• Bridgestone Invitational, Day Four

Mickelson misses out as Mahan triumphs

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Phil Mickelson was left to rue a golden opportunity to become world No. 1 for the first time, as Hunter Mahan triumphed at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio.

Mahan's final round 64 was enough to see him finish two shots clear of Ryan Palmer to win his second win of the season and seal his place on this year's US Ryder Cup team.

"I feel great," Mahan said. "I knew I had it in me but to do it feels unbelievable. "It was my goal when I got here, to make the [Ryder Cup] team on my own, not have to wait around for your captain's selection, but obviously to make the team is an honour."

Mickelson needed to finish inside the top four to claim the coveted No. 1 spot, and was lying four shots off leaders Ryan Palmer and Sean O'Hair at the start of Sunday's play.

Mickelson had seen world No. 1 Tiger Woods endure the worst performance of his career at Firestone after shooting a final-round 77 to finish second last on 18-over-par.

On a course where he has tasted victory seven times in 11 appearances, Woods carded two double-bogeys in the final five holes to post an overall total of 298; the first time he has carded four rounds over-par since 2003.

"I'm just not playing well," said Woods. "Shooting 18 over par is not fun. The only thing I can say all week is I was patient, and unfortunately that's not enough."

But if Woods' seven-over 77 was lamentable, Mickelson's eight-over 78 was even worse. The Masters champion was left to rue a series of bad holes, including three bogeys in as many holes between holes six and eight, followed by a double-bogey on the ninth, in a round which he managed to hole just a single birdie on the 17th to finish three-over-par, level with England's Luke Donald and K J Choi.

Phil Mickelson was left to rue a final-round 78 © Getty Images

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"I felt really good on the practice tee," Mickelson said. "I drove it well and hit some good iron shots, and felt like I was ready to attack the golf course. I was trying to attack it but I ended up making a couple of mistakes, and hit some wild shots and the round seemed to get away."

Retief Goosen topped off a consistent week to finish on nine-under after an impressive final-round 65, including four birdies and an eagle.

Open champion Louis Oosthuizen matched Goosen's 65 to finish on five-over, level with Padraig Harrington, who finished off a competitive weekend with a 66. Also on five-under was Rory McIlroy's, whose third consecutive 69 was peppered with four birdies and three bogeys.

Ernie Els endured a round to forget. The South African was firmly in contention after 54 holes following seven birdie during his third-round 64, but slipped down the leaderboard after dropping six shots in nine holes, including a triple-bogey-seven on the ninth.

Jim Furyk was left to ponder what might have been after carding an impressive 64 on Sunday. Furyk finished five shots off the leader after his six-under round which featured six birdies and an eagle, but was made to pay for his opening round 72.

Justin Rose shot his first sub-par round (67) to finish on two-under, with Paul Casey a shot further back after going round in par. Casey was joined on one-under by a number of players including Sergio Garcia and US Open champion Graeme McDowell.

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