New No. 1 Jason Day beats Louis Oosthuizen to win WGC Match Play

California: Australian Jason Day beat Louis Oosthuizen 5 and 4 to win his second WGC Match Play crown on Sunday.

Day departs Austin, Texas, not only with the trophy but with the world number one ranking, which he regained by reaching the semi-finals on Saturday as American Jordan Spieth was eliminated in the round of 16.

Day, the 2014 champion, had beaten defending champion Rory McIlroy 1 up on Sunday morning in a heavyweight semi-final showdown.

There was further disappointment in store for McIlroy, as Spain`s 52nd-seeded Rafa Cabrera Bello defeated the third seed from Northern Ireland 3 and 2 in the consolation final to claim third place.

Oosthuizen had beaten Cabrera Bello 4 and 3 in the semis.

Day joined Tiger Woods and fellow Australian Geoff Ogilvy as multiple Match Play winners.

He opened the title match with a bogey to go 1 down, but had rallied to lead 1 up through four holes and stretched his lead from there. "I`m very, very thrilled. It`s been a memorable week this week not only to win the Dell Match Play Championship but also to get back to number one in the world," said Day, who hurt his back in his first round-robin win on Wednesday and wasn`t even sure he`d be able to continue in the event.

He said the see-saw battle with McIlroy in the semi-final was nerve-wracking.

"It was a hard match today," said Day, who drained a 13-foot par putt to halve the final hole and seal the victory over McIlroy.

"I would have been a little disappointed to go through all this stuff and not have a chance of winning (the title)," Day said.

Day took a one-up lead with a birdie at the first, then made a double bogey at the second.