Rory McIlroy, left, of Northern Ireland, receives the champion's trophy as Tiger Woods of the US looks on during the award ceremony at Mission Hills in Haikou, South China's Hainan province on Oct 28, 2013. [Photo/Xinhua]

HAIKOU - Rory McIlroy claimed a one-shot win over Tiger Woods at The Match at Mission Hills here in Haikou, South China's Hainan province on Monday.

The former world No 1 had previously beaten the current world No. 1 in a big-money match last year by one shot, and once again the Northern Irishman got the better of Woods.

McIlroy carded a seven-under 66 in a round that included four birdies and an eagle. Woods had an opportunity to level the tie on the final hole, but requiring an eagle from 20 feet, he failed to convert, enabling McIlroy to claim the win.

"I've seen a lot of promising signs over the past few weeks in practice and also in competitive play. I still have four tournaments left until the end of the season and I would love to finish 2013 strongly and get a little bit of momentum going into next season." said McIlroy.

"But I think as I showed out there, I'm hitting the ball well. Tee to green, the game was very solid, and if I can just get the putter going a little bit more and get a few more putts to drop, then in these last four tournaments, I can hope to contend and maybe pick up a win or two." added McIlroy.

Tiger, one-shot losing the match, also felt fun and said they both enjoyed the play.