England's Justin Rose won his third tournament of the year when he clinched The Crowns event in Japan on Sunday.

Rose, 21, beat Thailand's Prayad Marksaeng by five shots at Nagoya Golf Club to back up his maiden European Tour triumph in the dunhill championship in January.

He also lifted the Nashua Masters title on the Sunshine Tour in South Africa.

Rose was joint leader after the first round in Japan after an opening 64 and stayed in front at halfway with a level-par round of 70.

A stunning third-round 63 took him four shots clear and a closing 69 for a 14-under-par total of 266 was more than enough.

But the win will not count for Order of Merit points as it is not sanctioned by the European Tour.

Missed cuts

Rose sprang to prominence as an amateur in the 1998 Open Championship when he chipped in at the last to finish fourth.

The South African-born Hampshire-based player turned pro the following day but missed the cut in his first 21 professional tournaments.

He failed to get his card at the qualifying school and retreated to the Challenge Tour where he also received assorted sponsors' invites for the European Tour.

But he finished fourth at the Tour school in 1999 and ninth in 2000 after coming within five spots of retaining his card.

And he began the 2001 season with successive second place finishes in South Africa to ensure his playing rights for this season.