Home city favourite Lucas Parsons hit a superb six under par closing round of 67 to win the Greg Norman Holden International at The Lakes in Sydney.

The 30-year-old's reward was the £146,455 top prize - the highest in Australian golfing history.

Parsons, who as a youngster dreamt of being an Olympic diver, beat fellow Australian Peter Senior by four strokes in the city which will host the 2000 games later this year.

"It was hard work, but I loved every minute of it," he said.

"To win is an immense relief. I've had my ups and downs over the last few years, but this sets up everything for me."

Welshman David Park, the joint overnight leader, fell back to fifth place with a 74.

Scot Andrew Coltart shot 71 and failed to improve on his third spot, which he shared with Sweden's Per-Ulrik Johansson.

Parsons played on Europe's "second division" Challenge Tour last season.

But this win means he is assured of spending the next two seasons on the main circuit.

As a teenager he was runner-up in the Australian junior diving championship and won four New South Wales titles.

But he left the pool-based sport in favour of one where his performance was down to his own efforts alone.

"I gave it up because I didn't like being judged by others. In golf you're the boss - I'm in charge of my own destiny."

He turned professional in 1992, but after three early wins he started to struggle, went through a marriage break-up and allowed his weight to go up to more than 18 stones.

"Fitness didn't used to be part of our game, but it is now," said Parsons, now down to 14 stone.

"Tiger Woods has set an example and if you want to beat him you have to match him. It's as simple as that - you can't be five or six stones overweight."

Olly wastes good position

Park was four shots clear after eight holes of his third round on Saturday, but was reeled in by Parsons and they set off again on level terms.

It did not last long. Parsons birdied the first, Park bogeyed the second and the gap was never closer than two for the rest of the day.

Parsons added another birdie on the fourth, chipped in at the short seventh to turn in 32 and on the way home also birdied the 11th and 18th.

Coltart's outward 34 left him four behind, and he three-putted the 577-yard 11th for a par and missed from five feet on the next.

Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal. who leapt up to joint third place with a Saturday 66, managed only 74 and finished in a tie for eighth.

Alongside him was Scot Gary Orr, the only man to match Parsons' 67 on the final day.

Englishman Ian Garbutt, Park's World Cup partner Philip Price and Australian amateur Scott Gardiner.

John Daly finished in a tie for 43rd place and has decided to delay his return to America for a further week to play in the Australian Masters in Melbourne.

Collated final totals
(GB and Ire unless stated, par 73):
(x) denotes amateurs

273 L Parsons (Aus) 70 66 70 67
277 P Senior (Aus) 67 70 71 69
279 P-U Johansson (Swe) 71 68 71 69, A Coltart 67 68 73 71
280 D Park 68 65 73 74
281 A Hansen (Den) 68 71 72 70, W Smith (Aus) 74 67 67 73
282 G Orr 78 65 72 67, P Price 72 70 70 70, (x) S Gardiner (Aus) 75 69 68 70, I Garbutt 71 71 69 71, JM Olazabal (Spain) 72 70 66 74
283 R Wessels (SA) 72 70 71 70, C Hanell (Swe) 71 66 75 71, B Ogle (Aus) 73 71 68 71, C Parry (Aus) 71 72 66 74
284 R Goosen (SA) 70 72 71 71, C Hainline (US) 71 70 71 72, Zhang Lian-wei (China) 68 73 71 72, G Evans 71 71 69 73, P O'Malley (Aus) 72 70 69 73
285 S Appleby (Aus) 73 69 75 68, N Vanhootegem (Bel) 75 68 73 69, (x) A Baddeley (Aus) 71 73 72 69, A Bonhomme (Aus) 72 74 68 71, S Hansen (Den) 70 70 73 72, A McLardy (SA) 71 66 75 73, G Dodd (Aus) 69 71 71 74
286 B Langer (Ger) 71 72 71 72, R Davis (Aus) 75 67 71 73, P McGinley 71 74 67 74 287 S Laycock (Aus) 78 68 70 71, B Estes (US) 71 74 70 72, P Broadhurst 72 74 69 72, W Riley (Aus) 71 70 73 73, J Moseley (Aus) 69 71 73 74, S Tait (Aus) 68 72 72 75
288 J Sandelin (Swe) 73 71 73 71, M Scarpa (Italy) 73 73 69 73, S Tinning (Den) 71 70 73 74, (x) A Scott (Aus) 75 63 72 78
289 J Daly (US) 73 70 74 72, M Lane (NZ) 73 71 73 72, T Gogele (Ger) 76 68 72 73, K Druce (Aus) 72 72 72 73, B Rumford (Aus) 69 69 77 74, R Willis (Aus) 73 71 71 74, J Rose 76 69 70 74
290 D McKenzie (Aus) 73 72 74 71, P Burke (US) 75 71 73 71, T Gillis (US) 73 73 72 72, P Gow (Aus) 72 74 70 74, V Phillips 71 73 71 75, R Stephens (Aus) 73 73 69 75, A Cejka (Ger) 73 68 73 76, J Cooper (Aus) 76 67 71 76
291 R McFarlane 69 77 73 72, P Lonard (Aus) 69 71 77 74, M Ecob (Aus) 74 72 71 74, S Kjeldsen (Den) 73 73 69 76, C Gray (Aus) 71 72 71 77
292 R Russell 75 71 74 72, D Chopra (Swe) 74 69 74 75, S Bouvier (Aus) 70 73 71 78, S Allan (Aus) 72 72 69 79, D Carter 70 71 70 81
293 P Golding 68 75 73 77, M Lafeber (Holl) 66 74 74 79
294 G Coles (Aus) 74 71 75 74, M Roberts (Aus) 72 73 74 75, A Forsyth 76 69 73 76
295 T Price (Aus) 74 70 74 77, A Stolz (Aus) 72 72 71 80, P Baker 69 74 71 81
296 B Teilleria (Fra) 74 70 74 78
297 G Hutcheon 74 70 76 77, M Ferguson (Aus) 71 75 73 78
298 S Struver (Ger) 73 68 76 81
299 G Emerson 66 77 77 79