The 13 Most Memorable Moments From The WGC-Match Play A look back at some of the event's shots, comebacks, and curious choices that have left a lasting impression. Stephen Ames said of his opening-round match with Tiger Woods, "Anything can happen . . . especially where he's hitting the ball." Yep, anything including the most lopsided match in the history of the event. Fueled by that comment, Woods went out and destroyed Ames by winning every hole on the front nine. Asked for his reaction to what Ames said, Woods simply responded, "9 and 8." Jason Day won the 2014 event, but it was his opponent in the final who made a more lasting impression. On the first two extra holes, Victor Dubuisson somehow managed to get up-and-down for par from the desert at Dove Mountain. And not just from a desert lie, but by actually hacking his ball through cacti. Alas, the best back-to-back par saves in PGA Tour history weren't enough as Day won on the 23rd hole. Scoff all you want at the lack of star power in the inaugural final of this event, but it was a heck of a match. After knocking off Tiger Woods in the quarterfinals, Jeff Maggert chipped in on the 36th and final hole to beat Andrew Magee and set off one of the tournament's all-time celebrations. Just two years removed from Nick O'Hern's stunning upset over Tiger Woods in the second round, the Aussie did it again. This time, in the round of 16, Woods forced extra holes with a birdie on 18, but O'Hern's birdie on the 20th hole gave him the victory. With the win, O'Hern also ended Woods' remarkable streak of seven PGA Tour titles in a row. Of course, he's not the only golfer to tame Tiger in this event. . . Darren Clarke's victory over Tiger Woods in the 2000 final was extra surprising for a couple reasons. For one, the Northern Irishman topped Tiger in a 36-hole match. Secondly, he beat Tiger in the year 2000. Woods wouldn't lose much the rest of the year, winning three majors and authoring arguably the greatest season in golf history. Rory McIlroy planned on flying from San Francisco to Las Vegas to see the Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight on Saturday night during the 2015 tournament. But when his quarterfinal match went 21 holes, McIlroy had to give up his seat to the biggest sporting event of the year. Instead, he wound up watching the big fight on the big screen in the media center at TPC Harding Park. And he wound up winning his own title belt the next day. There was much talk about the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight during the week, but a dispute on the course gave fans the most excitement. Miguel Angel Jimenez, Keegan Bradley and Bradley's caddie got into a heated argument over a drop on the final hole of their round-robin match. The best part is both players had already been eliminated so it was a meaningless result. Martin Kaymer became the No. 1 player in the world with his performance that week. Luke Donald knocked him off in the final to claim his first WGC title. But all anyone could talk about was the German's neckwear. It may have served a purpose with unusually cold weather in Arizona that week, but we're glad it never became a trend. Down three with five to play in his opening-round match in 2008, Woods went birdie-birdie-birdie-eagle to take the lead and win. "Playing the best player in the world, 3 up with five to play, I just said, 'Don't do anything stupid. Make him beat you,'" Holmes said after. "And he did." Woods went on to beat everyone again that year, winning the event for a record third time. Another year, another heartbreaking finish for J.B. Holmes. This time, Bubba Watson rallied from 5 down on the back nine and beat him on the first extra hole in this 2011 quarterfinal match-up of the two bombers. Apparently, no lead is safe with J.B. It's not the longest match when it comes to holes played, but it might be when it comes to time. In the 2010 semifinal, Paul Casey and Camilo Villegas needed 24 holes and nearly 24 hours to produce a winner. After stopping play after 23 holes due to darkness and after a missed two-footer for the win by Villegas, Casey topped the Colombian on the first hole Sunday morning. In what might be the most bizarre good-good in the history of match play, Sergio Garcia wound up conceding a 17-foot par putt to Rickie Fowler (Garcia faced a five-footer of his own). Garcia later said he felt bad for taking so long to play a shot near a swarm of bees. Maybe so, but his generosity came back to sting him. Fowler happily accepted and wound up winning the match. Among all of Tiger Woods' achievements, one that gets overlooked is the fact he won this event -- perhaps, the hardest to win on tour with all that has to break a player's way -- in consecutive years. Woods defeated Davis Love III in the final to pull off the feat. He also won his first match the following year for a tournament-record 13 straight match wins. Who stopped his streak? You guessed it, Nick O'Hern.
