Tiger Woods hits mixed final round on return at Hero World Challenge

Tiger Woods shot an inconsistent four-over-par final round of 76 to finish 15th on his return to competitive golf at the Hero World Challenge.

The 14-time major champion hit five birdies, including three in a row to close the front nine, but also made three bogeys and three double bogeys.

Japan's Hideki Matsuyama won the 18-player event in the Bahamas by two strokes, finishing on 18 under.

Woods, 40, was playing his first PGA Tour event after 466 days injured.

The world number 898, who had two back operations during his absence, finished on four under overall.

"Getting to this point has tested me beyond anything I've ever experienced in my life," Woods told NBC.

"The pain, the issues I have, it was just rough - there were some pretty dire times where I just couldn't move."

Woods, who hosts the event each year, started his final round with four pars before bogeying the fifth hole and double-bogeying the sixth.

A 30-foot putt was the highlight of a run of three birdies that put Woods level at the turn, only to then drop four shots in the next three holes.

A par at 13 and birdies at 14 and 15 arrested the slide but the American double-bogeyed the last to close on 76 - the worst round of any player over the four days.

Yet Woods also led the field in birdies, making 24, including seven in a brilliant 65 on Friday.

"It was a great week to be back competing again and playing against the best players in the world," he added.

"I made a lot of birdies but also made a lot of mistakes and some poor decisions."

Victory was Matsuyama's fourth title in two months following wins at the Japan Open, the World Golf Championships HSBC Champions and the Taiheiyo Masters.

The 24-year-old hit his only over-par round of the tournament on Sunday, carding a 73, but it was enough to hold off Sweden's Henrik Stenson, who finished two shots adrift on 16 under.

Americans Matt Kuchar, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson tied for third, three shots further back.