Worcestershire skipper Daryl Mitchell dug in to defied the Warwickshire attack for nearly four hours but his side went down by 181 runs on the final day of the LV= County Championship clash with Warwickshire at Edgbaston.
Mitchell held the Bears at bay for 233 minutes in making 38 after Worcestershire had resumed on 88-2 in pursuit of a 437 target.
Tom Fell (33), Ben Cox (44) and Joe Leach (29 not out) offered the other main resistance for the visitors on the final day as they were bowled out for 255 in 83 overs.
All was going to plan until 10 minutes before lunch with nightwatchman Charlie Morris the only wicket to fall in the opening hour and 50 minutes.
But then Mitchell and Fell departed in successive overs and only Cox and Leach of the remaining batsmen made sizeable contributions.
Morris was dropped at short leg off Keith Barker but departed in the same over for two when he was caught by Rikki Clarke at second slip with Worcestershire 100-3.
Fell looked in good nick and off drove and cover drove Barker for boundaries and chopped Chris Wright to third man for four.
He then pulled Boyd Rankin over the heads of two fielders backward of square for six.
Mitchell and Fell added 47 in 20 overs but the picture changed 10 minutes before lunch. Rankin bowled a testing over to Mitchell who was caught by Clarke at second slip with the total 147-4 in the 59th over.
Spinner Jeetan Patel ended Fell's innings on 33 in the next over when he was adjudged lbw.
Alex Gidman and Alexei Kervezee were the not out batsmen at lunch on one and nought respectively.
Gidman brought up the 150 in the 62nd over with a boundary off Patel.
The former Gloucestershire batsman was adjudged lbw for 12 after aiming to work Patel to leg with Worcestershire 160-6.
Ben Cox cut Patel for two fours off successive deliveriesand quickly moved into the 20s.
But Kervezee (3) was caught low down at gulley by Laurie Evans off Clarke on his return to the attack.
Cox clipped Patel through mid wicket and then cover drove the spinner for four.
But after making 44 – the fourth innings in a row in which he had been the county's top scorer – he aimed a cut at Patel and was caught behind. Jack Shantry (0) provided Ambrose with another catch off Rankin.
Joe Leach adopted an aggressive approach with pulls for four and six at Rankin's expense but the end came when Sachithra Senanayake (6) ticked through to Warwickshire captain Varun Chopra at first slip.