Rory McIlroy has claimed victory at the World Golf Championship by defeating Gary Woodland in the final in San Francisco.
The match began evenly as both players birdied the opening hole before they each made mistakes on the second and third, leading to back-to-back bogeys.
However, McIlroy moved one up in the final as Woodland bogeyed for the third hole in a row on the fourth, which gave the 25-year-old the initiative to break away.
The world number one birdied the next three holes to extend his advantage to four up as the American had no answer for his skill around the course.
Woodland finally made inroads into McIlroy's lead as the Northern Irishman made a mistake on the 11th to bogey the hole while the American made par, and the 30-year-old followed his success with a birdie to bring his opponent's score within two.
The American missed a golden chance to move within one as he missed a five-foot putt on the 13th, which was to be fatal to his hopes as McIlroy edged further ahead on the 14th before taking the match 4&2 at the 16th.
The triumph was McIlroy's first WGC Match Play title.
Simon Sinclair
