Playing alongside each other all week, Hellgren and Thompson began the final round tied, before the Swede closed with a five-under-par 67 to finish on 23-under and win by one. Thompson signed for a 68 in the season-ending Asian Tour event.

Hellgren held a one-shot lead standing on the par-five 18th, where Thompson narrowly missed an eagle putt from 30 feet and settled for birdie. That left Hellgren needing to hole a six-foot birdie putt to secure his maiden Asian Tour title, which he duly did.

Malaysia’s Ervin Chang and American Charles Porter tied for third, three shots behind Thompson. Chang closed with a 68 to cap a remarkable week, climbing from 75th to 41st on the Asian Tour Order of Merit to secure his card for next season. Porter, a graduate from this year’s Qualifying School, finished with a 69.

Japan’s Kazuki Higa was another major winner on the day, wrapping up the Asian Tour Order of Merit title. He closed with a 68 to finish seventh, comfortably ahead of Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent in second. Vincent tied for 15th after a 68, having needed a win or runner-up finish to deny Higa. The diminutive Japanese star became the first player from his country to claim the prestigious Merit title.

For Hellgren, the victory marked redemption after several testing seasons on Tour. He arrived in Asia in 2020 with an impressive résumé that included multiple wins in Scandinavia as both an amateur and professional, and a college career at Florida State University, where he roomed with Brooks Koepka.

He tied for ninth at Qualifying School in 2020 but played only one event before the COVID-19 shutdown. When play resumed, he struggled to find consistent form, with his best result a tie for third at the 2022 Yeangder TPC. Even before this week, Hellgren admitted to being exhausted after a long stretch on Tour and to behaving poorly both on and off the course. A recent family holiday in Spain, he said, helped reset his mindset.

“Super happy,” said Hellgren.
“I mean, finally. I'm not gonna say I was doubting myself, but I've been leading tournaments before in the past five years, and never got it done before. I couldn't have done it without Graham, my caddie. He kept me calm and present for especially today. So, I'm very proud of myself, my team, and especially my family that keep pushing me.”

The pair were tied at the turn before Thompson missed a short putt on the 10th, handing the outright lead to Hellgren. On the next hole, a par four, Hellgren caught a fortunate break after driving into trouble. Forced to lay up, his third shot struck the pin and stopped seven feet away, allowing him to save par and maintain his advantage.

He then stiffed his approach to inside a foot for birdie on the following hole to move two clear after Thompson missed a 10-footer. Thompson birdied the 17th to close the gap to one, narrowly avoiding a play-off on the final hole.

Added Hellgren, who finished sixth on the Order of Merit:
“We had an amazing four days. I mean, his (Thompson’s) caddy is a good friend of mine who stayed with me this week, Adrian. I’m really happy for Jack also, because he had a good week, kept his job, and I said when we were signing scorecards, I couldn't have done it without him. And I was pretty sure if he made that putt on 18, mine would have been way longer. So yeah, very fortunate to play with him.”

Hellgren became the eighth Swede to win on the Asian Tour since 2004, and the first since Malcolm Kokocinski at the AB Bank Bangladesh Open in 2018.

Thompson arrived in Saudi Arabia needing a strong finish to retain his card, as he sat 62nd on the Merit list. His runner-up result lifted him to 21st overall.

“Yeah, it's a tough one,” said Thompson, who birdied three consecutive holes from the third to take an early lead.
“Obviously, I started off pretty well. I didn't hit the ball anywhere near good enough today, but just scrambled so well, made some good birdies, and holed some good putts. Also missed a couple putts.
“So yeah, I mean, at the end of that, I can't really complain. I think if you told me I'd finished second at the start of the week before, when I needed to keep my card, I would have been pretty happy. But we obviously want more. Always want more.”

Chang was delighted with his best-ever Asian Tour finish.

“Honestly speaking, to be very honest, I woke up at 3 am and couldn't go back to sleep after that,” said the former SEA Games gold medallist.
“I think because just kind of knowing what's at stake, and knowing a top 10 finish guaranteed me a card for next year. And coming to this week, I didn't buy an air ticket to go home yet, and I'm about to buy my air ticket to go home.”

Also narrowly retaining their cards inside the top 65 were Hung Chien-yao of Chinese Taipei (60th), Filipino Justin Quiban (61st), Pakistan’s Ahmad Baig (62nd) and Thailand’s Sarut Vongchaisit (64th).