CAVITE, Philippines — Julien Sale of France birdied his first three holes on the back nine to gain command and then out with a five-under-par 65 to rule the $500,000 (around P29 million) Smart Infinity Philippine Open by a shot over two players at the Masters course of the Manila Southwoods here.

The 27-year-old went through qualifying school in Thailand late last year and bagged his first pro title on his first Asian Tour event with a 269 total after edging out Japan's Tomoyo Ikemura and Thailand's Sadom Kaewkanjana, who had chances of forging a playoff with eagles on the last hole.