Daniel Hillier 'gobsmacked' after stunning late burst clinches British Masters

New Zealand’s Daniel Hillier admitted he was "gobsmacked" after producing a stunning burst of scoring to claim his first DP World Tour title in the Betfred British Masters.

Hillier holed from 40 feet for eagle on the 15th, made birdie from a fairway bunker on the next and then holed from six feet for another eagle on the 17th in a brilliant final round of 66 at The Belfry.

That gave the 24-year-old a winning total of 10 under par, securing the first prize of £468,000 and also a place in the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool later this month.

Hillier, who began the day three shots off a six-way tie for the lead, said: "I’m gobsmacked. I think it’s going to take me a while to process to be honest.

"Early on in the day I was not feeling it at all. I was a little bit uncomfortable with the driver, didn’t have many chances but obviously knew there were some chances coming in.

"I didn’t think I would take them that well, but obviously pretty ecstatic.

"I’m not going to lie, I was definitely looking at the leaderboard and seeing my name up there and thinking about what it would be like to finish it off but it’s all a bit of a blur really."

Hillier admitted his eagle putt on the 15th was going "a little quick" when it hit the back of the hole and dropped, while he also made the most of a favourable bounce on his approach to the 17th.

And he also revealed he will now have to cancel his planned trip to play in two PGA Tour events which take place the week before and the week of the Open.

"Late change of plans but I’m not complaining," added Hillier, who missed the cut on his Open debut in 2021.

"It’s going to be a pretty awesome experience playing the Open again so I can’t wait."

Hillier finished two shots ahead of England’s Oliver Wilson