• Chevron World Challenge, Round Four

McDowell overhauls Woods after dramatic day

Graeme McDowell triumphed in style © Getty Images

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Graeme McDowell denied Tiger Woods a first title of 2010 by producing a remarkable comeback victory at the Chevron World Challenge. The Ulsterman triumphed in a dramatic play-off showdown after both players finished the tournament locked at 16-under through 72 holes.

McDowell's chances of victory appeared to have evaporated when Woods hit an approach to within two feet at the 18th in regulation play, but the European player forced a play-off with a 20-foot putt, before going on to sink an even longer putt in the sudden-death battle.

If Woods had expected to cruise to the title, then he certainly hadn't informed McDowell of the script. At the start of the day, the American could boast a four-shot lead over the rest of the field - but, by the time he reached the fifth tee, he could only lean back on a one-stroke cushion.

US Open winner McDowell, competing in his sixth tournament in as many weeks, was playing with the reckless abandon of a man with nothing to lose. Every shot the Ulsterman hit in the early stages was loaded with aggression as he sought to pick up another triumph at the end of what has been a glorious year.

Woods seemed weighed down by the burden of McDowell's ferocious pursuit as he coughed up shots at two of the first three holes. But, by the time both players approached the turn, the American had apparently re-familiarised himself with the attributes required to defend a tournament lead. At the eighth Woods sent exactly that message to McDowell - and kept himself on top - by conjuring a remarkable par putt from the fringes of the green.

After both players traded a run of pars, it seemed like Woods had kept the lid on McDowell's charge by the time they reached the 13th. But the former world No. 1 totally imploded - suffering a double-bogey seven as his rhythm deserted him entirely - and McDowell, who secured a birdie, found himself in a two-stroke lead.

The momentum threatened to shift again at the subsequent hole as McDowell suffered the curse of holding the lead. His tee shot was wild - it wasn't far from going out of bounds - and Woods regained his composure to pick up a par that reduced the deficit to just one shot.

McDowell looked to have blown his chances of victory when he sent his 17th tee shot into the long grass behind the green. The ball wasn't playable from that spot, so Europe's Ryder Cup hero was forced to play on from the side of the ninth-hole green. After a miraculous recovery shot, he escaped with a bogey - Woods had already got a par - that left the players locked at 15-under on the 18th tee.

After hitting his tee shot some ten yards behind McDowell's, Woods produced a remarkable approach that landed the ball a couple of feet away from the hole. McDowell had a 20-footer to keep his hopes alive that he, barely conceivably, managed to slot into the hole, before he repeated the feat in the play-off.

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