When the day comes for Tiger Woods to recline in his armchair and look back over all of his major victories, then No 14 could just produce the widest smile. This was the US Open he won on one leg, when a record number of fans came out for a Monday shoot-out, when he fearlessly repelled the incredible challenge of a golfing Cinderella. Yes, this could just be the one where he confirmed himself as the finest competitor the game, if not all of sport, has seen.


His third US Open was an extraordinary victory achieved in extraordinary tension against an extraordinary opponent. And, as ever in the Tiger folklore, it was his extraordinary will that engraved his name on the silverware. With one to play in the 18-hole play-off he was one shot down to Rocco Mediate, but he conjured the birdie he needed to keep the tournament alive as they both shot 71s. Then, on the first extra hole, he fearlessly parred as Mediate's nerves finally betrayed him. "Rocco put up one hell of a battle," said Woods.

For two hours the veteran had defied the 157 world ranking places between them, but at last he cracked. Mediate had his chance to remove his rival's Mr Invincible tag on the 18th. If he had holed a 15-footer for birdie, Mediate would have done what no other golfer had done before. Never had Woods lost a major when holding a lead after 54 holes. He now happens to be 14-0 in that regard.

"On that putt on the 18th I told myself that I'd waited all my life for this moment so don't leave it short, and I didn't," said Mediate. "It was a hell of an opportunity to take on the best player in the game and I came up just short. But I think I had him a bit worried at one point. Tiger said to me afterwards, 'Good fight,' and that means the world to me."

Indeed, how close Mediate came to effecting one of the biggest shocks in the history of golf. At the turn he was three down and seemingly suffering an all-too-inevitable fate. But birdies at the 13th, 14th and 15th saw a remarkable turnaround both in the score and the support. The 30,000-strong crowd – the largest ever to watch a match between two golfers – started to chant "Rocco, Rocco, Rocco" as they sensed a spectacular shock in the offing. Even Rocky would have found the Rocco story far-fetched.

"They came for a show and they got one," laughed Mediate.

Yet reality poked in its ugly head and it came in the familiar shape of Mr Woods. Having watched in despair as his birdie effort on the 17th hung on the edge of the cup, he coolly crushed his driver down the centre of the 18th fairway and then drew in a four-iron over the water and on to the green. It gave him the lifeline and one sudden-death hole later he was tying it around poor Rocco's neck. "He's unreal," said Mediate. He was doubtless thinking not only of this birdie on the 18th, but also of the one the night before when Mediate held a one-shot lead and Woods had a 12-footer to take the championship into a fifth day. "I knew he'd make it," said Mediate. Everybody knew.

It was somehow apt that Woods's gala performance came on the stage that seemingly suits him like no other. He has now won seven times on this municipal course, which is yet another record for the great history-maker in professional golf. The San Diegans have already set about renaming this place "Tiger Pines".

So was this Woods's finest major to date? He thought so, declaring afterwards: "This is the best championship I ever had." Well, in purely golfing terms it was in fact one of the worst, as double bogeys arrived in unprecedented numbers. No major champion has ever had four double-bogeys on his card before and no champion of any description has doubled the first hole three times. He got it right yesterday, with a par, and the grin said it all. Yet another set of prohibitive odds conquered.

And this is where the significance of this performance comes into the reckoning of his "best ever". How Woods managed to overcome the obvious pain of a knee injury that was not fixed by arthroscopic surgery two months ago is one thing, but how he shook of the rust of a nine-week absence from golf is perhaps even more impressive. Before last Thursday's first-round he had not walked 18 holes in the nine weeks since the finale of the Masters. He simply jumped off the treatment table and beat the best in the world. They should all be feeling more inferior than ever this morning.

Woods will now attempt to regain full fitness for The Open in five weeks' time. "Let's just say I'm glad I'm done," said Woods. "I don't really don't feel like playing anymore. It's a bit sore. The atmosphere kept me going. I could never quit in front of these people. It was never going to happen. I'm going to shut down for a while now and see what happens."

Birkdale will be praying that nothing goes wrong in his preparations and he turns up with that same suitcase of drama he emptied all over the course here.

The eagles, the chip-ins, the make-or-go-home putts. Who knows, he may not even play again until travelling to Southport. That is an option now. There is yet another dimension to his domination.

Independent