McIlroy holds off Tiger, goes to No. 1

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Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, 2011 photo
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Posted: 03/04/2012

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (AP) -- Rory McIlroy won the Honda Classic with a performance worthy of the new No. 1 player in golf.

   Right when it looked as though McIlroy had no serious challenge Sunday, Tiger Woods put some color into that red shirt with a birdie-eagle finish to shoot 62 and get within one shot of the lead.

   McIlroy answered with a birdie, and then made three clutch par saves during a daunting stretch at PGA National. He closed with a 1-under 69 for the victory he needed to move to No. 1 in the world.

   He is the 16th player to be atop the world ranking, and at age 22, the second-youngest No. 1 player behind Woods.

   Woods had his lowest final round ever and finished two behind, along with Tom Gillis (69).

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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