Ian Poulter carded a closing 72, one over par, to edge out China's Liang Wen-chong by one shot and complete a nervous wire-to-wire victory in the Barclays Singapore Open.
With former Asian number one Liang in the clubhouse at nine under following a final round of 70, Poulter stood on the 18th tee with a one stroke lead after seeing his five shot halfway cushion wiped out on Saturday.
But the 33 year old held his nerve to make par and secure a first win since the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan in 2007 and first on The European Tour since Madrid the previous year.
Australian duo Adam Scott (68) and Scott Hend (69) finished joint third at eight under, with South African Charl Schwartzel (69), Graeme McDowell (74) and Dane Anders Hansen (70) tied for fifth a further shot off the pace.
After completing his third round earlier in the day following a weather interrupted week at Sentosa Golf Club, Poulter held onto his one stroke lead after reaching the turn in the final round in level par.
He dropped back into a tie with McDowell after a third bogey of the day at the 11th and found himself a shot behind new leader McDowell after another dropped shot on the 12th.
However, Poulter's third birdie of the day from 30 foot on the 13th moved him back into a share of the lead before McDowell carded three consecutive bogeys to fall off the pace.
Poulter found sand off the tee at the par three 17th but, following another excellent sand save, held his nerve down the stretch to seal an eighth European Tour title.
"Getting off to the start I did, getting out of the blocks pretty quick, surprised me a little as I was mis-hitting some shots and I made it a little interesting on a string of holes yesterday," Poulter said.
"And coming out today I made some mistakes as well on the front nine and back nine to make it too close for comfort.
"But to stand on the last knowing I had to make five, I was pretty happy.
"The birdie on 13 pumped me up. I was getting angry. I had played so well in spells around here this week and it is just so annoying to just let easy holes slip with two bogeys and then lose the lead.
"Graeme was in front and I felt like I had to do something. And I did, I rolled one in from 30 feet and it gave me a boost after a tiring day."
Liang was in an upbeat mood despite being pipped to the title.
“Overall, I’m satisfied and pleased with how I played all week and being in contention today,” he said. “It was good that I maintained my form the entire week. I will try to maintain my form for the rest of the year.
“My tee shots were not good on the back nine but that’s golf. I tried my best but lady luck was eluding me. It was quite a pity on the 18th hole that I couldn’t find a birdie, I just hit a bad third shot. I had a pitching wedge in hand, had 126 yards to the pin. There are no regrets - golf is like that. If I can’t make birdie, I have to accept how I played.”
