Woods made it two wins in a row when he bested Ernie Els in a playoff Sunday at the Dubai Desert Classic, walking away with a par at the first sudden-death hole after he birdied the last two holes of his final round to match the South African for the lead.

It was the second straight playoff win for Woods, who won his first tournament of the year last weekend in the Buick Invitational in San Diego, also in a playoff.

Els and Woods were tied at 19-under 269 after regulation. Richard Green shot a 68 to finish 18 under and Miguel Angel Jimenez(69) and Anders Hansen(71) came in at 17-under 271. Retief Goosen shot 71 for a 16-under 272.

Els, a three-time champion in Dubai, shot a closing 5-under 67. Woods, who was tied for the lead with Anders Hansen after three rounds, closed with a 69 to go with rounds of 67-66-67.

Yesterday's victory was Woods' 57th worldwide＂ 47 of them on the US PGA Tour. It was also the 10th country in which he has won an official tournament. As well as the United States and the UAE, he has won in Thailand, Germany, Spain, Britain, Canada, Ireland, Japan and Malaysia. Enditem

(Agencies)