MIAMI – Tiger Woods turned in a performance worthy of his return to the no. 1 ranking.

In a dramatic duel with Phil Mickelson that came down to the last shot yesterday, Woods made a 30-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole to take the lead, then a 6-foot par putt to close with a 6-under 66 and win the Ford Championship at Doral, giving him the no. 1 ranking for the first time since September.

Mickelson, coming off dominant victories in his last two stroke-play tournaments, had a chance to force a playoff or possibly win on the 18th. His 30-foot chip looked good all the way, but caught the lower lip. He closed with a 69.

The showdown exceeded the expectations of a battle between two of the biggest names in golf. A sellout crowd was buzzing from start to finish, especially during wild momentum changes on the back nine of the Blue Monster.

Woods reached the 603-yard 12th hole for the second time in two days for an eagle to take a two-shot lead. Mickelson answered with back-to-back birdies to catch him. Lefty looked like he had control of the tournament until he missed a 5-foot par putt on the 16th. Woods then delivered like he usually does with two clutch putts.

Woods, who earned $990,000 for his second victory of the year, finished at 24-under 264 to break the tournament record at Doral by one shot. This is the sixth PGA Tour event where Woods has at least a share of the 72-hole record.

Vijay Singh, who had been no. 1 the last 26 weeks, closed with a 66 to finish third, five shots behind.

Mickelson’s streak of 10 consecutive rounds in stroke play atop the leader board ended, but not without a gutsy fight. Most players would have buckled when Woods surged into the lead, but Mickelson came right back at him.

Woods took the lead for the first time all week in spectacular fashion. From 293 yards away in the 12th fairway, he took a big crack with his 3-wood, bowed his head and started walking, waiting for the cheers to tell him he hit the green for the second straight day. No one else reached it all week.

Woods holed the 25-foot eagle putt for a two-shot lead. Mickelson bounced back with consecutive birdies, starting with an 8-footer on the 243-yard 13th hole. But he wasted two great chances.

After grazing the lip on a 10-foot birdie on the 15th, Mickelson caught the lip on a 5-footer for par at no. 16 after Woods had already failed to get up-and-down from a bunker. It was the first time in 67 holes either of them had made a bogey.

It was only the third time Woods and Mickelson have played against each other in the final round, and Woods improved to 3-0.The other two times were the 2001 Masters, where Woods had a one-shot lead; and the 2003 Buick Invitational, where Woods was two ahead of Mickelson.

Woods managed to get within one shot of Mickelson after nine, and their scoring was ordinary given the superb conditions of balmy breezes and greens as soft as carpet.

Both had their chances. Woods missed back-to-back birdie putts from 8 feet early in the round, but a pivotal hole came at the par-3 fourth. Mickelson stuffed his tee shot into 5 feet, while Woods’s tee shot bounded off the side of the hill and was saved by thick rough from going into the water.

He chipped some 10 feet by, and it looked as though Mickelson would double his lead. Instead, Woods made a tricky par putt and Mickelson missed his birdie. One hole later, Woods nicked the flag with his approach and made a 4-foot birdie. They matched shots the rest of the way, both of them twice missing birdie putts inside 12 feet.

The gallery soaked up every shot. Every patch of grass was covered by fans from tee-to-green. The tournament was a sellout about an hour after the leaders teed off, some 35,000 people swarming around the Blue Monster.