In a display of precision putting, he hit eight final round birdies as he avenged last year's defeat to Lee Westwood and smashed the Englishman's tournament record score by three shots with a total of 263.
US Masters champion Bubba Watson finished strongly with 14-under overall, putting him tied second with 20-year-old Thai sensation Thitiphun Chuayprakong, while Ryder Cup star Sergio Garcia was two shots back in fourth. It was Schwartzel's first win since claiming the 2011 US Masters, with the South African enduring a frustrating time since then due to injuries and poor form. "It's been a good week. I've come close a few times but winning is not as easy as everyone makes it out to be," a beaming Schwartzel said of his ninth professional title.
"Making one bogey all week pretty much sums up how I played. I played pretty flawless golf. That's my personal best."
Schwartzel made a high-class field look ordinary as he breezed to the title, his 11-under the third-biggest winning margin ever recorded on the Asian Tour.
A birdie at the first banished any thoughts of a final day wobble. It was his nearest rival, Sweden's Daniel Chopra, who quickly felt the nerves, bogeying the first as he wilted in the Chonburi heat.
After seven dropped shots in a horror front nine, Chopra finished at 10-under, joining a clutch of players including Simon Dyson of England who finished a shot ahead of compatriot and world number six Lee Westwood.