Torture for Johnson as bunker rule bites

• In the mix: Martin Kaymer. Pic: Getty

Johnson, who blew the US Open with an 82 in June, would have been part of the shoot-out as well, but was penalised for grounding his club on sand before his second shot.

That left Kaymer and Watson to go head to head - and moved 21-year-old Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy joint third with former Masters champion Zach Johnson, whose namesake Dustin dropped to fifth.

McIlroy just missed out after failing to make a 15-foot birdie putt on the last.

He closed with a 72 and was also left to rue a bogey on the 15th after he had climbed into the lead.

Watson had set the target of 11 under par with a 68 before Kaymer, trying to give Europe their second major out of three following Graeme McDowell's US Open triumph, made a 12-foot par putt on the last to tie him.

Only two months ago Johnson had a three-shot lead with 18 holes to play in the US Open, but double-bogeyed the second hole, doubled the third and shot 82.

This time he set off three behind Nick Watney, who in a similar nightmare double-bogeyed the first, triple-bogeyed the seventh and slumped to 18th with an 81.

Meanwhile, Kaymer's performance knocked Luke Donald out of an automatic qualifying place on the Ryder Cup table and left him needing a wild card along with Padraig Harrington.

However, Paul Casey's surge into joint 12th spot was just enough to lift him above Harrington into the ninth and last qualifying spot.

There are two weeks left, though, and he could still be overtaken - especially as he is staying in America rather than going back for the race-ending Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.

Johnson's bid to make amends for Pebble Beach hit trouble with bogeys on the third and fourth, but it was nothing compared to Watney.

He dropped another shot at the third and, after a birdie on the driveable sixth hinted that he might have settled, he promptly hit his tee shot to the short seventh into Lake Michigan, ran up a six and completed a front-nine 43 with two more bogeys.

By then Kaymer had become the man to catch.He birdied the second and fourth, was lucky to avoid the water on the fifth, but then saved a great par from 10 feet at the eighth.

Out in 34, he started for home with another birdie, but then had to try to withstand a mounting challenge.

Watson caught him with a two-putt birdie on the long 16th, only to go down the cliff edge left of the green at the short 17th.

As he bogeyed there, though, Kaymer failed to get up and down from just off the green at the 15th.

That brought McIlroy into the joint lead as he had just made a ten-footer on the 14th.

A brilliant final round has given Phil Mickelson renewed confidence he can snatch the world No 1 ranking.

Although Mickelson was never in the hunt to win the last major of the year after starting the last day 11 shots off the pace, he closed with an impressive 67 on a tricky day.

Mickelson finished the tournament four strokes ahead of Tiger Woods, who was one shot ahead of him at the start of the day but struggled with a final-round 73.

"If I just can get start playing well, I think that I can get that thing done," Mickelson told reporters. "But it just wasn't to be this week."

Mickelson has had a handful of chances to replace Woods at the top of the rankings since he won this year's Masters but has been troubled by health problems.

He revealed before the PGA Championship that he had been diagnosed with a form of arthritis that was causing him severe pain but the problem was now under control due to medication.

"After just over two weeks of treatment I feel great. I don't feel like there's anything wrong right now," he said.

"I've responded quickly. The doctor said it would take two to eight weeks to get a response and it's been just over two weeks and I feel a hundred per cent.

"I don't want to say it's gone away but all the symptoms have gone away and I feel great."

Mickelson has not won another title since the Masters but finished tied for fourth at the US Open and had two top-five placings on the regular PGA Tour. The 40-year-old is not playing next week and his next chance to get the number one spot will be at the Barclays Classic, the first event of the FedEx Cup play-offs.

"Winning a major makes the year special," Mickelson said "I was trying to do something here. I was trying to get a little greedy and see if I could get a second one. Unfortunately, it didn't play good enough golf.

"But I had a good day today and take a little bit of momentum from it."

As for Woods yesterday, a 73 left him 11 shots off the leading pair and means he definitely needs a Ryder Cup wild card now.

Ian Poulter pulled out ahead of his final round with a chest infection. "Guys, it's a no go this morning, body is not strong enough, had to withdraw," Poulter said on his Twitter site. "Gutted. First time I've ever had to do that when feeling ill.

"Flying back home to Orlando this morning, my bed is awaiting my arrival.I can't get back quick enough."

Asthmatic Poulter was lying last on five over par after rounds of 72, 72 and 77.