The guy in a red shirt and a swoosh turned in a record-setting performance to win the World Match Play Championship yesterday in Virginia Water, England, just as everyone expected.

Paul Casey said his choice of apparel was merely a coincidence.

A tournament that began with Tiger Woods going for his sixth straight victory ended with Casey plowing through everyone in his path to capture the richest prize in golf and send him to the Ryder Cup with the biggest win of his career.

Casey never trailed in his final 71 holes of a marathon week at Wentworth, winning the final five against Shaun Micheel for a 10-and-8 victory, the largest margin of the final match in the 43-year history of the HSBC World Match Play Championship.

No other golfer has made winning 1 million pounds (about $1.88 million) look so easy.

"It's just wonderful to put my name down in history, put my name on the roll of honor," said Casey, who became only the fifth player without a major to win this tournament.

So dominant was Casey that he played only 126 holes, another record for fewest holes over four 36-hole matches. Ian Woosnam and Padraig Harrington each played 128 holes in 2001.

As for the red shirt?

"It wasn't a conscious decision," he said. "I thought it would look nice with the HSBC logo."

CURTIS CAPTURES TITLE

Ben Curtis excels in taking home the best possible going-away presents from disappearing PGA Tour events.

Curtis, start-to-finish steady on a day when the leaderboard was filled with higher scores than the previous three days, claimed a lame-duck tour event for the second time in three months by winning the 84 Lumber Classic by two shots yesterday in Farmington, Pa.

Curtis shot a 2-under 70 to finish at 14-under 274 and earned $828,000 for his third tour title. The 2003 British Open winner won the last Booz Allen Classic in June, and then won the fourth and last 84 Lumber Classic.

The tourney was supposed to move from its less-visible mid-September dates to June 2007, but dropped off the schedule.

Charles Howell III shot a 72 to finish second.

GILDER WINS CROWN

Bob Gilder shot a 7-under 65, the lowest round of the day, to overcome a three-shot deficit and successfully defend his Constellation Energy Classic title in Hunt Valley, Md.

Gilder had a bogey-free round to finish at 14 under. Jay Haas (68), Brad Bryant (68) and Don Pooley (70) tied for second, two strokes back.