AUGUSTA, Ga. - "This one is for you, Pop."

With that, Tiger Woods dedicated his fourth Masters Tournament title to his father, Earl.

Woods made a 15-foot birdie putt, down the slope, on the first extra hole Sunday to defeat Chris DiMarco at Augusta National Golf Club.

Woods (71) and DiMarco (68) finished 72 holes tied at 12-under-par 276. Woods, two shots up with two holes to play, made bogey at the 17th and 18th holes. DiMarco forced the playoff with a clutch par putt on the 18th hole after his chip from off the front of the green nearly went in before hitting the cup and rolling away.

With the victory, Woods, 29, now has won nine major championships. His father was in Augusta but ailing and unable to attend the final round of the Masters.

"It was an exciting day to go out there and be able to compete at the level Chris and I did," Woods said. "To play as poorly as I did on 17 and 18 and have a chance to go into a playoff, then hit two of the best shots I hit all week, was pretty sweet.

"This entire week, I hit so many beautiful golf shots."

At one point in the tournament, Woods made 16 birdies in a 30-hole stretch. He said that made it one of his best performances of his career because of the venue.

"No golf course is as good as this," Woods said.

The 2005 Masters quickly became match play between the leaders as they distanced themselves from the field after two holes. Then they were left to deal with each other and it was a remarkable stretch duel.

"I was playing with one heckuva competitor out there," said Woods, complimenting DiMarco. "He's a fighter. What else can you say? The guy grinded his way around the golf course. He fought. He shot 68 today. That's some pretty good playing."

Woods birdied the first hole of the final round to extend his lead to four shots. Both made birdies on the second hold. The lead was three shots at the turn but a Woods bogey at the 10th made it two shots. DiMarco shaved another shot off his deficit with a birdie at the 11th - and then promptly gave it back with a bogey at the 12th.

Just as quickly, DiMarco bounced back, this time with a tap-in birdie after a terrific iron shot at the 14th hole. Both golfers made birdie at the 15th, DiMarco after laying up short of the pond and hitting a wedge to within a few feet.

At the par-3 16th tee, Woods' lead was one shot. It would soon grow to two when he holed a spectacular chip for birdie from behind the 16th green. The chip broke some 25 feet, trickled gently toward the hole and, for an instant, hesitated on the lip before falling.

"The earthquake hit and it went in," Woods said.

It was a shot that will long be remembered.

But DiMarco wasn't done yet. Woods' two-shot lead disappeared when he bogeys at the 17th and 18th holes. DiMarco made two pars, including a clutch up-and-down on the final green.

Ironically, DiMarco, who gave Phil Mickelson a great read on the winning putt last year, had the favor returned when he got an expert read off Woods' par putt that didn't fall. DiMarco made no mistake with his chance and made the putt to force the playoff.

Woods took control Sunday morning when he tied a Masters record with seven straight birdies.

Woods, resuming the third round that was suspended due to darkness Saturday, reeled off four straight birdies beginning at the 10th hole. He had birdied the final three holes on the front nine Saturday before play was called.

Woods shot 7-under-par 65 for a 205 total, 11-under-par, and began the fourth round with a 3-shot lead over DiMarco.

DiMarco, the 36-hole leader, slipped to a 74 and was at eight-under-par. DiMarco, who had made no bogeys in his previous 44 holes, started the morning with a double-bogey 6 at the 10th hole and couldn't recover.

For much of the morning, it looked like Woods would shatter several more records but he dropped two shots on the final five holes. Woods' birdie barrage matched the Masters record set by Steve Pate in 1999. Ironically, Pate birdied the same seven holes - beginning with the seventh and continuing through the 13th.