Moonah Classic champion Jim Herman has described the biggest win of his 10-year career as 'overwhelming' and 'a dream'.
The 32-year-old from Cincinnati led all week at Moonah Links on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, grabbing pole position on the opening day with a course-record 62 and then adding rounds of 70, 75 and 70 to finish 72 holes level with fellow American Chris Kirk.
But while Kirk had looked set to take home the trophy when he led by two shots with three holes to play, his faltering finish that included successive bogeys at 16 and 17 and then a missed birdie putt at the last led to the play-off, in which Herman pounced.
"You know I'm overwhelmed actually," Herman said after his superb 70-yard approach to the 18th green in sudden death.
"The first time through (at 18) was pretty much a trial run for me because I had about the same shot, I just didn't hit it hard enough in the regulation hole."
"I thought it had a chance of going in for eagle and that would've been fantastic but ... I played it straight and just knocked it in."
"I've been waiting for this to happen for a long time, a professional win. It's a dream, I'm so pleased."
Herman revealed after shooting the lights out on Thursday that as of a couple of weeks ago he hadn't planned on coming to Australasia for the two Nationwide Tour co-sanctioned events in New Zealand and Australia because he was third or fourth alternate.
But having endured a poor finish to 2009 in which he missed his final six cuts dating back to September, Herman decided to make the trip when he was told three days before it was time to leave for the New Zealand Open that he was in the field there and first alternate for Moonah.
While many players in the past have used the Nationwide Tour as a stepping stone to the US PGA Tour - and he's obviously hoping to do likewise by finishing in the top 25 on the money list this year - Herman's experiences in 2009 have convinced him to take nothing for granted.
"I played well last year at the beginning, I had a fourth-place finish and a third-place finish and I didn't make exempt status for the Nationwide Tour so I know how quickly it can turn," Herman said.
"This is just a good start, obviously you need to build off it but I'm not going to go out and start changing anything."
As well as his good fortune at sneaking into the Moonah Classic field, Herman's win is all the more impressive because he switched from TaylorMade to Callaway clubs ahead of this season and has only used the new ones in the heat of battle in the past two weeks.
Continuing the good fortune theme, Herman only chose local Steve Bright to carry his bag on Tuesday, giving his man simple instructions: "I told him when I picked him out of the line ... 'I'll do all the numbers, I'll read all the putts, you just carry the bag and talk to me'."
"He was great, we talked about golf a little bit but mostly it was footy, he likes footy. If I'm quiet walking down the fairway my mind will just dwell on the last shot whether it be good or bad."
"I don't even know what we talked about coming down the 18th hole tied for the lead but we weren't talking about golf. It's not anything scientific (and) a psychologist would probably have a field day with me."