When he nervously prodded a par putt to drop behind at the first it seemed as if the occasion may have got to him, but he responded superbly at the dramatic third hole.

His tee shot at the par-three overlooking the ocean trickled inches past the flag and his birdie put him one shot ahead as Woods was unable to save par from a plugged lie in the front bunker.

The shock lead did not last long as Mediate's approach from the sand at the fifth bounced into the wilderness off a cart path, and he did well to just drop the one shot.

Woods appeared to have underlined his supremacy with a drive and a nine-iron to four feet at the 500-plus yard par-four sixth, and added another birdie at the next with a 12-foot putt to move two clear.

But he had his problems as well and he dropped a shot at the eighth after finding another perilous spot in the bunker.

Putting opened the gap again, Woods holing two good ones, the second from the apron off the 10th green and Mediate missing two relative tiddlers.

Mediate somehow stayed in contention with some determined play, but was unexpectedly aided by Woods finding sand at the next two holes.

With his injured knee causing extreme discomfort, Woods drove so far right at the 15th that he found a bunker on another hole, and Mediate kept up the pressure by finding the middle of the green in regulation.

Woods produced one of the very great shots, drawing one in from the sand to six feet, but Mediate got his blow in first, holing a snaking one from around 20, Woods missed and was one down with only three to play.

He left two birdie chances agonisingly short at the next two holes and Mediate calmly sank a three-footer to take a one-shot advantage to the final hole.

Mediate found the fairway trap and laid up 124 yards short, while Woods sent a three-iron towering over the pond to find the par-five in two.

After Woods two-putted, Mediate then had to hole a nerve-jangling putt from around a yard to take the match on.

The first extra hole was the seventh, and while Woods ripped a monster drive way down the fairway, Mediate found the sand, and then had to drop out from the stands beside the green.

With Woods making a solid four, Mediate needed to hole from around 20 feet but this time he could not do it and his great adventure came to an end.

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