Shane Lowry held of the challengers as he kept his lead and got his hands on the coveted Claret Jug at Royal Portrush.
The 32-year-old finished on 15 under par for the championship, but the celebrations had already begun before his round was finished - his name was already on the trophy before he had teed off at the 18th!
Amid raucous scenes as he made his way through the back nine, he held his arms aloft while walking down the 18th fairway, enjoying every moment.
In miserable conditions in County Antrim, the Irishman shot a one-over 72, while his playing partner for the day Tommy Fleetwood finished second on nine under after a round of 74.
The Englishman had briefly threatened Lowry's lead before a double bogey at the 14th left him too much to do with not enough holes left.
A missed birdie putt at the first by Fleetwood as Lowry bogeyed was a missed opportunity for Fleetwood to halve his deficit from four to two, but Lowry never looked like wavering.
A bogey on the third for Fleetwood restored Lowry's four shot lead, before birdies at the fourth and fifth increased it to where it finished at six.
As an aside, Lowry has atoned for his final day collapse at the 2016 US Open which he led by four shots going into the final round, before a round of 76 allowed Dustin Johnson to swoop in and claim the title.
There was no such collapse today though, and you would be hard-pressed to find a more popular champion of their first major championship.
Tony Finau recorded his best finish at a major, he was the leader in the clubhouse before the final pairing finished.
The American finished third on seven-under, the highest placed Statesman.
Lee Westwood will have to wait to break his major duck, after a two over 73 meant he tied for fourth.
The 2010 Open runner-up made a bogey on the first before three birdies in the next four.
But two more birdie chances at seven and eight went begging, before he bogeyed the ninth, 11th and 12th to card a two-over 73.
A fourth-place finish though will end his three year wait to qualify for the Masters, so the return to Augusta is one positive that the 46-year-old can take from he week in Northern Ireland.
He finished on six under alongside world number one Brooks Koepka, the American struggled today carding a 74.
Englishman Justin Rose's final day fade was not too dissimilar to that of his performance at the US Open this year, shooting an eight-over 79 to end one under.
His first birdie didn't come until the 12th hole, and in the midst of the heavy rain on the ninth he shanked a shot well wide of its target.
Scotland's Bob MacIntyre and England's Tyrrell Hatton were not affected by the adverse conditions thanks to an earlier tee-time.
They were the only top-six finishers to shoot under par fourth rounds.
MacIntyre finished his major debut with a three-under 68, while Hatton finished on two under.
Their sixth place was shared with England's Danny Willett who shot a two-over 73, and American Rickie Fowler with a three-over 74.
Defending champion Francesco Molinari never really looked like defending the Claret Jug.
The Italian - first of his nation to win a major - shot the best round of the day though with a five-under 66, including an eagle at the 12th.
Spare a thought for halfway leader JB Holmes, who had fallen back to third on 10 under after three rounds but still very much in contention.
Playing in the height of the torrential rain and strong wind, the American carded six bogeys, four double bogeys and a triple bogey in a round to forget, finishing with a 16-over 87 round, and six over for the championship.
Final Leaderboard
-15 S Lowry (IRE)
-9 T Fleetwood (ENG)
-7 T Finau (USA)
-6 L Westwood (ENG), B Koepka (USA)
-5 R MacIntyre (SCO), T Hatton (ENG), D Willett (ENG), R Fowler (USA)
-4 P Reed (USA)
-3 F Molinari (ITA), T Lewis (ENG), J Thomas (USA), J Rahm (SPN)
-1 L Oosthuizen (SA), M Fitzpatrick (ENG), J Spieth (USA), J Rose (ENG)
+2 R Knox (SCO), M Kuchar (USA)
+3 B Watson (USA)
+4 P Casey (ENG), G McDowell (NIR)
+5 J Furyk (USA)
+6 JB Holmes (USA)
MASTERS
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
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The 32-year-old finished on 15 under par for the championship, but the celebrations had already begun before his round was finished - his name was already on the trophy before he had teed off at the 18th!
Amid raucous scenes as he made his way through the back nine, he held his arms aloft while walking down the 18th fairway, enjoying every moment.
In miserable conditions in County Antrim, the Irishman shot a one-over 72, while his playing partner for the day Tommy Fleetwood finished second on nine under after a round of 74.
The Englishman had briefly threatened Lowry's lead before a double bogey at the 14th left him too much to do with not enough holes left.
A missed birdie putt at the first by Fleetwood as Lowry bogeyed was a missed opportunity for Fleetwood to halve his deficit from four to two, but Lowry never looked like wavering.
A bogey on the third for Fleetwood restored Lowry's four shot lead, before birdies at the fourth and fifth increased it to where it finished at six.
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| Photo from BBC Sport |
There was no such collapse today though, and you would be hard-pressed to find a more popular champion of their first major championship.
Tony Finau recorded his best finish at a major, he was the leader in the clubhouse before the final pairing finished.
The American finished third on seven-under, the highest placed Statesman.
Lee Westwood will have to wait to break his major duck, after a two over 73 meant he tied for fourth.
The 2010 Open runner-up made a bogey on the first before three birdies in the next four.
But two more birdie chances at seven and eight went begging, before he bogeyed the ninth, 11th and 12th to card a two-over 73.
A fourth-place finish though will end his three year wait to qualify for the Masters, so the return to Augusta is one positive that the 46-year-old can take from he week in Northern Ireland.
He finished on six under alongside world number one Brooks Koepka, the American struggled today carding a 74.
Englishman Justin Rose's final day fade was not too dissimilar to that of his performance at the US Open this year, shooting an eight-over 79 to end one under.
His first birdie didn't come until the 12th hole, and in the midst of the heavy rain on the ninth he shanked a shot well wide of its target.
Scotland's Bob MacIntyre and England's Tyrrell Hatton were not affected by the adverse conditions thanks to an earlier tee-time.
They were the only top-six finishers to shoot under par fourth rounds.
MacIntyre finished his major debut with a three-under 68, while Hatton finished on two under.
Their sixth place was shared with England's Danny Willett who shot a two-over 73, and American Rickie Fowler with a three-over 74.
Defending champion Francesco Molinari never really looked like defending the Claret Jug.
The Italian - first of his nation to win a major - shot the best round of the day though with a five-under 66, including an eagle at the 12th.
Spare a thought for halfway leader JB Holmes, who had fallen back to third on 10 under after three rounds but still very much in contention.
Playing in the height of the torrential rain and strong wind, the American carded six bogeys, four double bogeys and a triple bogey in a round to forget, finishing with a 16-over 87 round, and six over for the championship.
Final Leaderboard
-15 S Lowry (IRE)
-9 T Fleetwood (ENG)
-7 T Finau (USA)
-6 L Westwood (ENG), B Koepka (USA)
-5 R MacIntyre (SCO), T Hatton (ENG), D Willett (ENG), R Fowler (USA)
-4 P Reed (USA)
-3 F Molinari (ITA), T Lewis (ENG), J Thomas (USA), J Rahm (SPN)
-1 L Oosthuizen (SA), M Fitzpatrick (ENG), J Spieth (USA), J Rose (ENG)
+2 R Knox (SCO), M Kuchar (USA)
+3 B Watson (USA)
+4 P Casey (ENG), G McDowell (NIR)
+5 J Furyk (USA)
+6 JB Holmes (USA)
MASTERS
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Day Four Report
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Day One Report
Day Two Report
Day Three Report
Never miss a post - enter your email address in the box on the right!

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