Succeeding in an event that Wales, England and Ireland had previously won, Scotland captured the World Cup for the first time when they beat the United States at the third hole of a sudden-death play-off at Mission Hills after the countries had tied at 25 under par. The Scots achieved some consolation for losing a play-off to Germany in Barbados last year, as well as for finishing second a further five times since this competition was first held in Montreal in 1953.

Colin Montgomerie and Marc Warren did not have to carry their prize far - for which they were grateful because it is half a metre tall and wide and weighs 80kg (12½ stone) – but after accepting it, they were required to put on Mao jackets and the sight of Montgomerie’s beaming face peering out of the high neck of one of these bilious-coloured garments was well worth a journey around the world. “This is coming home to Scotland with me and I shall wear it with pride in downtown Glasgow,” the Scot said.

This was the first of 12 successive World Cups to be staged at this huge, sprawling venue in China and, as a way of showcasing golf to people expected to become besotted with the sport, it could scarcely have been bettered. Many of the thousands of Chinese spectators would have been watching a play-off for the first time. Indeed, many were watching golf for the first time. And even to the untutored eye, the thrills of a play-off – the nerve-racking decisions, the moments of doubt and the feelings of pleasure that are usually present at such times – could not have passed unnoticed.

For Montgomerie, victories are becoming rarer. “There were a lot of good teams here this week,” the 44-year-old said. “And having not won something before and being the only home nation not to have won it makes this all the more special.” He paid tribute to Warren, 26, for the way he holed important putts on the 15th and 16th holes in the last round and on the first extra hole, the 18th. “He has the word ‘potential’ written all over him,” Montgomerie said.

What won Scotland the team prize of about £775,000 was their exceptional foursomes play. Although they were 15 under par through two rounds of four-ball, they were ten under par in foursomes, the best in the field at the harder of the two formats.

Warren was the Sir Henry Cotton rookie of the year in 2006 and won the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles two months ago. If he progresses from his world ranking of No 148 to get into the Europe Ryder Cup team next year, and assuming that Montgomerie is in it, too, theirs is a natural foursomes partnership. Montgomerie can do the driving, Warren the short game. Those are their respective strong suits.

Scotland sneaked into the lead when they eagled the 69th hole. Warren’s long, accurate drive and ten-foot putt sandwiched a superb six-iron from 200 yards by Montgomerie. Then came a half-hour wait during which Montgomerie gnawed his nails as he watched Boo Weekley, of the US, play a stunning second shot to the 18th green and Heath Slocum, Weekley’s teammate, hole a putt of ten feet for a birdie to get to 25 under. Up to then, Weekley had looked to be a powerful player with an appetite for the occasion and Slocum had looked to be the steadier of the two. They definitely did not look like the makeweights they had been portrayed as before the start of the competition.

But at the third time of playing the 18th in the play-off, the Americans crumbled. Weekley’s four-iron to the green was not hit cleanly, the ball coming up 30 yards from the flag and, after Warren had coolly found the green with his second shot, Slocum left his approach shot 20 feet short. Scotland won when Weekley’s putt for par just slipped past the hole.

It was a good thing for Montgomerie’s self-esteem that the US, who were inches short of winning with a birdie at the first extra hole, cracked because he has a shocking record in play-offs. “It’s awful,” he said. “I think this is only my second or third play-off win in about a dozen.”

So near . . .

Montgomerie’s play-off record

1991: lost to Severiano Ballesteros, Volvo PGA Championship
1992: lost to Sandy Lyle, Volvo Masters
1994: lost to Ernie Els, US Open
1995: lost to Philip Walton, English Open; to Steve Elkington, US PGA Championship
1998: lost to David Carter, Irish Open
2002: lost to Tiger Woods, Deutsche Bank-SAP Open
2006: with Marc Warren, lost to Germany in World Cup, Barbados
2002: tied with Bernhard Langer, Volvo Masters
1996: beat Els, Million Dollar Challenge, South Africa
2007: with Warren, beat the US to win World Cup, Mission Hills, China