He made birdies at 17 and 18 to erase a one-shot deficit and beat former Masters champion Zach Johnson by one stroke in the unofficial 18-man event.

　　The one-shot triumph is the former world No.1's first victory since the sex scandal shattered his iconic image in 2009.

　　"It feels awesome, whatever it is," said Woods, who is projected to rise from his current 52nd in the world rankings to 21st.

　　Woods' last victory had come at the Australian Masters on November 15, 2009. Later that month, he crashed his car outside his Florida home after the night of the US Thanksgiving holiday in an incident that led to the unveiling of his secret sex life.