Eddie Pepperell claims first European Tour win with victory in Qatar Masters

Eddie Pepperell was forced to return to Tour School to retain his 2017 European Tour card

England's Eddie Pepperell held off compatriot Oliver Fisher to win the Qatar Masters and claim his first European Tour title.

The pair led overnight and Pepperell, 27, carded a two-under final round of 70 to finish on 18 under, with playing partner Fisher one back after a 71.

Fisher could have forced a play-off but missed a birdie putt from 10 feet on the 18th.

Pepperell's first European Tour win comes in his 129th event.

He looked on course for the win after Fisher bogeyed three holes in a row from the fourth, and held a three-shot advantage at the turn.

Fisher fought back with five birdies on the back nine but it was not enough to beat Pepperell, who recovered from going into the rough on the 18th to par the hole.

'Hopefully, this is not my last'

"What a day," Pepperell told the European Tour website. "Oli made it really tough and I made it tough for myself at the end there with the second shot at 18.

"I felt good all day, I felt comfortable. I didn't feel that comfortable with my swing but I was in a great place mentally and I kept telling myself that I'm going to win this."

Pepperell lost his European Tour card in 2016 before reclaiming it at qualifying school.

He had a promising end to the 2017 season, securing four top-five and three top-10 finishes from his last 10 tournaments.

"This will give me confidence. When you win, you know you can win," he added.

"I've always felt and believed I will win out here but it hadn't happened before.

"You've always got to take that step but at some point in everyone's career they've got to do something for the first time. Hopefully this is not my last."

Sweden's Marcus Kinhult was third on 16 under after a final-round 68, with Renato Paratore, Pablo Larrazabal, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Gregory Havret all a shot further back.