Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh signed off from The OpenChampionship with a three-over-par 73 Sunday, and was ready to finallycelebrate his Scottish Open win and recharge his batteries for a bid to returninto the world's top-50.
Singh, a two-time Asian Tour number one, was disappointed he failed to make animpact at Royal Lytham and St. Annes although he and compatriot Anirban Lahiriwrote a small slice of history by becoming the first two Indians to feature inthe weekend rounds of a Major.
The 40-year-old has been on the road for five weeks, which was highlighted byhis play-off triumph in Scotland last Sunday. It moved him up to 87th in theworld and with the top-50 very much in his sights now which will earn him areturn to The Masters Tournament next April.
"I was really glad to be here. I enjoyed every bit of it. I expectedbetter results than the way it has ended up. I fought hard," said Singh.
"My goal was to finish under par but I fell short. Mentally I'm tired andI'll rest next week and start again at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational (inAugust). Time to celebrate (the Scottish win). We'll have a few parties athome."
With a string of big events coming up until the end of the season, includingthose on the Asian Tour, Singh believes he has every chance of raking up worldranking points to build on his recent return to winning form.
Singh completed a personal milestone this week by making the halfway cut whichmeant that he has now played in four rounds of all the Majors. He hopes toreturn to The Open next year and put on a better showing.
"You have to hit the ball well and stay patient. I was patient all thetime. You've got to be on top of the game to be under par and stay away fromthe bunkers. What I take from here is that this I my first Open where I playedfour rounds," said Singh.