October 24-27
Dom Pedro Victoria Golf Course, Vilamoura, Portugal
€1,500,000
Round 1, Round 2, Round 3

Steven Brown overturned a three-stroke deficit to win his first European Tour title at the Portugal Masters and secured his playing rights for the 2020 season in the process.

“It's hard to put into words. It hasn't sunk in. It was a weird day. You never know with this game. It's crazy to think how well I've played this month and how bad the first two thirds of the year were. I never thought this would happen – I was counting down to Tour School and getting ready for that."

The Englishman arrived in Portugal needing a top-three finish to secure his card for 2020 but started the final day in the Algarve in fourth place.

He put the pressure on 54-hole leader Brandon Stone after the turn with a birdie on the 11 th and a spectacular eagle on the 12th, hitting his second shot to just four feet. They were tied with just five holes to play after Stone bogeyed the 13th , with Brown moving ahead after the South African dropped another shot at the 16th.

Brown held his nerve with par on each of his final six hole to secure his first European Tour title, his playing rights for 2020 and his spot in the Turkish Airlines Open in a fortnight's time, the first of three consecutive Rolex Series events at the end of the 2019 season.

“That shot I hit into 12 was probably the best shot I've ever hit. It couldn't have come off more perfect. I saw the leaderboard at 13 and saw Justin was playing well and Brandon was still ahead of me. I kept telling myself to keep going – we had holes to play. It seems like everyone fell away at the end. It went my way because I just parred in.

“I've just had a calmness in my head the last few weeks – even today. I like the fact I had to go for it and wasn't trying for a good result. I had to seize the chance to win the tournament. That's the difference, before I've thought ‘I'm up there and had a good week, that's great' this week it was do or bust. I can't believe it.”

Stone shared second place with his compatriot Justin Walters – who needed a strong week to secure his playing rights for next year, which he did after moving up to 79th from 121st on the Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex.

“I left it all out there," said Walters. "It's a pity about the last but it's a hard hole. I committed to the driver, just left it a little bit right. The bunker shot I didn't think would get to the green, but it was in a perfect place. I had a bit of a funny lie – a sandy lie – I caught it better than I thought and it just grabbed on the slope. If you'd have given that to me at the beginning of the week I'd have run away with it, I'll hold my head up high.”

Frenchman Adrien Saddier finished fourth, while England's Chris Paisley rounded out the top five.

Similarly to Walters, Englishman Jack Singh Brar needed a strong performance to secure his card for 2020. The 22-year-old started the week as the last man in on the Race to Dubai in 117th place but, as the cut-off moved to 115th , he responded with a final round of 66 to move to 109th and a share of eighth place.

“I'm over the moon. I got off to a great start today – three under through nine – I just tried to keep pushing. It's hard when you know how much is on the line, I'm just so glad to have done it. You wake up with thoughts racing round, even today. I knew I had to shoot a good number because there were so many people chasing me down. Trying to control my emotions, even coming down 18 I could barely hold the club. I struggled to get comfortable all year – hence my results. Now I feel like I can push on.”