Michael Campbell, winner of the Heineken Classic in Perth by six shots last year, retained the title by five strokes yesterday after coming within a stroke of the course record.

Hampshire's Justin Rose finished 15 shots behind the leader with a steady final round of 72 for an aggregate 285. That leaves the Hook-based player ninth in the Ryder Cup Order of Merit.

Four behind after one hole of the final round, Campbell, a 31-year-old New Zealander, produced a spectacular 64 containing 10 birdies - two short of the European tour record - for an 18-under-par total of 270.

It was a Kiwi one-two as David Smail, winner of the previous two tournaments on the Australasian circuit, eagled the last to snatch second spot from Australian left-hander Nick O'Hern.

The Perth player was never able to recover from a quadruple-bogey eight on the 437-yard sixth, which turned a two-stroke lead into a two-shot deficit.