Strange birdied the first hole to double his one-shot lead and was never seriously threatened en route to his second Asian Tour title.

"It’s important to have a good start in this course because the back nine can really punish you," said Strange, who carded a two-under par 70 for an aggregate of eight-under par 280.

He built a five-shot lead at the turn following a two-under card in the front nine.

Back-to-back birdies at the 11th and 12th, both par-4s, moved him to 10-under and pushed his lead to seven strokes. Game over.

"When I made those birdies (at the 11th and 12th) and parred the 13th, I know they are not going to catch me if I play it safe the rest of the way," said Strange, who won his first Asian Tour title in the 2005 Myanmar Open.

His defensive approach pulled him back to eight-under, but he couldn’t care less. "I don’t have to try and do too much in the closing holes. I think I have done enough to win."

Strange was one of only six players to submit an under-par score in the final round and the only one to break par in all four rounds.

The victory earned him ,700 and a space in the rich history of the country’s most prestigious golf tournament.

He vowed to return and defend his title when the Open kicks off the 2007 season of the Asian Tour.

Korean Park Jun-Won sizzled with the tournament’s best score of five-under-par 67 to finish second at three-under overall.

"I hit a lot of good irons close to the pins for birdie," said Park, a rookie in the Asian Tour. He pocketed ,700 for his best effort since turning pro in January.

Park finished the day with six birdies, all within 12 feet, against a lone bogey on the par-4 12th.

Former Open winner Yeh Chang-Ting struggled to find the green all day and signed a three-over par 75.

He shared third place with compatriot Lu WeiLan (71) and England’s Chris Rodgers (72) at two-under overall.

Juvic Pagunsan, who played the last three holes of the third round at five-over, had a steady round of even-par 72 to earn his third straight top 10 finish in the Open.

He shared sixth spot with Australian Unho Park (72).

Cookie LaO, the third man in the championship flight, struggled with a two-over-par 74.

On the bright note, his one-over effort was enough to give him his first top 10 finish in the Asian Tour.

Gerald Rosales, the 2000 Open champ and last year’s runner-up, finished 12th at two-over.

He had his only underpar round in the tournament yesterday by signing a 71.