Just a fortnight later, he triumphed in another play-off to win the dual-ranking BMW Russian Open at Le Meridien Moscow Country Club and thus securing playing privileges on the European Tour for the 2004 season.

He has been a consistent and regular member of the European Tour ever since but has yet to add to his early victory. His best performance since 2003 was his second place finish in the Sportsbet Australian Masters at the beginning of the 2009 season.