Richard Johnson wins ANZ Championship

SYDNEY, Feb. 10 (UPI) -- Sweden's Richard Johnson won his first European tour title Sunday as the 25-year-old posted a two-point victory in the ANZ Championship.

Under the Modified Stableford format, which awards two points for birdies and five for eagles, Johnson's closing 5-under-par 68 translated to 11 points and a 72-hole total of 46. He was 19-under for the week.

"When I holed my last putt it felt like my life changed," said Johnson, ranked a lowly 369th in the world at the start of the year. "I am a winner now and we will see what happens, I guess."

Johnson never gave himself a hope of victory after opening with a level par 73, which left him 17 points behind England's Jonathan Lomas. But he finished 10 ahead.

Australians Craig Parry and Scott Laycock tied for second, overnight leader Andre Stolz fourth and Stephen Gallacher of Scotland fifth.

Two behind Laycock with three holes to play, Johnson holed a 20-foot putt on the 16th and Laycock bogeyed the long 17th.

Pre-tournament favorite Parry moved into second place with a birdie on the same hole and would have caught Johnson with another at the 18th. But Parry missed the green and failed to get up and down.

Only four months ago, Johnson feared for his tour future but narrowly avoided a return to the qualifying school. By winning here, he stays on the tour for the next two seasons.

This is only Johnson's third full season on the circuit and he finished 96th on the Order of Merit in 2000 and 112th last year. He did not turn professional until five years ago, having first competed in the Swedish championships in skateboarding.

That sport was dropped, however, after he broke seven ribs, a hand and a foot over the years.

Parry, who admitted he had not heard of Johnson prior to the week, was unhappy afterwards about a slow play warning early in the round.

Gallacher was tied with Johnson for third heading into Sunday's round, but in the first 14 holes undid the work of five birdies with six bogeys.

England's Ian Garbutt had set the early clubhouse target with the best round of his eight-year tour career -- a 9-under-par 64 -- which eventually left him sixth, another personal best.