American Ben Crane held his nerve to win the PGA Tour's first event in Southeast Asia on Sunday, firing a closing 69 to hold off charging Englishman Brian Davis.
Crane sunk a pressure-packed birdie on the last hole to beat Davis by a stroke and pick up a one-million-dollar cheque at the CIMB Asia-Pacific Classic, a tournament co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour. Scotland's Martin Laird, who was only beaten to the Shriners Hospital Open title last week when Jonathan Byrd fired a hole-in-one at the fourth playoff hole, kept his good form going to finish with a 66. It left him in third place with world number eight Luke Donald of England.
A group of six players were two strokes further back, including South Africa's Ernie Els, Australia's Robert Allenby and Singapore's Mardan Mamat, the best-placed Asian Tour star.
The victory was Crane's second of the season, following his win at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.
But he did it the hard way in Kuala Lumpur, almost throwing away the title with bogeys on the 12th, 13th and 14th before an eagle at the 15th put him back in contention. Davis stroked a five-under-par 66 for a total of 267 to keep the pressure on and was hoping to take the tournament to a play-off, but Crane's last-hole heroics denied the Englishman glory.
The ever-popular Els, who won last week in Bermuda, hit a final round five-under 66, with four closing birdies, for a four-day total of 270.
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