain in his left ankle, however, and now Woods is favourite again for the opening major of the season starting on Thursday week. It is shaping up to be a clash of the giants at Augusta. Rory McIlroy went to world No 1 by winning the Honda Classic three weeks ago, while last Sunday Luke Donald claimed the spot back by capturing the Transitions Championship.

Woods said: “It feels good – it feels really good. It’s been a lot of hard work and I’m so thankful for a lot of people helping me out along the way. They all know who they are.”

Woods now has 72 PGA Tour titles to his name. He needs only one more to match the haul by Jack Nicklaus and that would leave just Sam Snead – 82 between 1936 and 1965 – ahead of him. Apart from his 14 majors, four fewer than Nicklaus, this latest success will feel as sweet as any. Although he won the Chevron World Challenge last December, that was against only 17 other players and some poor finishes earlier this season had people asking questions about him again.

McDowell had hoped to come from behind to beat Woods, just as he did at the 2010 Chevron in California. On that occasion his deficit with a round to play was four and this time it was just one – but that became three when he found a plugged lie by the opening green and double-bogeyed.

Woods dropped a shot by three-putting the short next before the fireworks started. McDowell made a 45-footer from the fringe of the third and then holed from over 50 feet for eagle at the long sixth. He still walked off that green two behind, though, Woods having three birdies in four holes.

That became four in six with a superb approach to two feet on the difficult eighth, then McDowell missed a four-foot par putt to turn in 36 against the 33 of Woods.

The Ulsterman’s putter came good again from 23 feet at the 11th, but when he took 6 on the long next – off much the better drive – he was four behind once more and now with just six holes remaining.

Both bogeyed the short 14th, Woods made a great par save from 12 feet at the 15th and McDowell missed a six-foot birdie chance on the par-5 16th. When he followed that by three-putting for bogey it was all over.

Ernie Els, meanwhile, must now win this week’s Houston Open to earn the final spot in The Masters. With Jim Furyk finishing joint-11th, Els had to finish in second place to climb into the world’s top 50 and qualify that way.

But the former world No 1, twice missed from under three feet as he slipped from joint- third overnight into a six-way tie for fourth with a 74.

Martin Laird, the defending champion, finished in a tie for 36th after closing with 76 for 290.