Tiger Woods was in a league of his own yesterday as he taught South African Rory Sabbatini a lesson he perhaps should have learnt three months ago.

The world number one, on a Firestone course he simply loves, strode majestically to an amazing sixth victory in nine attempts at the Bridgestone world championship.

One behind Sabbatini at the start of a wet final round, Woods turned that into a masterful, eight-stroke triumph over England's Justin Rose and Sabbatini with a closing five-under-par 65.

It was his second hat-trick of wins in the event, a US Tour record.

In the Wachovia Championship in May, the brash Sabbatini had also been one in front of Woods after 54 holes and sounded off about how he fancied his chances.

On that occasion, Woods beat him 69-74.

Sabbatini's confidence had not been shaken by that experience and nor was he daunted by Woods' phenomenal record on the course.

"Somebody has to knock him down, you know?" he said. "There's always going to be that point you get to where somebody beats you. So maybe Sunday is my day. That's the way I'm going to look at it.

"I'm going into it with the full intention that I'm going to win. And if it doesn't, so be it. But you know what, I don't believe that in my mind it's going to happen."

The reality was somewhat different.

Woods went to the turn in 31, just as he had in their previous head-to-head, and this time thrashed Sabbatini by no fewer than nine shots.

It was a similar drubbing to the one he handed out to Stephen Ames at the Accenture world matchplay last year.

Ames thought he was in with a shout "especially where he is hitting it", and Woods crushed him by a tournament record nine and eight.

This time Woods hit his approach to the first to six feet, but although he made the putt it did not draw him level as Sabbatini had already made his birdie putt from 15 feet.

However, there was simply no stopping Woods over the next stretch of holes.

Sabbatini was twice in the rough on the next and did well to save his par five from 10 feet, but Woods was close to the green in two, chipped to four feet and, after making that for another birdie, sank further putts of 12 feet and 18 feet at the fourth and sixth.

Sabbatini, on the other hand, drove into the rough on the fourth and bogeyed, then failed to get up and down from shy of the green at the short fifth.

That left them seven under and three under, respectively, and if an incredible 15th World Golf Championships victory in just 27 starts was not quite a formality at that point, it certainly was after the ninth.

Woods was twice in the rough, but another indication that it was his day and not his opponent's came when he chipped in for par.

And with Sabbatini all over the place and taking a double-bogey six, the defending champion led by five from Andres Romero - and then by six when the Argentinian, third in the British Open two weeks ago and a winner in Germany last Sunday, triple-bogeyed the 10th after an air shot in the rough over the green.

It was then merely rubbing it in when Woods chipped in yet again on the short 12th to reach eight under and eight clear.

Padraig Harrington shot two rounds of 72 over the weekend to finish tied for 14th on five over par. Paul McGinley closed with a solid, one-under 71 to finish on 10 over par, while Darren Clarke fell back, shooting 76, 75 to end on 17 over par.

Yesterday's round was brought forward three hours because of the threat of thunderstorms and the players were sent out in threes. But one man dominated it.

In career terms this was Woods's 78th success, one which takes his earnings through the €70 million barrier.

And that is just on the course.

It was also his first win since the Wachovia - and his first, therefore, since becoming a father - and it takes him into this coming week's US PGA in Tulsa brimming with confidence.

Sabbatini can go on saying whatever he thinks as far as the game's greatest player is concerned.

Rose matched Woods' outward 31, but he had suspected that starting out on two over was too far back to have a chance of winning and so it proved.

Nevertheless, second place was worth having. Sharing it with Sabbatini with a 68 earned him over €400,000 and will take him into the world's top 20.

The 27-year-old, who had chances to win the Masters and US Open this year, demonstrated once more what an improved player he is.