After being virtually neck and neck throughout the tournament, England’s Ian Poulter came from two shots behind Geoff Ogilvy to take the title at the Australian Masters in Melbourne.
Poulter, currently 28th in the world rankings, produced a superb round of 67 on the final day of play to seal the title in one of the last events of the season.
He made the most of mistakes made by local star Ogilvy, who struggled under the pressure, with a final round 73 to end up 11-under par.
It was Poulter’s first title since winning the Volvo World Match Play back in May.
"After the first couple of days when there wasn't much wind people may have thought the Victoria Golf Club was easy, but they were mistaken," he said. "It certainly showed its teeth today.
"To come down here the week before Christmas and to win this tournament is very special. I had a message from [former champion] Justin Rose who said, 'Put a nice gold jacket in your wardrobe like I have,' and it's nice to do that."
World No. 1 Luke Donald ended 2011 with a round of 72, enough to tie for 12th at four-under, alongside Greg Chalmers, who failed in his bid to become only the second player to win all three major Australian tournaments during a single season.
