Woods stayed behind the 18th green and watched Campbell finish, gently rubbing a clenched fist over his lips as he stared back toward the 17th green. There would be no 10th major on this day.

“Unfortunately, it’s frustrating,” Woods said. “If I putt just normal, I’m looking pretty good.”

There might not have been any tense moments if not for Goosen, the two-time U.S. Open champion who turned in a collapse that ranks among the greatest in major championship history. He lost his three-shot lead in three holes and crashed in spectacular fashion, closing with an 81.

Gil Morgan was the last 54-hole leader at the U.S. Open to fade so unceremoniously, shooting 81 in the final round in 1992 at Pebble Beach.

“I messed up badly,” Goosen said. “I obviously threw this away, but I’ll be back next year. We all have bad rounds.”

Gore, 818th in the world rankings but No. 1 to the massive crowd at Pinehurst, shot 84. Browne, who started the final round tied with Gore three shots from the lead, closed with an 80.

That set the stage for a duel between Campbell and Woods.

“I was telling myself 20 times a hole (to) keep my focus, keep my focus, keep my focus,” Campbell said. “And it worked.”

Campbell hasn’t been in contention at a major since the ’95 British Open, where he hit one of the most memorable shots out of the Road Hole bunker to save par and take the lead into the final round. He finished with a 76 at St. Andrews, missing out on the playoff by one shot.

His career has been a roller coaster since, much like the state of his emotions Sunday afternoon. But he showed the poise of a champion down the stretch, even with roars for Woods ripping through the pines.

Woods, eight shots behind as he headed up the third fairway, had the look of a winner when he birdied the first two holes on the back nine to get within two shots of the lead.

Campbell answered with a 25-foot birdie on No. 12, the toughest hole in the final round.

Woods stuffed his approach on the 203-yard 15th hole to 5 feet, and the cheer was such a jolt that Campbell backed off his shot in the 14th fairway. He hit that one to 8 feet and made par.

The tournament effectively ended on the next two holes.

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Campbell was short and in the bunker on the 15th, but hit a terrific shot out to 6 feet to save par. Up ahead, Woods quickly took himself out of contention with bogeys. He ended with a 12-foot birdie, but it was too late.

Campbell earned $1.17 million for his first victory in the United States, which comes with five-year exemptions on the PGA Tour and the other three majors.

Sergio Garcia (70), Tim Clark (70) and Mark Hensby (74) tied for third at 5-over 285.

It was the hardly the star-quality leaderboard that Pinehurst produced six years ago, when the late Payne Stewart beat Phil Mickelson with a 15-foot par putt on the last hole, with Woods and Vijay Singh another shot behind.

But it still demanded the best golf, and Campbell proved a worthy champion.

“Hats off to him,” Woods said. “He was in the doldrums and worked his way back. Now he’s one of the best.”