Padraig Harrington claimed his first European Tour title in over eight years as he snatched a thrilling one-shot victory over Andy Sullivan at the Portugal Masters.

Harrington scrambled a remarkable par at the 72nd hole to complete a flawless six-under 65 for a winning score of 23 under par at the Victoria Club de Golfe, his first Tour win since lifting the third of his three major titles at the PGA Championship in 2008.

Sullivan put up a stout defence of his title as he also closed with a bogey-free 65, while "retired" Dane Anders Hansen could not build on a run of three straight birdies on the front nine, carding 12 pars in a row for a 69 and a share of third with Mikko Korhonen.Harrington got off to a steady start while Sullivan produced the fireworks in the group ahead, the Ryder Cup star making birdies at four of the first five holes to hit the front before Hansen regained his overnight lead with birdies at the fourth, fifth and sixth.

But while the birdies dried up for Sullivan and Hansen, Harrington revived his challenge with a sublime hole-out from a greenside bunker for an unlikely birdie at the 11th, and he was soon leading outright following further gains at two of the next three holes.

Sullivan broke a run of six straight pars with a birdie at the 12th, and he two-putted for another at the long 17th before making a big error at the last, his approach from the middle of the fairway sailing over the green and nestling in the rear rough.

But a solid chip and a confident five-foot putt salvaged his four and set the clubhouse target at 22 under, while Harrington produced a superb pitch to tap-in range on the 17th moments later to take a one-stroke advantage down the final fairway.

A play-off looked on the cards when Harrington pushed his drive into the right rough and then carved his second towards the grandstands, leaving him a tough up-and-down from a tricky lie in the thick, lush rough to the right of the green.

However, the 45-year-old clipped a magnificent chip to four feet and rattled in the winning putt to secure his first win since his shock Honda Classic triumph in Florida in March last year.

Sullivan had to be content with his best finish since the Omega Dubai Desert Classic back in February, while Hansen settled for joint third and finished the week with just two bogeys over the tournament in only his fifth start of the season.

Korhonen had started the week ranked 116th in the Race to Dubai with the top 111 guaranteed their cards for next year, but the Finn ensured his playing rights for the 2017 campaign as a solid four-birdie 68 earned him his biggest cheque of the season and moved him to 86th in the order of merit.

Robert Rock finished birdie-eagle-birdie to cap a superb 64 and claim a share of fifth with David Lipky, Chris Paisley and Paul Lawrie, who was firmly in contention when he made four birdies in six holes on the outward nine before stuttering after the turn.

Oliver Fisher was another to secure his card for next season after he matched Rock's 64 to earn a top-10 finish, while David Howell claimed the vital 111th position on the Race to Dubai, ending the regular season just 100 euros ahead of Graeme Storm after the latter bogeyed the final hole.