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Austin, a 43-year-old former bank teller, had a 12-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole that would have tied him for the lead. That was as close as he got, although it was quite a consolation. His runner-up finish was enough for him to make the Presidents Cup team.
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"I think it's great that Ernie and I didn't let him just coast in," Austin said.
Despite missing birdie putts inside 8 feet on the ninth and 11th hole, Els was one shot off the lead until pulling his tee shot into the trees on the 16th and taking bogey. He wound up alone in third.
"To come back from six back against the world's No. 1 was always going to be tough," Els said. "But I gave it a shot."
For the second time in his career, Woods has gone three straight years winning a major, and it was the fourth time he has hoisted the heavy Wanamaker Trophy, one short of the record held by Nicklaus and Walter Hagen.
The only thing different about this title was how it ended.
Woods became the first major champion in seven tries to make a par on the 72nd hole at Southern Hills. And it was his first major as a father; Sam Alexis was born the Monday after the U.S. Open.
Elin and Sam arrived in the middle of the week, their first trip to a tournament. Woods did not know they were coming to the course.
"I wasn't really paying attention when I saw them," he said. "I was so excited and just wanted to give Elin and Sam a kiss and get back to signing my scorecard."
Woods is now 13-0 when he has at least a share of the lead going into the final round. The margin was three shots this time, and he stretched it to five with consecutive birdies at Nos. 7 and 8 that seemed to siphon all the drama out of Southern Hills. Austin made a surprising charge, however, and Woods three-putted for bogey on the 14th that dropped his lead to one.
That was as close as it got.
Austin, playing in only his 15th major, made three straight birdies starting at the par-3 11th, none bigger than a 60-footer he chipped in from the front of the 12th green, tugging his ear to get the crowd jacked up.
"I was trying to get them to go crazy for someone else, so he'd know there's someone else out here," Austin said. "There's no roar like his. It was nice to hear the loudest one I've ever heard for me."
But it wasn't enough.
After his three-putt bogey on the 14th, Woods hit every fairway and every green the rest of the way. Woods' final stroke was a 3-foot par on the 18th hole, and he took his time. In the last major at Southern Hills, Retief Goosen three-putted from 12 feet and had to win the U.S. Open the following day in a playoff.
Woods removed the ball from the cup and stuck it in his pocket, then removed his cap and thrust both arms in the air as sweat poured down his face from a fourth straight day with temperatures topping 100.
Stephen Ames, who played in the final group with Woods, made bogey on the first two holes and wound up with a 76.
Arron Oberholser settled down after a bogey-bogey start for a 69 that gave him a tie for fourth with John Senden (71) at 279, which secured a spot for both in the Masters next year.
Els said if had been watching from home, he would have bet the house on Woods winning his 13th major. Inside the ropes, the Big Easy played as though he had an ace up his sleeve. Birdies on two of the first five holes at least got his name on the leaderboard, and Els kept plugging away with another birdie on the eighth that briefly drew him to within two shots.
Woods was two groups behind, and after a sluggish start, he began to separate himself from his challengers. He followed a 5-foot birdie on the seventh with a 25-foot birdie putt from just off the green at the par-5 eighth. Woods backpedaled as the ball drew near the hole, then slammed his fist in celebration.
But his knee buckled slightly on the slope, and he appeared to wince. His walk was steady down the ninth fairway, but that five-shot lead was anything but that.
