Lee Westwood gains best ever Major finish

Lee Westwood confirmed his return to the kind of form that made him European No. 1 four years ago with a superb final round 67 for his best-ever Open finish here on Sunday.

A four-round total of 278, 6-under, left Westwood in fourth place, his highest finish in any of the four major tournaments. As well as pocketing a check for 210,000 pounds, the 31-year-old Englishman has now secured his place in the European Ryder Cup team to face the United States in September.

Westwood topped the European money list in 2000 but his career nosedived in the wake of a break he took following the birth of his son Samuel at the start of the following year.

He emerged from the slump to win a European Tour title at Munich last year and after rounding off Sunday's round with a 40-foot birdie putt on the 18th declared himself ready to go on and win a major.

"I know my game is good enough. It is just a question of getting in there and giving myself the opportunity.

"I wasn't quite close enough going into the last round today to really do anything. But it is the consistency that is the most pleasing thing.

"The last three tournaments have been the best results I've had in a long time and it is always nice to do it on the biggest stage.

"The Open championship is the biggest one of the year for me and I would say I'm close to being there.

"Five years ago I was thinking I needed to make a step up to become a major contender, but then I realized that there is no next level. It is just doing the right things here and there and fine-tuning your game and holing a few putts at the right time."

Westwood would have been closer to realizing his ambition of claiming a major title here if it had not been for his consistently poor form over the opening holes, which are regarded as the easiest on the course.

The trend started when he ran up a double-bogey 6 on the first in his opening round and it continued through the final round, when he dropped shots at the third and fifth before storming back with six birdies.

"I haven't got off to a good start all week and that's probably cost me the tournament but it is nice to see all the hard work I've done on my swing turning into progress on the golf course.

"Overall I'm delighted. It's my best Open finish and I played great coming down the stretch when the pressure was on."

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