LIFE began at 40 for golfer Gary Emerson in Moscow last night as he brilliantly won the BMW Russian Open at the Meridian Golf and Country Club in Moscow (August 15).

The Broadstone touring professional, who celebrated his 40th birthday last autumn, chalked up the first European Tour victory of a long career as he marched home with a 16-under par total to claim a two-stroke victory from Austrian number one, Markus Brier.

In winning, Emerson became the 300th player to win on the European Tour, collected a cheque for 67,000 euros and best of all, ensured a one-year exemption for the European Tour in 2005 and for the rest of this season.

Emerson said: "It feels marvellous to have won a main Tour title.

"It has been a tough week weather-wise but we've had a great week so it feels tremendous.

"I actually felt surprisingly good for someone of my age. The adrenalin keeps you going over the last nine holes of the last round."

"I'm delighted because I was playing under pressure and I came through it. I was really pleased with the way I played the back nine.

"I've played on the Tour for 10 years and lost my Card last season so I feel as though I have got my job back to be honest. I have been playing the best golf of my career this year and to win on The European Tour, which is what we all want to try and achieve, is fantastic."

It was a sweet moment for Emerson who has been campaigning in Europe's second division this summer on the Challenge Tour.

The Russian event was a dual-ranking tournament, counting for both European and Challenge Tour points and victory lifted him 40 places up the European order of merit from 144th place to 105th, almost doubling his prize money for the season in one fell stroke.

Despite being the oldest player in the field, playing 36 holes on the last day of the tournament held no fears for the Dorset golfer.

Saturday's play was washed out by torrential rain, leaving the organisers to fit in the two final rounds on Sunday.

Emerson, who had launched his challenge by picking up six shots in five holes through the turn in the second round (including two eagles), never flinched.

He moved from a share of third place on Friday night into a share for first with the German Kariem Baraka after the third round when both players stood at 12 under par.

Despite a double bogey at the 423-yard seventh hole, Emerson got his game straight back into shape with a birdie at the short eighth then picked up four more shots over the back nine to finish with a 68.

Baraka fell away with a final round of 76 but the Welshman Kyron Sullivan posted a new challenge when he got back to the clubhouse at 13 under.

Emerson had birdied the first and second but bogeyed the 11th to go to 13 under.

With Brier making a move as well, there was still work to be done and Emo did the business where it counts, along the finishing straight.

He birdied 14, 16 and 17 to move two ahead of Brier and parred the last to nail the tournament.

The powerful, talented player, who cut his golfing teeth playing regularly in Hampshire, Dorset and Wiltshire, has at last reaped his reward for simply never throwing in the towel when the going got rough - which it often did.

It's a consolation, too, for losing out in a play off for the German Challenge Tour championship event only last month and for being unable to capitalise on a good qualifying performance for The Open at Royal Troon.

Emerson, whose only previous Tour success was in the Challenge Tour's 1998 Netcom Norwegian Open, said he had tried not to let the weather affect him, although the sodden fairways made it heavy going twice round the 7,174-yard course.

He said: "I tried to approach it as if it was a normal day. I warmed up before I played this morning and then warmed up again in the afternoon."

"I've played in worse conditions. Patience is the key when the weather is bad but I have played reasonably well this year so I came into the tournament feeling reasonably confident.

"It feels marvellous."