Ockie Strydom shot a flawless 9-under 63 in his final round to storm the field and win the Singapore Classic on the DP World Tour on Sunday.
South African Strydom started the day four strokes off the pace set by Jeunghun Wang and Alejandro del Rey, but as they pulled away Finn Sami Valimaki looked more likely to take the lead.
He was three out of the field after sinking a 30-foot birdie in the tenth, but Strydom caught it, adding four birdies from nine back to his five on the start.
The pick of the bunch was at the par-five 18 when he got into a bit of trouble across the green with his second, but he held his nerve and struck his shot for birdie and set the target at 19 minor.
That left Valimaki leading the last needing an eagle to win or a birdie to force a tiebreaker, but he left his second shot short and a par was the best he could manage.
Looking back on his magic touch on the latter, Strydom said: “It’s fun. I told my caddy he has to get up in the air and if you hit a little bit behind him, he’s wet.”
“I took a wedge, it came out absolutely phenomenal. I didn’t think it was coming out that great. But it did and it ended up where it was.”
Strydom’s first win, at the Alfred Dunhill Championship, came in December and helped him cross the line here.
He said: “It’s a mindset that’s changing right now. When you’ve been in that situation before and you know you can do it again.”
He added: “I was thinking about not being here this week. Hitting him so bad. My trainer blew up and my wife said, ‘listen, maybe this is your week.’ And look what happened, it’s my week.”
Valimaki was only second at 18 under par with Marcel Schneider, Jeunghun Wang and Alejandro del Rey another three shots behind.
Scotsman Grant Forrest and English pair Paul Waring and Richard Mansell were in the group sharing sixth place at 14-under.
-TeamTALK Media
Leaderboard:
269 - Ockie Strydom (RSA) 71-68-67-63
270 – Sami Valimaki (END) 65-70-69-66
273 – Marcel Schneider (GER) 67-67-70-69, Wang Jeunghun (KOR) 67-69-66-71, Alejandro Del Rey (ESP) 71-65-66-71
274 – Zander Lombard (RSA) 67-71-70-66, Antoine Rozner (FRA) 67-72-68-67, Grant Forrest (SCO) 68-68-70-68, Paul Waring (ENG) 66-69- 70-69, Matthieu Pavon (FRA) 65-70-70-69, Richard Mansell (ENG) 68-70-65-71
