Phil Mickelson eased through a crush of spectators and into a courtesy van, telling them he would sign autographs in front of the Sheshan International clubhouse after he had a chance to eat.
His plate of food gone, he took one last swig of his soda, rose from the table and said, "Let's go see who's waiting."
Hardly anyone had left.
Mickelson proved to be as popular in Shanghai as he is in the States. He said all the right things at the opening press conference about his responsibility to play in China to help grow the game, and the two golf projects he is building with an emphasis on teaching and attracting kids and their families.
He saved his best work for Sunday in the HSBC Champions.
First, he quickly dispatched of Tiger Woods and all the buzz over the latest battle between the world's top two players, expanding a two-shot to six over the front nine. Then, he rallied to beat another familiar foe, Ernie Els, with timely putts in the final hour.
Mickelson wound up with the perfect finish to his week - and his year.
He closed with a 3-under 69 for a one-shot victory over Els, his fourth victory of the year, and joined Woods as the only players to capture two World Golf Championship events in the same year. Mickelson won the CA Championship at Doral in the spring.
This one won't count in the PGA Tour record book - at least not yet.
It sure felt that way to Mickelson, who finished at 17-under 271 and at least can have the $1.2 million show up in his bank account.
"I think it would be great if it would count, but it doesn't take away from the fact that I beat 15 of the 20 best players in the world, and the gratifying feeling of having this trophy," he said.
He expected to work hard for this victory, although he would not have imagined the lead characters.
Mickelson started the final round with a two-shot lead over Woods and Nick Watney. Anticipation was so great that thousands of fans created a bottleneck at the entrance, and nearly 8,000 spectators lined both sides of the opening hole.
Woods, however, soon became little more than a spectator himself.
He missed a 4-foot birdie putt on the second hole that would have cut Mickelson's lead to one shot. With Mickelson 3 feet away for birdie on the third, Woods missed from 10 feet. Then came the par-3 fourth, where Woods pulled his tee shot into a canal.
And on the seventh, Woods flinched at the sound of several camera shutters and pushed his drive into a plugged lie in the bunker. A birdie hole soon became a scramble for bogey, and Woods suddenly was six shots behind.
He made three straight birdies starting at No. 9, but by then it was simply too late. Woods hit one last shot into the water on the 18th, scrambled for bogey and wound up with a 72 to tie for sixth place, five shots behind.
Woods, who shot worse than Mickelson both times they played together in final rounds this year, chalked it up to a day in which nothing went right for the world's No. 1 player.
"I didn't really envision shooting even par today," Woods said. "The guys took it deep, and I didn't."
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