The Open: Sheffield's Danny Willett hits the medicine cabinet to ensure Birkdale date

The 29 year-old has been in desperate form of late, with an ongoing injury more than playing its part in that dropping down the rankings and a series of missed cuts and pull-outs.

Willett had already chosen not to take part in the Scottish Open this weekend and instead rested his injury before going through a practice session at Birkdale on Sunday.

The Sheffield-born golfer is all too aware that he won't know exactly how fit he is until the tournament begins on Thursday, however with the help of some painkillers, Willett says it's a case of 'so far, so good' following the practice round.

"We've had a full week off resting with the back, so we'll see," Willett told PA Sport. "We've just played 18 and it'd didn't feel too bad. I'll play nine in the next couple of days and hopefully it'll be all right.

"We were always going to come and see how it was instead of pulling out early. It's the Open Championship. You need to come here, even if you have to get a few drugs inside you to get through the week. That's how it's going to go.

"You never know (if it will be okay) until you go off on Thursday, but at the moment it feels all right."

He added: "I've had better spells. It's been one thing after an another. I've had a little bit of injury then not swinging it great. Then, if you're not swinging it great, it doesn't help the body.

"I'm trying to click the reset button and get back to a few things that I know work."