• Scottish Open, Final Round

Donald strolls to Scottish Open victory

Luke Donald had to complete his second round before playing the final 18 holes at Castle Stuart on Sunday © PA Photos

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Luke Donald ended one of the longest days of his ever-improving career as the winner of the 2011 Scottish Open, confirming his standing as one of the favourites for next week's Open Championship.

Donald arrived on course at 7am on Sunday in order to complete the remaining nine holes of his second round, after dangerous weather completely wiped out the previous 24 hours' play. As a result, the competition was reduced to 54 holes, so Donald was left with 27 pins to attack on a marathon final day.

The world No. 1 coped admirably, following up a 67 with a magnificent 63 to triumph by four shots at Castle Stuart. Victory marks the third of Donald's year on the European Tour, adding to wins at the WGC Accenture Match Play Championship and the BMW PGA Championship.

Donald finished four strokes clear of nearest rival Fredrik Andersson Hed. Despite a sparkling eagle at the 18th, the Swede could not catch Donald, who stamped his authority on the course with an emphatic birdie to seal the victory.

Donald went into the final 18 holes trailing four players by a single stroke but quickly assumed control with four consecutive birdies from the third. Having hit the turn in 31 after birdying the ninth with a 15-foot putt, the Brit then overcame a visit into a sandtrap to pick up another shot at the 10th in a quite sparkling two-hour period of golf.

"It's nice to get another victory - I can get used to this," he said. "To do it on a links is even better and when I play well I tend to do reasonably well the next week. This was perfect preparation. It doesn't get any better than going out and winning the week before. I'm going to be high on confidence."

A win for Lee Westwood would have seen the world No. 2 leapfrog Donald at the top of the world rankings, but Westwood, who began the day level with Donald, finished seven strokes behind his compatriot after he failed to ignite on a day of high scores. Westwood picked up just one stroke during the remaining seven holes of his second round, before he battled back from an early bogey at the second to post a 68 in his final effort, earning him an overall score of 12-under.

Westwood was joined by Padraig Harrington and Justin Rose on 12-under, after both carded final rounds of 68. While Rose started promisingly with a three birdies on the front nine, Harrington shrugged off a slow start to pick up three shots on the back nine.

Graeme McDowell, who went into the final day as joint-leader, completely destroyed his hopes with a nine-stroke quadruple bogey at the par-five 12th. McDowell had bogeyed and eagled the hole during the first two rounds, but he capitulated on Sunday and eventually signed for a 74 that left him on nine-under for the tournament.

The challenge of McDowell's fellow overnight leader Peter Whiteford also ended abruptly as he found four bogeys en route to a 73, while Peter Hanson and Scott Jamieson both failed to match the heroics of Donald as they completed on 13-under and 14-under respectively.

Former Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie tried in vain to secure a qualifying spot for the Open Championship after an erratic final effort. The Scot raised heartbeats when he eagled the second, but a double bogey at 11 ruined his hopes of a top-five finish. Two bogeys and three birdies in the final six holes displayed Montgomerie's lack of consistency, and he will now come to terms with missing the Open for the first time since 1989.

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