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Vijay Singh takes second title on the trot

Vijay Singh led from the blocks, climaxing with an eagle on the 17th hole to capture the Sprint International for his second title in as many weeks.

Singh, 35, the newly crowned PGA champion, began the day with 33 points and a narrow 1-point lead under the modified Stableford scoring system used in this event. The Fijian then just held on, to take the title.

Singh birdied five holes on his front nine, increasing his point total to 43 for a 7-point lead over Willie Wood at the turn. His potential runaway didn't materialize, however, and the victory wasn't clinched until eight holes later.

Nursing a 1-point lead over both Wood and defending champion Phil Mickelson, Singh played the 492-yard, par-5 17th hole perfectly.

He drilled a 3-wood 306 yards uphill to the middle of the fairway, then hit an 8-iron to the back fringe. His downhill, curving putt from about 25 feet found the cup for a 5-point eagle, increasing his point total to 47.

Wood and Mickelson tied for second at 41, and Tiger Woods, who fashioned four eagles in the first three rounds but none on Sunday, finished at 38. Rocco Mediate was next at 37.

The International's scoring format awards 5 points for an eagle, 2 for birdie, zero for par, minus-1 for bogey and minus-3 for double bogey or worse. Points are accumulated over all four rounds. The field, cut at the halfway point, was cut again to the top 36 scorers and ties for Sunday's final round.

Singh's early birdie barrage gave him a seemingly comfortable lead. But after Singh's poor drive on No. 10 and subsequent bogey, Wood ran in birdie putts at the 11th and 12th holes, and the lead was trimmed to 2 points.

Wood three-putted the 14th to fall another point behind, but the diminutive American sank a 15-foot birdie putt at No. 16 to cut the deficit to 1.

The 17th hole is a birdie and eagle opportunity for most players, but Wood's lack of length hurt him there. His drive found the right rough, and his second shot, a long iron, was short of the green. He pitched to 20 feet but two-putted for a disappointing par.

Mickelson, who birdied three holes on the front nine to get to 34, closed with a flourish. He eagled the 17th and birdied the 18th, a 7-point flurry.

Woods started fast, birdieing his first two holes and, after a bogey at No. 3, carding another birdie at No. 4 to get to 36 points. But, struggling with his swing mechanics, Woods began spraying the ball and suffered bogeys at Nos. 6, 9 and 12 to drop to 33.

Back-to-back birdies at Nos. 14 and 15 got him back in contention at 37 points, but he three-putted the 16th hole and his eagle bid failed at 17 when his putt slid past the hole.