THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. . -- Graeme McDowell kept trying to convince himself and everyone else that his game was improving, even though he had gone two years without a trophy to prove it. Thats what made Sunday at Sherwood so sweet. With a pair of superb short-game shots on the back nine, McDowell closed with a 4-under 68 to win the World Challenge by three shots over Keegan Bradley, allowing him to head home for a 10-week break with a shot of confidence. "Its been too long. Its been a hell of a two years since I sat here as a winner," McDowell said. "We all put winning up on a pedestal as the ultimate goal. We like to say that its all about the process and going through the motions and trying to get better. But lets be honest. We all measure ourselves by the win. I can say that now." The three-shot margin made it look easier than it was. Sherwood was playing longer than ever in a light rain, giving an advantage to a big hitter like Bradley, not to mention tournament host Tiger Woods. Even when McDowell built a four-shot lead through 11 holes, a careless three-putt bogey on the 13th brought Bradley within two shots with five holes to play. McDowell responded with a 75-foot putt that he lagged to tap-in range, a key moment for someone coming off a three-putt bogey. From a precarious spot behind the 17th green, he had to land his chip in the rough and hope it would hop onto the fringe and not run to far by the hole. He pulled it off perfectly. "It was an inch away from sticking in the fringe, and about 1-16th of an inch away from going in the hole," he said. He made one last birdie he didnt need, extending his dominance at Sherwood. It was the 10th time in 12 rounds at Sherwood that McDowell has shot in the 60s, and he now has two wins and a runner-up finish in his three trips to the World Challenge. "This really caps off my season," McDowell said. "We try not to put winning on a pedestal, but this one feels very sweet because its been a grind all year." McDowell won for the first time since he beat Woods in a playoff at Sherwood to close out a dream season in 2010 that included his first major at the U.S. Open and the winning point for Europe at the Ryder Cup. This win followed a year of frustration. He played in the final group of the U.S. Open and British Open but came up short, and he lost some enthusiasm going into tournaments late in the year. He talked all week about a 10-week break, some of it in Northern Ireland and the rest in Orlando, Fla., where he just built a new house and hes opening a tavern outside the gates of Lake Nona. Bradley, who was within one shot after a birdie on the fifth hole, closed with a 69. Bo Van Pelt had a 70 to finish third. Woods, the tournament host and five-time champion, was never in the picture. He didnt make birdie until the 13th hole and shot 71 to tie for fourth. "Graeme really likes this place," Bradley said. "Just when I thought maybe Id have a good chance, hed hole a putt or hit a chip like he did on 17. Hes a champion. I dont expect anything less out of him." McDowell finished on 17-under 271 and earned $1 million against the 18-man field. A light rain fell for much of the round, as it has all week, making Sherwood play so long that McDowell had to hit a 5-wood into the par-4 fourth hole, and a 4-iron for his third shot in the par-5 fifth. His only bogey over the final 47 holes of the tournament came on the 13th hole. "Certainly I will draw some confidence from this one," McDowell said. "The game hasnt given me a huge amount this year." Woods needed a fast start and was stuck in neutral. He failed to birdie the par 5s on the front nine and dropped a shot on the seventh hole when his flop shot below the green came out heavy. He didnt make his first birdie until the par-5 13th. "I struggled with my game a little bit this week," said Woods, playing for the first time in five weeks. "I just managed myself well to get around in these conditions." Van Pelt opened with two birdies and tried to hang around in contention on the back nine. But this was a duel from the start. McDowell started with a two-shot lead and kept his distance until Bradley holed an 18-foot birdie putt on the fifth. Bradley made back-to-back bogeys at the turn to fall three shots behind, and McDowell stretched his lead to four shots by starting the back nine with two quick birdies. The par-5 13th then set the stage for a nervous final hour. McDowell laid up, hit a poor wedge and then three-putted for bogey, ending his streak of 41 consecutive holes at Sherwood at par or better. Bradley made a 6-foot birdie putt for a two-shot swing, and the game was on. The most important stroke might have been a putt he didnt make. From left of the 14th fairway, he had no choice but to punch it under a tree and run it up to right side of the green. From some 75 feet away, he used his putter to lag it up to inside a foot for a safe par to keep his two-shot lead. "That lag putt was huge," he said. "If I go three-putting there, the question marks start coming. Great two-putt." He made a 10-footer on the 16th to match Bradleys tap-in birdie, and then he effectively closed out the former PGA champion with the deft chip from behind the 17th green. He typically calls his home clubs -- Rathmore in Northern Ireland and Lake Nona in Orlando -- and open the bar for free drinks when he wins. He expects that to be case at his new tavern called Nona Blue. "Thankfully, its not open yet," McDowell said. "So Ill save a few quid this time around." [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-james-laurinaitis-jersey-n... Laurinaitis Jersey . A painful stomach disorder and blown-out knee kept Swick out of action for 910 days then. 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Long Jersey . - Carmelo Anthony scored 23 points and Chris Copeland had 21 to help the New York Knicks beat the Boston Celtics 98-95 in overtime in an exhibition game at the XL Center. . -- The London Knights and the Shawinigan Cataractes will be coming from opposite directions when they collide in the final of the Mastercard Memorial Cup.SEATTLE -- Gloves went flying into the air. Players screamed and celebrated, bouncing around the grass with unabashed joy. Even in Jackson, Tenn., Felix Hernandezs perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday was reason for celebration. Sure there was a bit more of a personal connection for the Jackson Generals than just being the Double-A affiliate of the Mariners. Hernandezs older brother, Moises, is a pitcher for the Generals. But the reaction nearly 2,500 miles away from Safeco Field speaks to Hernandezs importance to the Mariners organization. Hernandez has a Cy Young Award. Hes now joined the pitching elite with just the 23rd perfect game in baseball history. Whats next? Trying to make the Mariners relevant again for more than just the efforts of their pitching ace. "Just keep throwing the way Ive been throwing," Hernandez said. "Just do my job. Try and help my team to win. Thats what is next." From the time Hernandez made his major league debut in August 2005 as a curly-haired 19-year-old, the question has been "when," not "if" he would ever throw at least a no-hitter. He nearly did in 2007, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning at Fenway Park, finishing with a brilliant one-hit effort against the Red Sox. In 2009 against Texas, Hernandez carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning before Nelson Cruz hit a solo home run. Those near-misses only increased Hernandezs desire to achieve perfection. "This guy deserved the odds to fall in his favour, for sure," Seattle catcher John Jaso said. Even before Ichiro Suzuki was traded to the Yankees last month, Hernandez had taken the role of Seattles most recognizable and most beloved star. Hes stuck around through a pair of 101-loss seasons since his debut seven years ago and countless days where Hernandez has been on his game and the Mariners offence failed to give him any support. He signed an extension with the Mariners in 2010 when the better financial decision would have been to wait for free agency to arrive. Hernandez has never hidden his emotions -- good or bad -- on the mound or in the dugout, endearing him even more to a fan base thats had little to cheer about during an 11-year playoff drought. "The intangibles for me are what separates him," Seattle manager Eric Wedge said. "No doubt about it hes got great talent but there are a lot of players at this level that have great talent. But for me the intangibles, the teammate that he is, the leadership that he brings, the touughness and the consistency that he brings with all that, thats what separates him. [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-darian-stewart-jersey-ep-6... Stewart Jersey. ." There were additional layers of uniqueness to Hernandezs gem. Safeco Field became the first stadium to host two perfect games in the same season, including Philip Humbers perfecto for the White Sox against the Mariners in April. Seattle became the first team since the California Angels in 1973 to have two no-hitters in the same season. Six Mariners pitchers combined to no-hit the Dodgers in June. The Angels two no-nos in 1973 were both thrown by Nolan Ryan. Also important to Hernandez is his Venezuelan heritage. He became the second Latin American pitcher to throw a perfect game, joining Dennis Martinez. Hernandez wasnt able to fully enjoy his moment -- his wife and kids flew back to Venezuela last week to visit family there. "Shes not here, kids arent here. Im alone, man," he said. During the final few innings superstition took over in the Mariners dugout. No one stood on the railing as he pitched. Usually teammates line the top step of the dugout to get the closest view possible, but in this case they were too afraid to move. Franklin Gutierrez, one of Hernandezs closest friends on the Mariners roster, never left his seat and never spoke to his fellow Venezuelan. "I just (sat) in one spot and I didnt move from there," Gutierrez said. "I was watching the game, concentrating on what he was doing and thinking he was going to do it. ...I dont know if he was nervous, but I was on the bench nervous, shaking." It helped Hernandez that Jaso was behind the plate. The two have worked well this season when matched up as the Mariners battery and were coming off a two-hit shutout in New York against the Yankees just two starts earlier. Additionally, just a year ago, Jaso was in the Rays clubhouse when hitters meetings would take place and they would break down how to approach facing Hernandez. The decision by the Rays was to jump on fastballs early in the count, because the swings against his off-speed pitches -- especially if Hernandez was on -- would be flailing at best. Hernandez needed just 24 pitches to get through the first three innings. By the time the Rays started working the count, Hernandez was already rolling. Even more impressive was how Hernandez closed, striking out eight of the final 12 batters and freezing Sean Rodriguez on the final pitch. "Today was special. We could throw any pitch in any count," Hernandez said. "Today was unbelievable." ' ' '