Tiger gets himself out of the Woods in Arizona

TIGER WOODS admitted he was "very, very fortunate" to have escaped with a narrow victory in the opening round at the Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona.

Top seed Woods was three down with five holes left against fellow American JB Holmes, but he caught fire with his putter not a moment too soon, winning the next four holes as he reeled off three birdies, followed by an eagle at the par-five 17th.

He holed putts from progressively longer distances at each hole, starting with a 14-footer at the par-three 14th, followed by a 17-footer, a 22-footer and a 35-footer.

Woods duly halved the final hole with a par to win by one – much to the relief of the presenting television network, not to mention spectators holding weekly tickets.

"I was not hitting the ball very well most of the day, so I was very fortunate to be in the match," admitted Woods.

"I made three bogeys and gave him three holes, but somehow hit a good shot there at 14 and made the putt.

"Today was one of those lucky times where everything just happened to turn my way. I'm very, very fortunate to advance to the second round."