Perth - Australia's Brett Rumford captured his sixth European Tour title with
a historic victory over Thailand's Phachara Khongwatmai in the final of
the inaugural World Super 6 Perth on Sunday.
Rumford, who
dominated the field by five shots after 54 holes of strokeplay, won four
match play rounds of the revolutionary new European Tour format to
claim victory.
His 2&1 victory over Thai teenager Khongwatmai
in the final at Lake Karrinyup will now earn Rumford an exemption on the
European Tour until the end of the 2018 season.
It was Rumford's first win since the 2013 Volvo China Open.
"It's amazing, particularly being a new format, the first winner of that," Rumford said.
"It's great to be back. I've done a lot of reflection these past few months after missing my (European) Tour card last year.
"I
had a tough year and didn't see my family that much, only four weeks in
six months. It was a gruelling six months, but I'm back and I couldn't
be happier."
Khongwatmai, 17, would have become the second youngest winner in European Tour history if he had beaten Rumford in the final.
Rumford
had a bye in the first round of the match play round and overcame
Hideto Tanihara, Wade Ormsby and Adam Bland on the way to the final.
Khongwatmai
squeezed into the 24th and final spot in the Super 6 and defeated
Australians Sam Brazel, Lucas Herbert, Matthew Millar and Jason
Scrivener en route to the final.
Rumford got off to a sensational
start, putting his approach to the first to within three feet, and when
Khongwatmai flew the green into a bunker and failed to get up and down,
the hole was conceded.
The 39-year-old Australian conceded on the
second hole, sending his tee-shot well right and his second well left,
with Khongwatmai safely on the green in two.
Khongwatmai found a
bunker off the tee at the par three third but recovered well, with
Rumford playing his ball up to the hole as they walked off all square.
Rumford
looked in trouble again with a wayward second shot on the par five
fourth but he hit a sensational shot over a bunker to set up a ten-foot
birdie and a one-hole lead.
An approach to two feet on the fifth
piled the pressure on Khongwatmai, and when the young Thai found the
bunker with his tee-shot and failed to get out with his second, it was
all over.
Bland finished third after beating Scrivener in a
playoff, with South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen fifth followed by Steven
Jeffress, Millar and Ormsby.