Sébastien Gros became the first home winner of the Najeti Open presented by Neuflize OBC in 11 years as the Frenchman cruised to a six-shot victory in Saint Omer.
The 25-year-old led the field by seven shots heading into the final round in northern France and he continued in that imperious vein of form to march to a convincing victory, setting the mark for the biggest winning margin this season.
Gros shook off any fears of nerves on the final day as he birdied the opening hole and, with his playing partners Terry Pilkidaris and Ryan Fox both carding bogeys, the lead was extended to nine.
The two Australians eventually fell back and it was another Frenchman, Thomas Linard, who emerged as the most viable candidate to topple his compatriot.
It was not to be, however, and it was the man from Lyon who strolled to the most comfortable of victories courtesy of a two under final round 69 and a 14 under cumulative total - moving to second place in the Road to Oman Rankings in the process.
"On paper, it seemed that it was easy but it was not," said Gros, who gained his Challenge Tour card having negotiated his way through the First and Second Stages of Qualifying School last year.
"I am a very emotional person and I did not sleep well last night - I barely ate. I missed some shorts putts in the middle of the round today and my caddie helped me to improve on my stroke.
"I had thoughts about winning during the round but honestly, I was only sure after my first putt on the 17th. Believe me, it was only at this moment that I finally told myself that it could no longer go wrong for me.
"There are no small or big titles, you have to learn to win. If your golf is in bad shape, even winning in a pro-am can help. But I am so happy even if I don't think it has really sunk in yet. What I am sure of is that I deserved this win."
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