Mickelson Wins in China

Phil Mickelson closed with a 3-under 69 to win the HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, China. Mickelson finished at 17-under 271 and earned $1.2 million in winning his second World Golf Championship event of the year.

Paired with fellow Americans Tiger Woods and Nick Watney, Mickelson preserved the victory with an 18-foot par putt on the 16th and then a birdie on No. 17.

He ended up a shot lower than Ernie Els, who finished with a 9-under 63, which set a new course record also tied Sunday by Rory McIlroy. Unfortunately, Els, who held the lead going into the final hole, hit into the water on No. 18 that led to a bogey.

The putt on 16 was particularly important to Mickelson's cause. "I thought that was one of the best putts I've made in a long time," he said. "When I made that putt - I didn't know what Ernie was doing on 18 - but I knew I had a chance."

Els, who started the final round seven shots back of 54-hole leader Mickelson, was pleased with his round, despite its bad ending. "I can't think about that," Els said of the bogey. "For me to come back all the way, to actually share the lead at that point, was quite nice. I'm disappointed about that, but I'm going to really think about the 63 I shot."

Ryan Moore ended up in third at minus-15 after closing with a 68. Young Irishman McIlroy's 63 took him up to fourth at 14-under, while Watney shot a 71 to end up in fifth.

With his high finish McIlroy moved into second place behind Lee Westwood in the Race to Dubai with one only tournament remaining before the Dubai World Championship and the $7.5 million bonus pool. "It certainly gives me a lot of momentum going into the next two weeks," McIlroy said. "Hopefully, it's a bit of a springboard into the next two weeks. Looking forward to it now."

Woods, who started the day two shots back of Mickelson, had a difficult final round at Sheshan International Golf Club, falling six shots behind the leader on the front nine and finishing with a 72. The game's top-ranked player ended up tied for sixth with Martin Kaymer of Germany (67).

Woods was bothered throughout the final round by camera-clicking in mid-swing, a common occurrence in China, which is new to the intricacies of tournament golf. "Anything that could go wrong went wrong for me today," Woods said.

Woods would have shot a 40 on the front nine if not for a birdie on the ninth. After his ball fell into the cup, Woods smirked and gestured with a dramatic vaudevillian bow. "I didn't really envision shooting even-par today," Woods said. "I would have had to have shot 67 to get into a playoff. So the guys took it deep, and I didn't."