Also claiming a third world teams title, this time with Invercargill shearer Nathan Stratford, Kirkpatrick topped a remarkable string of Hawke's Bay successes in top level shearing in which he has been at the forefront since 2002 when he won the first of his Golden Shears Open titles in Masterton, ending the 12-year domination by the now Sir David Fagan.
He's the third Hawke's Bay shearer to win the world individual title in the last four championships, following Waipawa gun Cam Ferguson's victory in Wales in 2010 and Hastings shearer Rowland Smith's win in Ireland three years ago.
But his win on Saturday also capped a similarly remarkable Hawke's Bay domination of the four-day championships which attracted more than 300 shearers from more than 30 countries, about a third of the competitors vying for the six machine shearing, blade shearing and woolhandling individual and teams titles at stake.
Daughter Angela Stevens won the supporting All Nations Senior woolhandling title, and Waipawa's Aaron Bell won the All Nations Senior shearing final, in which Napier shearers Paraki Puna and Stevens' husband, Ricci, were third and fifth respectively, and on his last night as 2014 world champion Rowland Smith won the All Nations Open shearing final, in which Kirkpatrick was runner-up.
Mr Kirkpatrick said his daughter was "stoked" as she hadn't been in the sheds for a while since having a baby.
"Was very cool for her and Ricci, it was a bit of a family affair for us."
There was even an unlikely link to Hawke's Bay in the world woolhandling championships finals, through Southland-based mother-and-daughter Tina and Maiden Elers, retracing some family lines to represent Cook Islands, but also Ngati Pahauwera of Mohaka in Northern Hawke's Bay.
The family settled in Mataura 40 years ago, about the time the world championships were first held, in England.
Coming from almost nowhere in the sporting sense, Tina Elers was third in the individual woolhandling final, in which Gisborne's Joel Henare and Mary-Anne Baty were first and second, and mum-and-daughter were third in the teams championships, behind the winning Kiwis and Australian team Sophie Huf and Mel Morris.
The only world titles not claimed by New Zealand were in the blade shearing events, both won by South Africa.
Kirkpatrick, also father of former New Zealand age-group world champion rugby player Daniel Kirkpatrick, paid tribute to the work of all those around him in a year in which he and wife Raylene started a new shearing contracting business, and in a week where his wife and daughter were both heavily committed as members of the championships' computer points scoring team.
"This is for you," he told all the supporters in front of the crowd, the biggest ever in a stadium best known for basketball and netball matches, and short boxing fights.
When asked if the world champion would hunt for another title, Mr Kirkpatrick said he would go for as long as the body lets him.
The next world championships is being held in France in 2019.
