It had been a long day under a hot sun, but there was still a noticeable spring in Nick Faldo's step as he and caddie Fanny Sunesson walked away from the clubhouse here at Gulf Harbour last evening. Faldo had done much more than share in England's first World Cup triumph: he had regained his golfing self-esteem.

Indeed pride was also at the heart of things for Paul McGinley and Padraig Harrington, whose reward was $30,000 each for finishing in sixth place. They would have been sharing that position with Zimbabwe and New Zealand, but for a lucrative, 18-foot birdie putt by McGinley on the final hole.

As with Faldo, however, the exercise had a much broader dimension for the Irish duo. "Obviously we're disappointed, but I feel we gave of our best in defence of the title," said McGinley. "Certain things have to happen if you're going to win a major prize such as this, and they didn't happen for us today."

After the third round of a fascinating battle for the title, Argentina had become the improbable leaders on two under par, one ahead of England and two clear of Ireland and Italy in a share of third place. But by the halfway stage of the final round, Ireland had taken over the lead on five under par.

Even in calm conditions, however, the difficulty of the homeward journey meant that the climactic holes had almost the same potential for disaster as the back nine at Augusta National. So it was that fortunes swung dramatically, with the US, Ireland, Argentina, England and Italy either sharing the lead or leading outright at various stages of a thrilling afternoon.

In fact, the first real fireworks came from the Swedes, who were totally out of the reckoning, in 18th position overnight. From a stunning outward nine of 30, which contained four birdies and an eagle, Patrik Sjoland went on to shoot a course record 63.

But that was soon matched by America's Scott Verplank, whose total of nine-under-par eventually secured him the individual title and a prize of $100,000. Indeed the exploits of Verplank and his partner, John Daly, accounted for much of the afternoon's drama.

Even after matching outward nines of 32, they remained no more than supporting players entering the homeward journey. But in a blistering run from the 11th to the 14th, they carded six birdies between them, including four-in-a-row for Verplank.

Daly's finger, however, remained dangerously close to the self-destruct button which had seen him smash his putter after three-putting the 17th on Saturday, and then three-putt the 18th using his driver. This time, within sight of the title, or at least a playoff, he again finished bogey, bogey and a great rally fizzled out.

That was never likely to happen to the English, particularly with Faldo guiding Murphy's Irish Open champion David Carter like a seasoned skipper through perilous waters. While all around them were faltering, the English pair covered the critical last five holes in two under par.

Indeed it is interesting to compare the way England and Ireland played the 14th and 16th holes - undoubtedly the most difficult on the course - over the four days. Faldo (one over) and Carter (four over) negotiated them in a combined total of five over par. On the other hand, the scoring there for McGinley (two over) and Harrington (nine over) was 11 over par - a difference of six strokes. The gap between the teams at the end? Four strokes.

Those figures alone reflect the powerful influence of Faldo on his inexperienced partner. "Nick helped me with my putting and things generally," admitted Carter about the man who had actually prepared breakfast for him in their apartment here this last week. Yet it was the 26-year-old who effectively made victory secure.

Only one stroke ahead of closest challengers Italy - who had finished with Ireland - coming down the 18th, the English pair needed to complete the final hole in a combined eight strokes to secure victory. But Faldo missed the green and left his recovery chip seven feet from the flag.

Two putts from Carter from 20 feet for a par would have left Faldo needing the seven-footer for victory. "I wouldn't like to have faced that putt to win," admitted Faldo. Carter relieved the pressure by holing out for a birdie. But the importance of the win was evident from the determined manner in which Faldo drove his fist at the air after sinking his own effort.

A local scribe asked what it was like to have the winning feeling again after two-and-a-half years? It didn't seem like a time for argument, but the Englishman still muttered "two years - 18 months actually". It was, in fact, February 1997 when he captured the Nissan Open at the Riviera Club, Los Angeles.

Was he now elated or simply relieved? "A bit of both," he replied.

The Irish pair blamed the fact that they were one over par for the par fives yesterday (the English were three under). The real problem in my view, however, was Harrington's play of the 14th and 16th holes. He seemed uneasy about the 16th hole from the first time he saw it last Monday, and it became particularly costly on Saturday, when he ran up a triple bogey there.

"I'm very disappointed at the moment, but I'm sure that will ease after a day or so," said Harrington. "I would love to have another go at this with Paul in Malaysia next year. It's been a great experience for us."