• The Masters, Round Four

Schwartzel wins Masters as McIlroy collapses

Charl Schwartzel dances a jig of delight after winning The Masters © PA Photos

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• Gallery: The Masters: Round Four

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Charl Schwartzel was crowned Master champion on a day when Rory McIlroy suffered one of golf's greatest collapses.

McIlroy led by four shots at the start of the day but suffered total meltdown and after Tiger Woods charged but came up short, it was left to Schwartzel to pick up the pieces. And he did it in some style, the style of a champion, by making birdies on the final four holes to secure a two-shot victory from a resurgent Adam Scott and Jason Day.

McIlroy will have thought long and hard about making a steady start, but he had anything but as a sloppy approach and pulled putt from six feet left him with a bogey.

The second hole did nothing to settle the nerves as he found the bunker with his tee shot and hit the face with his escape shot. He scrambled a par, but then missed a putt for birdie on three and it seemed to set the tone for his round as he bogeyed five. A birdie at seven helped him turn in one-over and at the top of the leaderboard, but it was a fragile lead which unravelled so spectacularly on 10.

His tee shot cannoned into a tree and flew 100 yards left, leaving him between a couple of cabins. He chipped back onto the fairway only to crash an approach a long way left of the green. His chip back found another tree and he eventually walked off with a triple-bogey seven.

He walked off the 10th just two adrift and the 11th handed him a chance to steady the ship as he arrowed a superb iron into 10 feet. But, with his head seemingly in a whirl from the previous hole, he three putted for another bogey.

The championship was effectively gone from this point and it was about protecting his score, but the short par-three 12th swallowed two more shots as he four putted from 20 feet. The 21-year-old would have gladly walked in at this point but instead he hooked his tee shot on 13 into the creek. He managed to make par but it was a quite spectacular collapse which saw him sign for an 80 - the same score he posted at St Andrews last year - for a share of 15th place.

Woods made a disappointing start, as he missed a makeable birdie putt on the first but he rectified that by whipping up his supporters with birdies on two and three. Just as it appeared momentum was with the four-time champion, he gave a shot back on four. At five adrift, attack was the only option and that was what he started to do on six. He produced a glorious approach from the middle of the green and it fed down towards the cup - handing him a birdie opportunity that he gobbled up.

He followed that with a birdie on seven, which was greeted with a fist pump, but that was just the appetiser as an eagle came his way on eight courtesy of an amazing second shot. Woods produced a swinging draw with a fairway wood that found the top plateau and he rolled in a confident putt - which set the gallery alight and took him into a share of the lead. And he turned in 31 courtesy of an excellent par putt on nine - which is one off the record for the back nine at Augusta.

Rory McIlroy's chances of Masters glory disappeared on the 10th © PA Photos

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Putting has been his Achilles heel this week and he had his sixth three putt of the week on 12. He fired up his followers with a stunning iron approach to 15 to leave himself a six-footer for eagle, but he lipped out and his challenge ended but it was a brilliant effort - a 67 which left him on ten-under for the tournament. Geoff Ogilvy and Luke Donald joined Woods on 10-under.

While much of the talk will be about McIlroy and Woods, it should not detract from the effort of Schwartzel who translated potential into major champion.

Schwartzel began the day in the group on eight-under and made a spectacular start, chipping in for birdie on one and then going one better on the third with an amazing eagle from the middle of the fairway on the third. A bogey followed on four and his game stalled with a string of pars. But steady golf was what was required as a host of challengers fell by the wayside on the back nine.

After failing to make a birdie on 13 he stepped on to 15 aware that he needed to counter the thrust of Adam Scott who had assumed the lead on the back of McIlroy's collapse. An aggressive second and solid chip brought a birdie. That birdie on the par five lit the fire as he rolled in a further birdie on 16.

Schwartzel has been solid on the greens all week and under the strongest pressure his stroke stood the test as he rolled in a brilliant 15 footer on 17 for a third straight birdie. That three took him into the outright lead, aware that a par on the final hole would be good enough. He launched a perfect tee shot and precision iron into the heart of the green. Two solid putts would have been enough, but he finished in style with a birdie for a 14-under total of 274 and a first Green Jacket.

Scott announced himself back on the major stage with a brilliant second-placed finish thanks to a closing 67. The Australian has been through the golfing wringer, but he appears to have combated his putting troubles by adopting a belly putter. The 'short' stick stood him in good stead as made a string of fabulous putts, on the back of some pure iron play, but he came up just short. As did his playing partner Day who showed he will be a force on the big stage with a brilliant 68.

Lee Westwood has struggled on the greens all week but he made three birdies on the front nine to turn in 33 and raise hope that he may mount a charge. Those thoughts were extinguished when he visited the creek in front of the 12th green. It resulted in a double-bogey five and he eventually slipped back to finish five-under.

Ryo Ishikawa, who will donate all his 2011 earnings to the Japan earthquake relief fund added a few thousand pounds to the pot as he birdied three of his final four holes to card a 70 - which was good enough for a three-under total of 285.

Justin Rose produced his best round of the week, an excellent four-under 68, to take him into the top 20 at five-under, while Ian Poulter concluded his tournament with a 73 to sit at one-under.

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