Thaworn Wiratchant shot a closing five-under 67 to win the inaugural RMB700,000 Dongfeng Nissan Teana Open in Anji with an Omega China Tour record total of 20-under 268.
South Korean 18-year-old Eom Jae-woong finished one behind after birdieing the last for a 68, while Chinese star Li Chao fired a 65 to finish 17-under on a rain-interrupted final round at the Anji King Valley Country Club in Zhejiang province.
Australian Kurt Barnes, leader in the first two rounds, shot a 71 to finish 15-under, one ahead of Chinese Taipei's Lu Wen-teh (68), a five-time Asian Tour winner, and Thailand's Pariya Junhasavasdikul (69), also an Asian Tour player.
Thaworn was making his debut on the Omega China Tour as a Mercedes-Benz Tour invite and the Bangkok-based 42-year-old lifted his second trophy in two weeks after also winning on the Southeast Asian circuit last week.
"Everything was great this week. I putted especially well in the third round and it's really good to set a record total. I look forward to coming back to the Omega China Tour," said Thaworn, the first player to win 10 titles on the Asian Tour.
Steering the ball around the course with precision, Thaworn cruised to a 20-under mark that bettered the 18-under total set by Chinese Taipei's Tsai Chi-huang in last year's Luxehills Golf Championship in Chengdu.
After opening with rounds of 70 and 68, the short-game wizard charged into a share of the 54-hole lead with a 63 that equalled the Tour record round set by Barnes on day one. Even rain delays on both Saturday and Sunday could not throw him off course, as he coolly held off Eom's final-round challenge.
"If there was no rain, it could have been better. The rain was a bit of a problem, especially for the putting. However, the course was not too long, which is good for me," Thaworn said. "Eom was very good and he's only 18. He has a bright future."
Thaworn started the day level with Eom at 15-under and it evolved into a virtual matchplay, with both shooting 33 on the front nine while Barnes shot 36.
After a two-hour rain delay, Thaworn went ahead with a birdie on the par-four 11th and sank an eight-foot birdie putt on the par-five 15th to go 20-under and two strokes clear, with Qingdao-based Eom reducing the gap at the last.
Li, an eight-time Omega China Tour champion, also birdied the last for his lowest round on the circuit this year and best result since winning the Dell Championship in Xiamen last March.
"I felt better this week, especially after the first day. I feel like I'm playing well again and I hope this will be a new beginning for me. I'll continue to work hard and hopefully the results will follow," said the 29-year-old, winner of the Omega Order of Merit in 2005 and 2007.
Barnes was four behind Thaworn and two behind Eom when he tried to drive the green on the 426-yard par-four 17th, but only found thick rough on a bank in front of the putting surface. Three hacks later and he was on the green, two-putting for a double-bogey. A birdie at the par-five 18th gave him fourth outright.
This week's original 125-strong field included invites from the PGA Tour of Australasia (9), Mercedes-Benz Tour of Southeast Asia (5), Chinese Taipei (2) and Hong Kong of China (2), along with nine China-based foreign pros from Qualifying School.
(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2009)
