Decent finish for Matt Fitzpatrick as The Open comes into view

The Sheffield golfer secured a tie for 14th at the Scottish Open in North Berwick ahead of the trip to Portrush this week for The Open.

His final round 68 left him five shots off eventual winner Bernd Wiesberger, who triumphed via a play-off with Benjamin Herbert.

A bogey on the last denied Fitzpatrick a top ten finish.

It had been a consistently good final day of golf from Fitzpatrick but he needed a strong charge to trouble the lead.

His first birdie did not arrive until the sixth, and though he followed up with another on the next hole, he gave a shot back on the ninth.

Birdies followed on 12, 13 and 15 but it was not enough to ever put him in contention.

A better day on Saturday would likely have been needed to truly do that, with his four under par 67 not quite enough to put him in serious consideration heading into Sunday.

After missing the cut at the Andalucia Masters, this weekend’s performance will have been the ideal tonic heading into the final Major championship of the year for a player who had previously looked to have been coming into form.

Wiesberger won for the second time in his last six events as France's Hebert suffered play-off heartbreak in the Scottish Open.

Hebert set the clubhouse target on 22 under par after a brilliant 62, but overnight leader Wiesberger recovered from a slow start to briefly reclaim top spot on the leaderboard, only to bogey the 17th and then have to hole from five feet on the last to force a play-off.

The players returned to the 18th for the first extra hole and after Wiesberger two-putted for par, Hebert had a great chance to seal his first European Tour title, but badly pushed his birdie attempt from eight feet.

Hebert had an even better chance to win when Wiesberger duffed his approach to the second play-off hole and then three-putted from short of the green.

However, Hebert also three-putted from 20 feet after charging his birdie putt four feet past and the pair headed back to the 18th tee once more.

At the third time of asking both players found the 18th green in regulation but amazingly Hebert three-putted again and Wiesberger just managed to coax in the winning par putt from three feet.