(Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
Tiger bogeyed No. 11, after going bogey-bogey-double bogey-bogey for the record, and found himself tied for the lead with Mahan after leading by three strokes a few holes earlier.
Being tied with a guy in the clubhouse and having to play six more holes is a tough challenge even for Tiger Woods.
Plus, his playing partner Anthony Kim had straightened out his driving problems and was only two strokes behind.
Woods knew Kim could get hot at any moment, as evidenced by his eight-birdie 62 on Thursday and 11 birdies in the second round at The Masters.
With only one birdie hole remaining—the par-five 16th hole—Tiger realized he was in a dog fight with one guy sitting in the clubhouse not having to fight and the other playing alongside him.
In the end, he won, but it was a bit of a struggle.
He bunkered his short approach to the par-four 12th hole, but he tapped in for par after a masterful sand shot. On the 191-yard par-three 13th hole, his five-iron went right but he saved par again. He missed a makeable birdie putt on No. 14 and two-putted for par on No. 15 to set the stage for the do-or-die birdie on the par-five uphill 16th hole.
His drive on No. 16 was in the left rough with a decent lie. He hit a safe five-wood where he was aiming—short right of the green in the rough, avoiding a long bunker shot. His chip was heavy, and due to a green slow, he was left with a 20-footer for birdie.
After backing off his putt once because he was being distracted by photographers and a moving marshal, he settled in and drilled the uphill putt in the hole for a birdie-four.
He played conservatively over the final two par-four holes, and he was able to hit both fairways. With excellent iron shots, he easily two-putted for par, turning his one stroke lead into a one-stroke victory.
The sovereign swing king posted one under for the final six holes after being bedeviled by the par-four 11th for the fourth day in a row. His three-under 67 was good enough to best Mahan's 62 and Kim's 71 on Sunday afternoon at Congressional, which is the site of the 2011 U.S. Open.
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