GOLF:Des Smyth smiled proudly on the 18th green of the Edinburgh Course at Wentworth Club last night after the 54-year-old continued a great summer for Irish golf by capturing the Wentworth Senior Masters by two shots from New Zealand's Bob Charles.

Following in the footsteps of new British Open champion Padraig Harrington, Smyth shot a final round of 69, three under par, for a six under par winning total of 210, to claim the Wentworth Senior Masters green jacket and end Eduardo Romero's dominance of the event.

The Argentinian, who started the final round one ahead of Smyth, was seeking a record-setting third success at Wentworth - but it was Smyth who came to the fore and took his first Senior Masters.

"It's great to win again - it's what we do all the work for and I am thrilled to win again," Smyth said. "So many great players have won it before, so to join that array of great players is very special."

He added: "I'll be going home to Drogheda and to my golf club, Baltray, to sink a few pints. Padraig doesn't drink, so he's hopeless for the drink industry, but the crowd I knock round with will make up for him tonight!"

After each of his previous rounds of 70, Smyth headed straight to the range to work on his game, such was his disquiet and lack of confidence over his performance.

Yet over the course of his final 18 holes, Smyth was the personification of belief and assuredness, as he forged ahead and looked very comfortable in pole position.

"I wasn't doing it to take the pressure off myself," he said. "I am just embarrassingly truthful about my golf and I have not been playing well. I was struggling - I have been all year.

"You saw today in the middle of the round I wobbled a little and hit some poor irons, but my short game pulled me through - my putting in particular. It was the best of all three days today."

Smyth paid tribute to 71 year old Bob Charles, who beat his age with his closing 70 to finish in second place on four under par. Charles came back in 32, with birdies on the 15th, 16th and 17th, to claim his best finish since 2005.

"He doesn't surprise me - I've seen him do it many time before. He had a 71 in the opening round at Muirfield in the Senior Open, so I knew he was playing well. He's an amazing man."

Playing with Romero and Japan's Katsuyosi Tomori in the final group of the day, Smyth, after a nervy opening drive which narrowly avoided the fairway bunker, fired an iron to just off the green and produced a great up and down to settle down.

Romero, meanwhile, got off to the worse possible start when he blocked his drive on the first hole and found a gorse bush. A five-minute search eventually yielded his ball, and a penalty drop, but after another pushed shot to short right of the green, Romero failed to get up and down and signed for a double bogey six.

Smyth's birdie putt on the 144-yard par-three second hole came up short, but as Romero bogeyed the fourth, he took charge with birdies at the third and fifth holes in his outward nine of 34 strokes.

A tremendous eagle on the ninth from Romero got him right back in the hunt, three behind Smyth.

On the 14th, Romero got up and down, while Smyth had a similar tricky, four-foot putt that he too holed. The duo both had to test their short games again on the 15th, but when Romero failed to get up and down, running his chip eight feet past and missing the return, Smyth was in control.

Steady play over the closing holes saw Smyth home to the €55,753.88 first prize and a victory that he described as "the happiest of all my great memories here at Wentworth".

Romero had to settle for third place after his one-over-par 73 and three-under 213 total. England's Carl Mason was fourth place on one under par after closing with a 71.

Eamonn Darcy, who started the day one under par in a tie for eighth place, went out in three-over-par 39 to fall back to two over par. Coming home, Darcy birdied the 10th and was par in from there.

Denis O'Sullivan shot two halves of 36 for a five-over-par 221 total.

Jimmy Hegarty shot 73 for a nine over par 225 total, while Eddie Poland shot 80 for a 19 over par 235 total.