Kevin Kisner breaks through with win at RSM Classic

A four-time runner-up this year, Kevin Kisner finally broke through Sunday, earning his first PGA Tour win.

Kisner closed with a 6-under-par 64, matching the day's low score at Sea Island Resort's Seaside Course in Sea Island, Ga., and he walked away with a six-stroke victory in the RSM Classic.

Kisner finished at 22-under 260, easily beating runner-up Kevin Chappell, who shot a 67 on Sunday.

Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell, the winner of the PGA Tour's Mexican event last week, came in third at Sea Island at 267. He carded a final-round 67.

Kisner challenged for a win two weeks ago in the WGC-HSBC Champions in China. He held the 36-hole lead after starting 64-66 before playing the weekend in 70-70 to wind up second, two strokes behind champion Russell Knox of Scotland.

In the 2014-15 season, Kisner lost playoffs in the RBC Heritage, the Players Championship and the Greenbriar Classic. Before Sunday, the two biggest of his five professional wins came in the 2010 Mylan Classic and the 2013 Chile Classic on what is now the Web.com Tour, the PGA Tour's top minor league circuit.

"I think all those close calls taught me to never give up and keep grinding," Kisner said. "I told my caddie, I said, 'There is no lead big enough.'"

Chappell added, "Your goal is to win, but (Kisner) wasn't going to let anyone else do that today. He just played some phenomenal golf, so it was going to be hard to catch him today."

Jon Curran closed with a 66 to finish at 269 on Sunday, good for fourth place. Sweden's Freddie Jacobson ended with a 67 to take fifth place at 270.

Russell Henley (final-round 65), Jeff Overton (69) and Germany's Alex Cejka (69) shared sixth place at 271.

Nine players tied for ninth at 272.

The event was the last of the calendar year on the PGA Tour. The next official tournament on the 2015-16 schedule is the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Kapalua, Hawaii, from Jan. 7-10.