LEMONT, Ill. — Tiger Woods' only way out was a 3-iron through a 20-foot wide corridor of fans and 30-foot high canopy of trees. For his next shot, he had to hook a 9-iron around another big tree and try to bounce it up a ramp onto the green.

After all that, he wound up with another birdie.

Walking off the ninth green with his lead still at seven shots, Woods shrugged his shoulders and smiled as if nothing could go wrong.

Hardly anything did at the BMW Championship.

All it took was one big week to end a month of frustration for the world's No. 1 player.

One day after his course-record 62 gave him a seven-shot lead, Woods made sure no one else had a chance yesterday at Cog Hill, where he closed with a 3-under 68 for an eight-shot victory over Jim Furyk (66) and Marc Leishman (69).

The victory was his sixth of the year (71st of his career) and assured Woods of the No. 1 seed for the final event of the FedEx Cup.

It was his first victory since he blew a two-shot lead last month in the final round of the PGA Championship. His most recent chance at winning came at Liberty National two weeks ago, where he missed a 7-foot birdie putt on the last hole to get into a playoff.

"To play as well as I have of late and not get the Ws has been a little bit frustrating, no doubt, because I've been so close," said Woods, who finished at 19-under 265. "It's just been a matter of making a couple of putts here and there, and I would have won the tournaments. And lo and behold, boom! I hit the ball just as well, just as consistent this week, and I made a few putts. And that's how it happens."

In the battle for the 30th and final spot in the Tour Championship, the heartbreaker belonged to Brandt Snedeker, who needed only a bogey on the 18th hole to get into the championship. After missing a 12-footer for par, he watched in shock as his 3-foot bogey putt lipped out. He missed a putt from tap-in range and took triple bogey.

"I can't believe I did this," Snedeker said. "I just made a mess of it."

That allowed John Senden to capture the 30th spot by less than a half-point over Ian Poulter.