Ian Poulter has taken the clubhouse lead on seven over par at The Open Championship after shooting a superb final round 69.
It could have been even better for the Englishman, but with a putt for eagle on the 17th he went short, before pushing the birdie effort long from seven feet.
His hopes seemed far fetched at the start of the day, having shot 72-71-75 for a three round tally of eight over par, but with Padraig Harrington and Greg Norman dropping shots at the front he clawed his way back in.
Not that his final round began well. He took a bogey at the first and another at the third, but a run of five pars steadied his charge before he came down to nine under par with a birdie on the ninth.
He picked up another stroke at the 11th, but it was not until he birdied the par four 16th that he touched the top of the leaderboard for the first time.
On course, Harrington is setting the pace on six over par – two over for the day – after 14 holes, while Greg Norman, the overnight leader on two over par, has fallen back to nine over.
England's Chris Wood, who finished on ten over par after a final round 72, was the best placed amateur in fifth.
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