If, for Tiger Woods, the coronation march to his latest career major was more of a sweaty chase than he had ever envisaged or would have liked, the end result - just like the other dozen times the world's number one had started the final round of a major with the lead - was familiar, as he eventually outpaced the determined pursuit of both Woody Austin and Ernie Els to claim the 89th US PGA Championship at Southern Hills yesterday.
Maybe Tiger preferred it this way, a chance for him to demonstrate his fortitude and resilience. On an other steamy, hot day in Tulsa, Woods constantly implored his caddie, Steve Williams, to hand him a towel to wipe the sweat clean from his hands; and, at one point as he stood on the 12th tee, at which stage the chase by Austin and Els was entirely real, he liberally poured water from a bottle over his head. He knew of the need to stay cool, both physically and mentally.
But, when the gauntlet was thrown down, Woods - who had started out four shots clear of Austin and six ahead of Els - responded, rolling in a 12 foot birdie putt on the 15th, his first birdie since the eighth and ending a ragged stretch which had seen him drop shots on the ninth and 14th holes, to finally tighten his grip on the championship en route to a 13th career major win which leaves him just five short of the record 18 held by Jack Nicklaus.
But this was no stroll in the park, far from it. Although Stephen Ames had started out as his chief pursuer, the Trinidadian-turned-Canadian was no more than a bit player in the final grouping as he threw shots away like confetti at wedding. Instead, Woods was forced to consolidate as roars from ahead indicated charges from one player or other. In fact, the roars that had Woods sweating were from a series of birdies up ahead from Austin, who had never previously finished in the top-10 in a major, and Els, whose third major win had come in the British Open at Muirfield in 2002.
Woods won the hard way, closing out the season's final major - and successfully defending his title - with a final round for 69 for 272, eight-under. He finished two shots clear of Austin, who shot a final round 67, with Els, after a finishing 66, a stroke further adrift in third.
Els had made a determined charge, picking up three birdies in a bogey-free front nine, but left ruing a couple of missed birdie putts on the ninth and again on the 11th. Els grabbed back-to-back birdies on the 13th and 14th (to get to six-under, which left him a shot behind Woods when the champion three-putted the 14th for bogey), but a poor drive and dropped shot on the 16th halted Els's charge. Austin, too, failed to carry on the momentum of a hat-trick of birdies from the 11th, finishing with five straight pars.
Ultimately, Woods's birdie on the 15th - the fourth of his round which also included three bogeys - gave him sufficient breathing space to get the job done, with the minimum of fuss down the closing stretch as he hit fairways and greens in regulation and claimed his fourth PGA win and the 59th career win on the US Tour.
Those in closest pursuit of Woods at the start of the day were given some encouragement by the final round 64 shot by England's Simon Dyson, a player who once upon a time plied his trade on the Asian Tour. Dyson, who had not played a tournament for three weeks, finished as the leading European player and secured his first top-10 in a major from only his seventh appearance with a 64 for 280, level par, that saw him catapult up the leaderboard to finish as leading European in tied-sixth position.
The Irish challenge melted over the weekend, Darren Clarke and Padraig Harrington finishing in tied-42nd on 288, eight-over, with Paul McGinley in tied-60th on 291.
