By Helen Ross
PGATOUR.COM chief of correspondents

AKRON, Ohio -- Good thing they started early.

Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk needed seven spellbinding extra holes and two more suspenseful hours to decide the World Golf Championships-NEC Invitational on Sunday.

Woods ended the battle and won the $5 million event for the third straight year when he lofted an approach to 2 feet for birdie on the final playoff hole. The shot was reminiscent of last year's finale when Woods, fighting through the darkness, deposited an 8-iron a few inches closer on the 72nd hole.

A year ago, though, Woods was finishing off a runaway, 11-stroke victory over Phillip Price and Justin Leonard. On Sunday, he was in the fight of his life with the tenacious and resilient Furyk.

"It was a war there because neither one of us was going to give an inch," Woods said. "When we didn't mess up -- and we did make our share of mistakes out there -- we recovered pretty good. [We] made some big putts, big saves, hole-outs -- you name it.

"Today was a lot of fun for me to just be involved in that -- win or lose. It was just fun to compete like that where you were tested to the absolute utmost."

The victory was Woods' fifth of the season and the 29th of the 25-year-old's phenomenal career, tying the number won by the legendary Jack Nicklaus before he hit 30. The $1 million first prize boosts Woods' season's earnings to $5,485,749 -- marking the third straight year he has topped the $5 million mark. He is now the first player to win more than $25 million in a career at $25,989,198.

Woods has won his last six starts in Ohio, as well. The three-time NEC Invitational champ captured his third Memorial Tournament in June, which makes Woods the first player to win two tournaments three times in a row in the same year since Gene Sarazen did so in the 1920s.

Sunday's final round started at 7:45 a.m. ET due to the threat of afternoon thunderstorms. Not since 1991 -- when Bruce Fleisher beat Ian Baker-Finch at the New England Classic -- had a playoff lasted seven holes. Only five in PGA TOUR history have gone longer.

The dramatics began on the back nine as Woods seized the lead with a birdie to Furyk's bogey on the 13th hole. They changed positions two holes later, though, before Woods drew even again with a 12-footer for birdie on No. 16.

A pair of bogeys from the bunker at the 72nd hole then sent the two back to the 18th tee for the first hole of sudden death. When Furyk found himself in the same bunker again, Woods appeared to have the upper hand.

Furyk's situation deteriorated even more when he left his third shot in the sand and Woods putted to within 5 feet. But Furyk resurrected his chances when he holed his bunker shot for par.

"I'm thinking holing it the whole way," Furyk said. "Tiger leaves his first putt short and that takes maybe a little of the aggressiveness out. [But] I would hate to try to make it, blow way by and give him the win. I wanted to make him make that putt."

The resurgent Furyk then had birdie putts of 12 feet or less on his next three holes only to see Woods do his best imitation of Harry Houdini. When all was done, it was clear Furyk felt he may have squandered the chance for the biggest victory of his career with his performance on the greens.

"There's a couple of times today that I hit some good shots and left myself some 8- and 10-footers -- but really quick left-to-right putts that I could just not control the speed," he said. "I didn't hit as solid putts as I wanted and sometimes they just didn't go in. Yesterday they did, and that's the difference from a 66 to a 71."

Woods countered by two-putting from against the fringe -- sinking an improbable 20-footer to save par -- on the second playoff hole. Then he hit a pitch-and-run to 3 feet for par after sending his tee shot left into the trees at the third. The fourth playoff hole brought a routine two-putt par from 30 feet.

Woods appeared to have finally met his demise when the two men came to the 18th hole for the fourth time on Sunday. His drive was prodigious but wayward and settled behind a tree. But he was given line-of-site relief because the TV tower was in his way.

Woods then hit a bump-and-run out to the fringe and wedged to 3 feet for yet another miraculous par. It wasn't quite the way he planned but effective, nonetheless.

"If I had to play from where it was, I would have gone right at the flag, because I had a shot to be able to put the ball in the bunker." Woods said. "Once I took the relief that was no longer an option. I just had to pitch out."

Woods actually thought he'd made a 50-footer for birdie on the sixth playoff hole. He stared the putt down and raised his putter in jubilation -- only to drop it and clutch his head in desperation when the ball skimmed the hole.

"I don't know how that putt didn't go in," he said.

After a two-minute rain delay, Furyk's chances all but ended when he hit his drive on the final playoff hole under the hanging limbs of a large pine tree. He chipped underneath the branches and into the thick, wet rough and then hit his third shot to the front of the green.

All was academic, though, when Woods sent his approach tracking toward the pin like it had radar.

"I'm happy," Woods said. "Win or lose, I don't think either one of us are going to feel real bad because of what transpired out there. We both gave absolutely everything we had.

"I was very lucky to come out on top because I very easily could have missed a couple of those putts, or not had shots and didn't get relief. A lot of different scenarios could have happened where I would not have won.

But in either case, I think it would have been fun to compete at this level."