An American saga of redemption and recovery unfolded in dramatic style at the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral on Sunday . Wearing red was JB Holmes , who has recovered so hearteningly from two bouts of gruelling brain surgery four years ago . Wearing blue was Dustin Johnson , the party boy who took a six-month leave of absence to mend his wild ways . In the end it was the man hell-bent on his redemptive mission who came out on top as Johnson closed with a final round 69 to win by one from Holmes , who had begun the final round with a five shot lead . Dustin Johnson ( right ) celebrates with his caddie Austin Johnson on the eighteenth hole at Doral . Johnson proudly holds the WGC-Cadillac Championship trophy following his victory on Sunday . 'It means everything to win again , ' said Johnson , who admitted his break was due to issues with alcohol and was competing in just his fifth event on his return . 'It has been a tough road but a lot of good has come out of it and I feel great now . This has to be the best win of my career . ' Johnson has long had a reputation as one of America 's most gifted talents but was in danger of throwing it all away . Now he looks a reformed character . The latest world rankings out on Monday are likely to show him up to 6th and he ' s quite capable of giving Rory McIlroy a run for his money at the top . Masters champion Bubba Watson led briefly but paid for a bad stretch of three bogeys in four holes from the 11th and finished third . Johnson went the other way , playing his last 11 holes so artfully that he completed the sequence in a telling three under par . It was hard not to feel sorry for Holmes . He had opened the tournament with a 62 that was so good it might well stand as the round of the year . But he blew his chances with a terrible start that saw his five shot lead dwindle to nothing before the first 90 minutes of play was completed . Johnson celebrates his birdie on the 15th hole during the final round of action on Sunday . As for McIlroy , his troubles with the plethora of water hazards continued right to the end , as he put not only his drive on the 18th into the water , but his third shot as well . Before the start of his final round , Donald Trump , preposterous owner of this overrated venue , had presented McIlroy with the three iron he had tossed infamously into the water on Friday , after it was retrieved by a scuba diver . McIlroy took it out of his bag once on Sunday - to play that third shot at the last . Thanks a lot , Donald , he must have been thinking . McIlroy shaped up to throw the offending implement into the water once more , but this time kept hold of it . It was a moment of light relief at the end of a seriously trying week for the world number one . Bubba Watson led briefly but paid for a bad stretch of three bogeys in four holes from the 11th . At least he finished off with a more typical example of his artistry . Through the back of the green and staring down the barrel of an ugly triple bogey seven or still worse , McIlroy chipped the ball in for a six . Even so , it rather undid the good work he displayed earlier , and meant he signed for a 71 . He still finished in the top ten , though . All those missed putts and shots into the water , and still only a handful of players beat him . 'It was certainly an adventurous week and the game 's just not quite there , ' he admitted . ' I 'm pretty disappointed with the way I played overall . But there were signs of improvement . ' He will look to build on those during a two day trip to Augusta National , beginning on Monday . He will play just one more tournament – the Arnold Palmer Invitational next week – before his historic tilt at a career grand slam at the Masters next month . Rory McIlroy plays a shot on the second hold during a disappointing final day of action for the world No 1 . Round of the day came from England 's Danny Willett , who shot 68 to finish tied 12th . This was a fine confidence boost for the 27-year-old Yorkshireman ahead of his first appearance at The Masters . ' I 'm obviously very pleased , ' he said . 'It 's a tough course and the set-up is very difficult so to finish on level par for the week , I 'd have bitten your hand off if you 'd offered me that on Thursday . When you 're playing with the top 50 you know they 're not going to give you anything , but I 'm feeling more comfortable all the time playing at this level . ' How far can he go ? One area of concern remains a chronic back injury that has caused him to withdraw from plenty of tournaments over the years and one this year already . ' I 'm taking painkillers and managing it , ' he said . ' I 'm going to stay over here through the Masters because flying back and forth is no good for it . There 's no point worrying about it , I 've just got to get on with it . ' He is doing that all right .
Dustin Johnson closed with a final round 69 to claim the title . Bubba Watson led briefly but paid for a bad stretch of three bogeys . Rory McIlroy signed with a 71 but still finished in the top 10 . England 's Danny Willett shot 68 to finish tied 12th .