Australian Scott Strange secured his maiden European Tour title by winning the Wales Open by four strokes at Celtic Manor on Sunday.
Strange, 31, fired a closing seven-under 64 for a 22-under 262 total.
Swede Robert Karlsson, Strange’s only serious challenger in the final round, also closed with a 64 as both players produced a glut of birdies.
Strange, leading the field by three strokes going into the final session and four ahead of Karlsson overnight, was never headed.
The Australian strengthened his position with five birdies in seven holes from the second although Karlsson’s run of six birdies in a row around the turn to draw within two strokes of the lead meant Strange could not afford to falter.
But Karlsson, the 2006 winner, found water to bogey the 14th and his assault on the title faded away.
“I had no idea how Robert was doing or anyone else until when we walked to the 16th tee I asked my caddie if I was in the lead and he told me we had it by four,” Strange told reporters.
The winner from Perth, bettering his Johnnie Walker Classic second place in early-season, took charge of the event with an opening 63 over the Twenty Ten course that will host the 2010 Ryder Cup and never looked back.
Even a bout of worrying dizziness on Saturday late in his round was forgotten as he charged to victory.
“I was still a bit dodgy and not 100 percent when I teed off but as the day progressed I got better and better,” he added.
“This win will mean the world to my family and put a smile on a special person’s face.”
Consolation for Karlsson came with a rise to second place on Europe’s money-list and consolidation on Europe’s Ryder Cup table.
Frenchman Raphael Jacquelin birdied the final hole for a 68 to secure third place on his own on 14-under.
Britons Darren Clarke, Nick Dougherty and Benn Barham, Italian Francesco Molinari and Argentine Rafa Echenique tied for fourth a further stroke back.
Celtic Man262 Scott Strange (Aus) 63 66 69 64
266 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 67 67 68 64
270 Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 66 68 68 68
271 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 72 66 69 64, Benn Barham 69 64 70 68, Nick Dougherty 67 69 67 68, Rafael Echenique (Arg) 67 67 69 68, Darren Clarke 70 68 67 66
272 Gonzalo Fdez-Castano (Spa) 67 68 70 67
273 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 65 68 69 71, Alvaro Velasco (Spa) 65 68 68 72, Ross Fisher 67 70 67 69, Robert Dinwiddie 68 65 70 70, Ross McGowan 66 68 69 70
274 Hennie Otto (Rsa) 67 68 71 68, Mikko Ilonen (Fin) 69 70 66 69, Jamie Donaldson 72 66 67 69, Marcel Siem (Ger) 71 69 68 66, Thomas Levet (Fra) 69 69 65 71, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 69 67 67 71
275 Magnus A Carlsson (Swe) 66 73 71 65, Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 70 70 68 67, Gary Orr 70 67 72 66, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 71 68 70 66, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 71 66 68 70, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 70 67 69 69, Sam Little 68 70 67 70
276 Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 69 68 72 67, Mark Foster 69 71 68 68, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 71 67 71 67
277 Garry Houston 71 68 68 70, Per-Ulrik Johansson (Swe) 69 70 67 71, Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 71 68 71 67, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 64 70 72 71
278 Soren Hansen (Den) 68 68 69 73, David Howell 75 66 68 69, Julio Zapata (Arg) 69 69 72 68, Simon Wakefield 71 66 72 69
279 Christian Cevaer (Fra) 69 70 69 71, Mikael Lundberg (Swe) 69 69 71 70, Rory McIlroy 68 71 68 72, Graeme McDowell 69 72 68 70, Paul Waring 66 72 69 72, Johan Edfors (Swe) 69 70 69 71, Barry Lane 71 69 69 70, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 70 69 75 65
280 Peter Whiteford 68 67 72 73, Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg) 66 70 77 67, David Lynn 72 68 71 69
281 Luis Claverie (Spa) 70 71 69 71, Phillip Price 68 71 70 72, Kyron Sullivan 70 68 72 71, David Frost (Rsa) 69 71 70 71, Gareth Paddison (Nzl) 73 68 71 69, Tom Whitehouse 73 68 69 71, Ariel Canete (Arg) 72 69 70 70, Emanuele Canonica (Ita) 73 68 73 67
282 Stephen Gallacher 69 69 71 73, Colin Montgomerie 69 68 73 72, Chapchai Nirat (Tha) 71 68 73 70
283 Lee Slattery 70 71 70 72, Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 72 68 72 71, Danny Willett 70 71 69 73, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 74 66 73 70, Peter O'Malley (Aus) 69 72 71 71, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 69 70 74 70
286 Niclas Fasth (Swe) 70 71 73 72, Carlos Rodiles (Spa) 71 68 75 72
287 Peter Baker 70 70 75 72
288 Alastair Forsyth 67 73 72 76, Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa) 71 69 73 75
291 Jarmo Sandelin (Swe) 70 71 75 75
293 Francois Delamontagne (Fra) 70 70 77 76
