NEWPORT, Wales -- Scott Strange got his first European Tour victory by leading the Celtic Manor Wales Open from start to finish, shooting a 7-under 64 Sunday to win by four strokes.

The 31-year-old Australian finished at 22-under 262. Robert Karlsson of Sweden was second after a final-round 64.

Raphael Jacquelin was third on 270, while five players were tied for fourth, another stroke back.

Strange, whose previous best result was a second-place finish in the Johnnie Walker Classic in India in March, felt dizzy at one point on the back nine of Saturday's third round.

"I was still dodgy this morning, but as the day went on I felt better and better," he said. "I knew I had to play decent golf to have a chance to win because I knew the guys would be coming after me."

He was in trouble on the par-5 18th after a poor drive, but managed to save par.

"I felt numb on the last tee," he said. "I had a vacant brain. I wasn't thinking about the shot to hit, I just felt all I had to do was swing the club."

Birdie bursts from Karlsson and Darren Clarke were not enough to stop Strange as the 31-year-old from Perth, never previously higher than 10th on European soil and ranked only 164th in the world, showed himself to be a front-runner of real substance on the new course built to stage the 2010 Ryder Cup.

Never caught from the moment he opened with a 63 on Thursday, Strange produced a flawless closing 64, tied for the best of the day, to win with a staggering 22 under par total of 262.

Karlsson, third in his previous three events, also shot 64 but finished four shots back. Clarke's 66 -- it promised to be so much better the way he started -- lifted him from 14th into a tie for fourth, albeit a distant nine strokes adrift of Strange.

"I looked up and thought I was doing okay, but those guys were making birdies all over the place,'' said Clarke after giving his Ryder Cup bid another big lift following his victory in China in April. "The course is not that easy, but they are obviously making it look very easy.''

Clarke, the only player to have two rounds of 60 in European Tour history, birdied five of the first seven holes to be only three behind, but a shocking 5-iron into the water on the short 13th was effectively the end of his challenge.

Karlsson, lying joint third overnight, was the next to test the leader's character, six successive birdies around the turn making it eight in all for the tall Swede.

That cut Strange's advantage to two, but with a matching outward 31 and then further birdies on the 11th and 14th the two-time Asian Tour winner re-established his command and it was pretty much game over.

Unless, that was, he had a repeat of the dizzy spell he suffered late in his third round. But while he did not exactly look in the best of health he did what he had to.

"I obviously knew I was playing okay, but I didn't want to get ahead of myself and make a mess of it," said Clarke. "I hit a couple of so-so shots, but I was very comfortable with what I was trying to do and I'm looking forward to next week in Austria.''

He could have gone straight on to Monday's U.S. Open qualifier at Walton Heath near London, but is among more than 20 players who have pulled out to concentrate on European events instead. The qualifying field as a result is down to only 46 competing for around eight places at Torrey Pines.

On recovering from his double bogey with an eagle at the driveable 15th, Clarke, who was outside the world's top 200 at the start of the year and could now find himself back in the top 100 after this, stated: "I'm taking things more on the chin and getting on with it. I laughed when I went in the water -- I've not always done that!

"I'm disappointed I'm not in the U.S. Open, but I've got to try to make sure I'm exempt for The Open and this whole week has provided me with a lot of positives," he added. "Life is better and I am very close to the way I want to hit the ball.''

Colin Montgomerie's closing 72 dropped him to 58th of the 73 who made the cut and means he has still not had a top-40 finish in stroke play since January. A ninth Ryder Cup cap looks further away than ever.

England's Danny Willett, meanwhile, finished his professional debut down in 61st and the former amateur world No. 1 -- 19th and 10th on his two European Tour starts before joining the paid ranks -- will be looking for something much better next time out. He has to make around $300,000 from seven invitations to avoid the qualifying school at the end of the year.

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