Charl Schwartzel underlined his status as the king of Leopard Creek Country Club with a fourth victory at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa on Sunday.
The home favourite won the event in the 2005, 2013 and 2014 seasons and his fourth triumph means he has finished in the top two in eight of his 11 appearances in Malelane with an aggregate score of 122 under par.
He had looked in danger of throwing away his three-shot overnight lead when he turned in a one over par 36 but he came home in 34 to finish 15 under, four shots clear of Grégory Bourdy, as records tumbled in the first event of the 2016 Race to Dubai.
Schwartzel became the first South African to win an official European Tour event four times and the third of his countrymen to win ten events behind Ernie Els and Retief Goosen.
At 31 he also became the youngest South African to ten European Tour victories, eclipsing Els who was a year older when he got into double figures at the 2002 Dubai Desert Classic.
Outside of his recent hat-trick at the Alfred Dunhill Championship, Schwartzel has not won since his triumph in the 2011 Masters Tournament, causing him to drop to 50th in the Official World Golf Rankings.
But this victory should put him back in the Top 40 and he is glad to see his hard work paying off.
"It feels good," he said. "The way I've played the last few years, I've been down in quite a slump, I didn't really see myself coming out and winning.
"But we've put in so much hard work in the last 18 months and it's frustrating when week-in, week-out you're playing and it feels like it's never going to turn.
"I guess there's no better fit than for it to turn around here. This place has treated me really well. I got my first win here and now my tenth so I think it's pretty fitting.
I wish we could play some Majors here. It's definitely my favourite place, I love coming here and the golf course - Charl Schwartzel
"It turned on the back nine. I felt more comfortable today.
"My chipping was really fantastic on the weekend and that's what got it going. I made birdie on 11 and 13 and 14. I knew I was going to have to shoot at least two or three under on the back nine to give myself a good chance of winning and I'm very happy with that.
"Once I saw the board on 16 then I felt comfortable and I knew it was up to me not to make any mistakes."
Frenchman Bourdy recovered from a triple-bogey on the seventh to post an impressive 68 and finish a shot clear of countryman Benjamin Hebert, whose solo third place was the best finish of his European Tour career to date.
Bourdy picked up shots on the third and fourth to get to nine under while Hebert and rookie Sébastien Gros were a shot ahead after starting with pars on the first and second.
Schwartzel had spoken of discomfort with his long game during Saturday's third round and he made a bogey on the third after sending his tee shot a long way right as Gros made a double to drop to eight under.
A second double-bogey followed for Gros on the next as he tumbled back but countryman Bourdy was heading in the other direction with birdies at the fifth and sixth making it four in a row and getting him to 11 under, just one shot behind the leader.
He was soon joined by Hebert who made a birdie on the fifth but Bourdy put his second shot on the par three seventh into the water to record that triple-bogey.
Schwartzel took advantage of the driveable sixth to chip to within two feet and claim a birdie, and when Hebert failed to get up and down from a bunker on the eighth, the lead was back up to three shots.
Gros fought back with birdies on the fifth and seventh getting him to eight under but Schwartzel failed to get up and down after a poor second shot on the eighth and surrendered a second bogey of the day.
Bourdy and Hebert then both picked up shots on the 11th as Schwartzel made a smart up and down to save par on the tenth, and the leader then also took advantage of the next with a 10-footer getting him to 13 under.
Another Bourdy birdie came on the 13th but Schwartzel would not let the gap close and made a gain of his own on the par five before an excellent 12-foot putt on the 14th got him to 15 under and four shots clear of Hebert.
Gros had also picked up shots on the 11th and 13th but bogeys on the 14th and 16th ended his chances while Bourdy bogeyed the 14th but then made birdies on the 15th and 16th to move into a share of second.
Hebert had made six straight pars but dropped a shot on the last to drop to third place while a lengthy birdie putt on the 18th moved Gros, who finished second on last season's Challenge Tour, to nine under and up to fourth on his own in just his second European Tour event.
Gros' countryman and fellow Challenge Tour graduate Thomas Linard was then at eight under alongside Matt Ford and Joost Luiten.
Defending champion Branden Grace was a further shot back after seeing his late charge, which began with an eagle on the par four 11th, ended as he found the water on the 16th and 18th.
Jaco Van Zyl was also at seven under after firing the round of the day with a 64, alongside Eddie Pepperell who ended his week with a 68.
Two-time champion Pablo Martin was then in the group at six under with last season's Road to Oman winner Ricardo Gouveia and Qualifying School rookie Brandon Stone among those at five under.
