ASH, England -- Christian Cevaer won the European Open by one stroke on Sunday, making par at the difficult 18th hole for a 2-over 74.

The Frenchman totaled 7-under 281 at the London Golf Club to beat Steve Webster (71), Gary Orr (71) and Alvaro Quiros (72).

Jeev Milkha Singh of India, who shared the third-round lead with Cevaer, shot a 76 to finish tied for fifth with Stephen Dodd (68) and Chris Wood (73) on 283.

Cevaer, 449th in the world and without a top-30 finish in his last 15 tournaments, overcame a star-studded field and one of the toughest holes in golf for his shocking win.

After an amazing weekend that saw no fewer than 45 changes of the lead, the 39-year-old, whose only previous Tour victory was the 2004 Spanish Open, finished with a total 13 strokes more than Ross Fisher took on the same London Club course last year -- and his 74 was the highest last round by a winner all season.

But while Webster and Quiros both became more victims of the 471-yard last when tied for the lead -- both carved their drives into the crowd, with Quiros hitting spectators with his first and second shots -- Cevaer kept his nerve.

During the week, the par 4 played to an average of nearly 4.7, with 154 bogeys, 48 doubles and 26 triples or worse, but Cevaer parred it the first two days, birdied it in the third round and finished with the par he needed.

"I'm not a long player, but I used my utility club and it worked out great," he said after being showered with champagne. "I made a point that no matter what happened just enjoy my golf, enjoy my skills and hang in there."

He played the front nine in 39 and did not have a birdie until the long 15th, but the problems meant that it brought him back into a share of top spot. And then three closing pars were good enough to give him the first prize of about $400,000 -- easily the biggest of his 16-year professional career.

At 196th on the "Race to Dubai" money list entering the week, he would have been delighted just to secure his card for next season, but now he has a five-year European Tour exemption.

The victory will also lift Cevaer more than 300 places in the world ranking. For a while it looked as if Welshman Stephen Dodd, ranked 241st, might come from eight behind to win -- two days after driving home thinking he had missed the cut.

But after playing the first 16 holes in a brilliant 6 under, Dodd bogeyed the last two and finished two behind in joint fifth with Chris Wood, the Bristol 21-year-old who as an amateur was fifth in the British Open last year, and Cevaer's joint overnight leader Singh.

Wood led on his own after birdies at the first and sixth, but covered the last 12 holes in 3 over.

With playing partner Rory McIlroy, tied for third when he resumed, surprisingly falling back to 12th with a 75 Spaniard Jose Manuel Lara was the next with a chance of posting a challenging target.

But he bogeyed the 16th and double bogeyed the short 17th before Webster could not salvage a closing par from the thick rough and Quiros could not get up and down from over the green.

Orr, playing with Webster, came home in a fine 34, but he needed one more birdie to tie and could not find it.

World No. 4 Sergio Garcia climbed from 47th to 13th with a closing 68, but was never in the hunt after going in the water on the 18th in the second and third rounds.

Colin Montgomerie, meanwhile, found the lake for a closing triple-bogey 7 and with a 75 for 5 over finished only 55th. The Scot, soon to be 46, has not had a top-10 finish since last July and stated: "I just wish my golf was better. I've got no confidence at all."

This week's Wales Open at Celtic Manor brings him together with Corey Pavin, his opposite number as captain at the Ryder Cup there next year, but Montgomerie said he had asked not to be paired with the American in the first two rounds.

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