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Every time Rory McIlroy lined up a shot Sunday, there was some sort of record on the line, some kind of history to be made.

That was this year's US Open version of suspense. There was never any doubt that the kid from Northern Ireland was going to win it.

In complete control of his emotions and his game, McIlroy never slipped. He won his first major championship by shooting a 2-under 69 at ultra-soft Congressional and closed his four-day onslaught at 16-under 268, eight shots ahead of Jason Day and four shots better than the US Open scoring record formerly held by four players, including men named Woods and Nicklaus.

McIlroy now joins them on the list of major winners, two months after a collapse so thorough, some wondered if he could ever recover. He took a four-shot lead into the final day of the Masters. But after hitting his 10th tee shot near a cabin on the outskirts of Augusta National, he melted down, shot 80 and finished 15th.

His shot on the 10th hole of this one showed how far he's come. On the 214-yard par 3, a downhill shot over water, McIlroy knocked the ball above the hole, then watched as it stopped for a split second and started spinning — backward, backward, before stopping an inch or two from the hole. He pursed his lips. ''Oooh,'' he said. Yeah, that was nice.