JAKARTA, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Englishman Lee Westwood overcame fatigue to win his first title of the year and his 38th career victory with a successful title defense at the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters on Sunday.
The world No. 3 golfer completed a marathon 32 holes when he returned on Sunday morning to finish the third round before closing with a final round 2-over-par 74 for a winning total of 16-under-par 272 at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club in East Jakarta.
The Englishman defeated former Asian Tour No. 1, Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand, who returned with a 67, by two shots, while India's rising stars, Gaganjeet Bhullar and Shiv Kapur, finished tied in third place.
Westwood, who finished tied third at the Masters Tournament two weeks ago, held a dominant eight-shot lead going into the final round but tiredness began to kick in on his homeward nine as he shot one birdie and three bogeys.
"Today was hard. It is never easy playing in these conditions and I had to play 32 holes. It was draining out there and I was really feeling it on the back nine. When you are in contention and under pressure, it seems to zap your energy faster," said Westwood.
Westwood, who won 118,875 U.S. dollars and a batik jacket, which is afforded to every winner of the tournament, hopes to replicate his winning performance this week in the three remaining Major championships of the year.
"Hopefully, this will kick-start my year. I've played well without any wins so hopefully I can go on and win other tournaments. It is tough when you are the favorite because if you don't win then it's a disappointment. There was a lot of pressure, so I'm glad I did it," added Westwood, who turns 39 on Tuesday. Enditem