Ricardo Gouveia posted a five under par final round of 67 to clinch his seventh European Challenge Tour victory at the Hainan Open.
The Portuguese entered the fourth round three shots off the lead but after mixing six birdies with one bogey, he climbed to the top of the leaderboard and secured a three-shot victory at Danzhou Ancient Saltern Golf Club.
Gouveia joins Englishman Warren Bennett in second place on the all-time Challenge Tour winners list, one behind England’s Iain Pyman who has eight victories.
The 32-year-old climbs to tenth position on the Road to Mallorca Rankings ahead of the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final supported by The R&A and is in a strong position to regain his DP World Tour playing privileges for 2024.
“It was an amazing day today," he said. "It was really tough in those conditions and I played very well on the back nine. “I stayed very patient out there and took my chances when they arrived. I knew the last few holes were playing into the wind and I’m so happy to get the win.
“This is probably my second favourite win after my first victory on the Challenge Tour. At the beginning of the year my plan was to play on the DP World Tour but after I won the Abu Dhabi Challenge it changed my mindset and I’m so glad I made the decision to play on the Challenge Tour.
"I’m focused on returning to the DP World Tour and this win is so important for me.”
Switzerland’s Joel Girrbach finished in second place on 13 under par, while Chinese amateur Wenyi Ding, Italian Francesco Laporta and Englishmen Steven Brown and Will Enefer finished a shot further back in third.
Gouveia climbs 15 places into tenth on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, while Spaniard Manuel Elvira moves into pole position ahead of Frenchman Ugo Coussaud in second. South African Casey Jarvis sits in third position, while Sweden's Jesper Svensson and Adam Blomme make up the top five.
Brown climbed 29 places into 41st on the Rankings courtesy of his third place finish and will therefore tee it up at the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final next month.
The season finale will take place at Club de Golf Alcanada from November 2-5 as the top 45 players on the Rankings battle it out for one of the 20 coveted DP World Tour cards on offer.
