Being the front-runner over the weekend did not faze the South African at all. His lead was four going into the last round and although he was rarely in need of any dramatics, he holed a 45-footer on the ninth for an eagle to quell any nerves.
Paul Casey found a bush at the 12th and took a double-bogey so Lee Westwood finished as runner-up. Oosthuizen became the fourth South African to win The Open after Bobby Locke, Gary Player and Ernie Els and achieved his victory on Nelson Mandela’s 92nd birthday.