ADAM SCOTT FLOUNDERS OVER LAST FOUR, ELS STEPS IN TO WIN

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
South African Ernie Els produced a stunning back-nine 32 to pip Australian Adam Scott and win The Open Championship at Royal Lytham and St Annes, Lancashire.
Ten years on from his last Major victory the South African could hardly believe he had become Open Champion again.
The 42 year old, the same age as last year's winner Darren Clarke, triumphed after long-time front-runner Scott, four shots clear of the field with only four holes to play,  bogeyed the last four holes over the difficult closing stretch.
Scott, chasing his first Major, looked all set to become the first Australian to hold The Claret Jug aloft since Greg Norman in 1993 but inside the final hour of play his first Major prize slipped out of his grasp.
Scott bogeyed 15-16-17-18 and Els, having made a crucial 15 foot birdie putt on the final green 20 minutes earlier, suddenly found himself with a fourth Major title.
Els commented: "I'm just all numb at the moment. Adam Scott's a great friend of mine. Obviously we both wanted to win very badly for different reasons and I really feel for him.
"It's the nature of the beast. That's why we are out here. You win, you lose and it was my time.
"I was hoping at best for a play-off. When I was on the 17th green he was on the 16th tee and, as we all know, it's not the hardest hole."
Scott failed to get up and down from a bunker on the 15th, then three-putted the next and while playing the 17th would certainly have heard the roar - the loudest of the week - for Els's last-green putt for a 68 and seven under par aggregate of 273.
The "Big Easy", second at Lytham in 1996 and third in 2001, almost resigned himself to another near-miss. But things were about to change far more than he anticipated.
Scott pulled his approach into the rough, and when he drove into more sand down the last and had to hack out, Els had one hand on the trophy.
His Presidents Cup team-mate played a superb third to eight feet, but the par putt to force extra holes was pulled wide and that was that.
Having stood 11 under earlier in the day, he signed for a 75 and six under.
Tiger Woods, who also finished poorly in addition to taking a triple bogey, tied for third with fellow American Brandt Snedeker three shots further back, while Scott's playing partner Graeme McDowell ended up fifth with World Number One Luke Donald.
In his winner's speech Els told he crowd: "I had a lot of support this week. But you guys have got to ask yourselves the question were you just being nice to me or did you actually believe I could win?"
Scott retained his composure admirably, but must have been devastated inside.
"I'm pretty disappointed," he said. "I had it in my hands and managed to hit a poor shot at each of the closing four holes.
"I'm very, very disappointed, but I played so beautifully for most of the week I certainly should not let this get me down.
"Surprisingly I was incredibly calm and I still am. I thought I could roll that last putt in, but I didn't and that's golf."
Scott was on the verge of becoming the sport's tenth successive first-time winner in the Majors, but while that has now ended another run goes on - Els is the 16th different winner in a row.
Now with two Opens to go with his two US Opens, his front nine contained bogeys at the second and ninth and not a single birdie.
That left him six back, but he hauled himself back into things with birdies at the tenth, 12th and 14th to set up the remarkable climax.
McDowell was always playing catch-up and could not recover from bogeys at the second and sixth, the second of those seeing him take two in the same bunker that gave Woods so many problems.
The 14-Major champion - still to add to that tally since the 2008 US Open - almost hit himself as his first attempt to escape came back off at him.
Officials checked the video to make sure there was no contact, but he then had to play his next crouched on the grass way above the ball.
He did wonderfully well not to leave it in again, but the ball shot across the green off the face and from there he triple-bogeyed to fall seven behind.
It was the first time he had dropped three shots on one hole in a Major since he lost his opening drive at Sandwich in 2003.
The real killer blow for McDowell came with a six on the reachable long next - he lost his second in the bushes - that put him six adrift.
Woods and Els were up into joint second at that point, but the former found bunkers on the 14th, 15th and 16th and that ended his hopes.
For Els it was a different story. A very different story. An unbelievable one, in fact.

LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 280 (4x70)
273 Ernie Els (South Africa) 67 70 68 68
274 Adam Scott (Australia) 64 67 68 75
277 Brandt Snedeker (United States) 66 64 73 74, Tiger Woods (United States) 67 67 70 73
278 Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) 67 69 67 75, Luke Donald (England) 70 67 71 69.
279 Thomas Aiken (South Africa) 68 68 71 72, Nicholas Colsaerts (Belgium) 65 77 72 65
280 Zach Johnson (United States) 65 74 66 75, Thorbjorn Olesen (Denmark) 69 66 71 74, Mark Calcavecchia (United States) 71 68 69 72, Dustin Johnson (United States) 73 68 68 71, Matt Kuchar (United States) 69 67 72 72, Vijay Singh (Fiji) 70 72 68 70, Alexander Noren (Sweden) 71 71 69 69, Ian Poulter (England) 71 69 73 67, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 71 69 73 67, Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) 72 68 73 67
SELECTED OTHER TOTALS284 Paul Lawrie 65 71 76 72 (T34)
285 Padraig Harrington (Ireland) 70 72 70 73 (T39)
286 Lee Westwood (England) 73 70 71 72 (T45)
287 Greg Owen (England) 71 71 71 74 (T54)
291 Martin Laird (Scotland) 70 68 82 70 (T72)
292 Tom Watson (United States) 71 72 76 73 (T77)
294 John Daly (United States) 72 71 77 74 (T81).

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LAST WORD FROM PAUL LAWRIE
(on his website)
"Another poor day on the greens meant it was 72 today to finish +4 for the tournament which is ridiculous considering how I have hit it this week."

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WINDTAMER MATTHEW CLARK WINS NEWLANDS TROPHY

By COLIN FARQUHARSON, Colin@scottishgolfview.com  Kilmacolm's Matthew Clark, runner-up in the recent Tennant Cup, got back on the winning trail to add to his collection of SGU Order Of Merit 72-hole tournament titles by winning the Newlands Trophy at Lanark Golf Club over the weekend. Clark, who had set the first-round pace with a 66 before losing the halfway lead bu a stroke to Stewart Henderson (Hamilton) and Michael Daily (Erskine) on 136, showed his class in Sunday's very windy conditions to forge clear of the field, first with a three-under 67 to go four clear and then a clinching 72 for a four-under-par total of 276. He won by three shots from former Scottish youths champion and past Palmer Cup student international player Scott Borrowman (Dollar). Borrowman maintained his recent good form with closng rounds of 71 and 70 - good scoring in the conditions - for 279. Scott Crichton (Aberdour) and Paul Shields (Kirkhill) tied for third place on 282, both men losing ground on the leaders with 74 apiece in their final rounds. Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe), bidding to  complete a hat-trick of wins in this tournament, missed the halfway cut, as did Fraser McKenna (Balmore), one of the leading performers on the domestic circuit this season. James Ross (Royal Burgess), winner of the previous weekend's Sutherland Chalice 72-holer at Dumfries and Galloway, was disqualified in the first round under a rarely-used rule ... looking for a lost ball for more than five minutes.   NEWLANDS TROPHY Lanark Golf Club LEADING FINAL TOTALS Par 280 (4x70) CSS 72 72 74 75 276 Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) 66 71 67 72.  279 Scott Borrowman (Dollar) 68 70 71 70. 282 Scott Crichton (Aberdour) 68 71 69 74, Paul Shields (Kirkhill) 72 66 70 74 283 Stewart Henderson (Hamilton) 69 67 74 73 284 Paul Ferrier (Baberton) 69 68 74 73 289 Fraser Moore (Glenbervie) 72 72 72 73. 290 David Wilson (Troon Welbeck) 75 69 75 71, Daniel Thompsett (Aboyne) 73 69 74 74, Graham Gordon (Newmachar) 70 70 76 74, Alan Sutherland (Ladybank) 69 69 77 75, Michael Daily (Erskine) 69 67 72 82. 293 Kyle McClung (Wigtownshire Co) 75 69 75 74, Steven Rennie (Drumpellier) 69 72 77 75, James White (Lundin) 70 68 79 76, James Hendrick (Pollok) 68 72 74 79. 294 Craig Ross (Kirkhill) 72 77 71 74, Ross Bell (Downfield) 74 71 74 75. 295 Eamon Bradley (Mount Ellon) 73 73 79 70. 296 Conor O'Neil (Pollok) 69 76 75 76. 298  Oliver Roberts (Hong Kong) 74 72 79 73, Steven Maxwell (Windyhill) 77 72 75 74.  299 Jamie Lamb (Lanark) 75 71 77 76, Charlie MacNeal (Troon Welbeck)  74 72 74 79. 300 Simon Lockhart (Bathgate) 76 73 78 73, Richard Docherty (Bearsden) 71 73 83 73. 301 Stuart Robin (Prestwick St Nicholas) 71 73 80 77, Michael Bacigalupo (Longniddry) 71 75 74 81. 302 Steven Smith (Marriott Dalmahoy 75 72 80 75, Alexander Culverwell (Dunbar) 75 68 79 80. 303 Scott Gibson (Southerness) 75 74 76 78, Scott Larkin (Royal Aberdeen) 75 70 79 79, wen Donaldson (Craigielaw) 76 73 74 80. 304 Mark Dickson (Mortonhall) 76 71 75 82. 305 Kevin Prentice (Lanark) 74 68 83 80, Michael Smyth (Royal Troon) 77 70 77 81. 306 Chris Wood (North Berwick) 74 74 83 75, Liam Johnston (Dumfries and Co) 71 74 76 85. 307 Colin Baird (Bothwell Castle) 77 72  82 76 309  Colin Thomson (East Renfrewshire) 78 71 81 79 311  Ben Renfrew (The Wynyard) 71 78 78 84.

RENNIE GREEN WINS INAUGURAL MILLPORT HANDICAP OPEN

Local golfer and former 3 time club champion Rennie Green won the 18 holeHandicap Open at Millport yesterday with a nett 65.

Despite throwing himself unreservedly into the hectic social schedule that accompanys Millport's ' Glasgow Fair Fortnight',

Rennie carded a gross 71 which secured a 2 shot victory.

The event sponsored by Cumbrae Pharmacy was a huge success, attracting a field of 90 players.

Green thanked the sponsor, the organisers and the green-keeping staff for the fine condition of the course.

Results

1st R Green Millport 71 - 6 = 65

2nd = R Glencorse Millport 80 - 13 = 67

2rd = J Armstrong Millport 77 - 10 = 67

4th A Haggerty Millport 86 - 18 =68

5th = A Finlayson Millport 72 - 3 = 69

5th = L Kerr Renfrew 73 - 4 = 69

5th = W Bremner Millport 84 - 15 = 69

5th = P McNulty Millport 86 - 17 = 69

Scratch prize 1st = C Pirie 70 L Pirie 70

LIVE SCORING FROM LAST DAY OF OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

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LACK OF SUCCESS IS FRUSTRATING FOR RORY McILROY

(Reuters) - World number two Rory McIlroy is full of frustration that he has lost his mojo in recent weeks and believes the situation is starting to affect his confidence levels.
The 23-year-old Northern Irishman reeled off a string of top-five finishes on the European and U.S. tours early in the year before a slump caused him to miss four out of five cuts.
McIlroy's form has continued to desert him at this week's British Open and a third-round 73 on Saturday left him struggling among the also-rans on 215, five over par.
"I'm frustrated, I'm frustrated but that's the way it is. That's golf," he told reporters after failing to make the most of good scoring conditions on a warm day at Royal Lytham and St Annes.
"You just have to get on with it and keep trying and keep practising and stay patient until it turns around."
Nothing went right for McIlroy again and he has managed only three birdies in 36 holes since launching his campaign at the third major of the season with an encouraging three-under 67.
"It's just about a lack of consistency with my swing and from there it's tough," he explained.
"Whenever you're not confident in the shots that you're trying to hit, it is tough to sort of trust it."
McIlroy won the Honda Classic in March to briefly leapfrog Englishman Luke Donald at the top of the world rankings but since then it has been largely a tale of woe for the player who won the U.S. Open last year.
"To be honest I'm almost getting used to it," he said. "The last few weeks haven't been so great.
"I just have to keep working hard and working away and hopefully it will turn around sometime.
"Every tournament or every major that you don't play well in or you don't win is a chance missed."

WOODS IS NO LONGER THE TIGER, TIGER BURNIING BRIGHT

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE

By Oliver Brown

On his error-strewn journey through Saturday's hazy midsummer’s evening, Tiger Woods, the three-time Open champion advanced not one stroke beyond his halfway total of six under par as he watched Adam Scott sail further into the Lancashire sunset.

Where once Woods could be relied upon to make an irresistible charge at this juncture, now he is more likely to fall backwards. Indeed, he has not broken 70 on a Saturday in the majors since his 66 at Pebble Beach in 2010, and rarely looked ready to buck that trend at Royal Lytham on Saturday.

He sticks almost slavishly to his strategy of conservatism at all costs, refusing to swap his long irons for the driver as he resisted flirtation with Lytham’s 206 bunkers, but the approach succeeded only in increasing the deficit to Scott, the more enterprising Australian.

Why did Tiger not take a few gambles? Why would he not try to intimidate Scott with his power-hitting? The questions were left hanging in the air on Saturday night, answerable only by Woods’s apparent assumption that Scott, still a flaky performer in the type of stiff winds forecast on Sunday, could yet falter.
BOLD SUPPOSITION
For a man five shots off the pace, though, that seems a bold supposition.

The old ruthlessness is not what it was. Woods, hunting down such untested front-runners as Scott and Brandt Snedeker, had a chance to impose an authority borne of his impressive first two rounds at this championship and his record in capitalising on such a fine start.

On the four other occasions when he had opened a major with back-to-back 67s, he had gone on to lift the trophy. The prospects of him extending that record to five are remote after this indifferent round of 70.

As he surveyed his scorecard after a par at the 18th, Woods’s dejection was manifest. He only narrowly outdid Thorbjorn Olesen, his unheralded young playing partner from Denmark, by the single shot.
“I was just trying to cut into the lead,” Woods reflected. “Even par is about right. I’m five back. Adam is in a great spot right now.”
Woods’ distance control was awry, as he fired his tee-shot to the par-three first through the back of the green en route to a dropped shot. He miscued again at the third, falling 20 yards short with a nine-iron.
Strangely, his short-iron play has been off-key throughout the tournament, denying him a clutch of extra birdie opportunities. The flaw was the result of 'de-lofting’: an effect produced by an excessively steep angle of attack and from standing too close, and one that has only developed recently during his swing adjustments under coach Sean Foley.
LONG IRONS OFF TEE 
The cautiousness of Woods’s course management was also shown up. Where Scott took on the par-fives with aggression, marmalising drivers down the centre of the fairway, the 14-time major winner was sticking fast to long-irons off the tee. And for the second day in succession Woods failed to take advantage at the long 11th, overdoing his second shot and then taking three from the edge of the green.
His restraint would have been easier to understand had he been plundering birdies, but it was a mentality that made no inroads into Scott’s advantage at the top.
No one ought to second-guess Woods’s understanding of Lytham’s vicissitudes. He was the low amateur here in 1996 and has acquired a mental map of each of the links’ 206 bunkers, resolving to steer clear of them at all costs.
Even when he did find one late on Friday evening at the 18th, he holed out. As a man in pursuit of a fourth Claret Jug, he has learned the benefits of applying consistent approach. But to what end on Saturday?
Again Woods found himself 10 yards short with his errant wedge at the 13th, and was putting so much pressure on his long game that he faced a four-iron for his second at the 14th, a par-four.
A heavy contact ensued, and with a botched attempt at an up-and-down he slipped another shot further adrift. Tiger in his defensive incarnation was proving a toothless beast.
In contrast, the composure of Olesen, Woods’s playing partner, was striking. How easily the 22 year-old could have been all aflutter at Saturday’s pairing, considering the young man once regarded Woods as a semi-deity. But this prodigious young talent from Copenhagen matched his idol at every stage to consolidate his position at five under.
A double bogey at the 14th briefly derailed Olesen’s progress, but Woods was floundering, too. He has argued all week that Lytham is a layout that can be tackled in a multiplicity of ways, but time and again he chose the wrong option. He set up a glorious birdie chance at the 16th but wafted weakly at the putt from 15 feet, not even grazing the hole.
He tried with every fibre of his being to sink his putt at the last but the ball also rolled up short, eliciting a sneer of contempt. Just 24 hours earlier he had been exultant beside the 18th green, having drained a shot for an improbable birdie.
But Tiger's mask of dejection on Saturday night spoke of a glorious opportunity spurned.

US PGA TOUR EVENT RUNNING BEHIND SCHEDULE

They're running late in this weekend's US PGA Tour event, the True South Classic at Annandale Golf Club, Madison in Mississippi.
The third round is far from being completed and a 7am local time start on what should be the final day has been scheduled to try to get everybody up to speed.
Russell Knox made the cut and has completed his third round.
The exiled Scot is on seven-under-par 209 after rounds of 67, 71 and 71.
Leader in the clubhouse is William McGirt on 13-under 203, a shot ahead of Woody Austin but the leaders out on the course when darkness forced officials to call them in are way ahead of them.
Scott Stallings (-18 after 10 holes of Round 3) leads by four from Heath Slocum, Billy Horschel and Jason Bohn, all -14 at varying stages of their uncompleted third rounds.
England's Gary Christian is -9 after 12 holes.


COMPLETED ROUNDS
Par 216 (3x72)
203 William McGirt 70 69 64
204 Woody Austin 71 67 66, Tommy Gainey 70 68 66, Patrick Reed 73 65 66.

SELECTED SCORE
209 Russell Knox (Scotland) 67 71 71


LEADERS STILL TO COMPLETE ROUND 3
-18 after 10 holes Scott Stallings
-14 after 13 holes Heath Slocum
-14 after 9 holes Billy Horschel
-14 after 9 holes Jason Bohn

SELECTED SCORE
-9 after 12 holes Gary Christian (England).

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