World Championship tournament: On this dank, miserable day, even Tiger Woods' majesty couldn't rescue his inevitable march to yet another WGC-American Express Championship from tedium.

A week on from sitting stony-faced beside captain Tom Lehman as the hurt of another Ryder Cup defeat sank into the core of his being, the world's number one, unburdened of team responsibilities, reiterated the stark fact that when thrown into individual combat he is the greatest golfer on the planet with a facile win at The Grove, north of London, yesterday.

Nobody expected a different outcome. How could they? The man simply doesn't lose from the front, and if Woods's route to a 12th individual World Golf Championship (WGC) title - in 22 appearances - was to be halted, the suspicion was it would require some supernatural force rather than one of his pursuers to be the cause of such disaster.

Of course, it didn't happen. It never does.

The weather gods sought in vain to impair his march, with roars of thunder echoing around the Hertfordshire countryside to the accompaniment of consistent and heavy rainfall. But, although play was suspended twice, a disjointed final round of 67 for 261, 23 under par, finally saw Woods safely home with eight shots to spare over Ian Poulter of England and Australia's Adam Scott.

Woods' superiority since he won the British Open in July has been nothing short of astounding, unprecedented in golf's modern era. Yesterday's triumph was his sixth straight in strokeplay tournaments and, since lifting the claret jug at Hoylake, his bank balance has been improved by just over $7 million, representing an average of $4,377 for every stroke he has hit in that unbeaten sequence.

In the world of the WGCs, Woods is king. This was his fifth AmEx victory (adding to successes in 1999, 2002, 2003 and 2005), while he has also won five times in the Bridgestone Invitational and twice in the Accenture matchplay.

On top of those individual wins, Woods also has two World Cup wins, although he has decided not to play in this year's event in Barbados in December. On this evidence, those who are making the trip to the Caribbean will welcome the chance to accumulate some dollars without having to worry about Woods.

This tournament was all about one man, from an early stage. As he walked to the first tee yesterday, with menacing clouds overhead, Woods carried a six-stroke lead over Scott, his closest pursuer. It was a stop-start final day, with the stoppages due to the threat of lightning. Through it all, Woods was oblivious to either the weather or those seeking to close that gap. At one point, Jim Furyk got to within five shots of Woods, but that was as close as it got.

On Saturday, he had finished off by eagling the 567-yard par five 18th hole for a third straight day. Yesterday, he managed only a birdie there.

But of course, it didn't really matter.

Indeed, it's a measure of Woods' utter determination to win, and to win in style, that his only errant shot yesterday, where he pulled his approach on the 12th into a greenside trap resulting in the only bogey of his round, should cause him to react as if it were a mortal sin.

Now, Woods, who has played seven of the last nine weeks, intends to take a break, most likely returning for the US Tour's season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta.

"I'm looking forward to having some time off, to just getting into the water and doing some diving," said Woods, after recording his 72nd win as a professional. It was his ninth win this season, but one he said he would remember with a sense of "loss" due to the death of his father, Earl, in May.

"If you look at it overall, nine wins is a good year, especially including two majors in there as well and two WGCs. The things I've been working on have all come together. But, in the grand scheme of things, golf doesn't even compare to losing a parent," said Woods.

Poulter, playing for the first time since his win in the Madrid Open last month, finished with a 66 for 269, 15 under, that moved him into second place. It took a closing birdie from Scott to tie the in-form Englishman.

"I knew Tiger was out of reach, so I focused in on overtaking Jim (Furyk)," remarked Poulter of his final round gameplan that yielded eight birdies from his aggressive play. In fact, he had set out his stall from the word go, hitting the flagstick on the first with his approach pitch.

Padraig Harrington's 17th-place finish earned him €66,000, giving him an outside chance of topping the European Tour money list, although to do so he would probably need to win both the Dunhill Links this week and the season-ending Volvo Masters.

He has failed to secure a place in the US Tour Championship, reserved for the top-30 in the American money list.

Darren Clarke's closing round 70 for 281, three under, left him in tied-26th, with earnings of €52,000.