The 30-year-old, who triumphed at the Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea last week, produced a bogey-free four-under 68 in the final round at Linkou International Golf and Country Club to finish at 17-under 271, two shots clear.

Overnight leader Charles Porter (71) shared second on 15-under with Taiwan’s Wang Wei-hsuan (67) and Thailand’s Rattanon Wannasrichan (66). Miguel Tabuena of the Philippines (66) and American Shotaro Ban (68) closed with birdies at the last to finish joint fifth at 14-under. Australia’s Travis Smyth (71) tied seventh at 13-under alongside Indian duo Ajeetesh Sandhu and Viraj Madappa (both 68), Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai (70), and 17-year-old local amateur Hsieh Cheng-wei (71).

Hsieh, who holds the record as the youngest player to make a cut on the Asian Tour, achieved the best result by an amateur in tournament history.

Higa caught Porter with a 20-foot birdie on the 11th and took control on the 15th, holing from 12 feet while Porter made bogey. The American missed a short birdie putt on 17 and another from inside four feet on the 18th to miss out on a playoff.

“It’s a very good feeling, I just did something special,” Higa said. “From the beginning of the season, my form has been very good. The putting is getting better and there’s no more stress from the tee shots. It’s the reason we could get these wins.”

On his final round he added: “On the front nine, we hit some good shots, hit some good putts, but it didn’t just drop. The putts started to drop at a good time.”

Higa, who also won the 2022 Japan Golf Tour Order of Merit, was cautious about looking too far ahead. “It’s the middle of the season, and there are many International Series events coming up. Just try to play golf like I’ve been doing until now.”

Despite the disappointment, Porter recorded his best Asian Tour finish. “In this game, you either win or you learn, and there’s a lot of learning,” he said.