Ramsay admits to frustration being his main feeling
Richie Ramsay cut a frustrated figure after his final round of a week of “what might have been” at the British Masters.
Ramsay signed for a disappointing one-over 73 to end the tournament at two-under and in a share of 43rd place at The Belfry.
It was his worst score of the four days, after an opening 70 and then scores of 71 and 72 to follow.
But the Aberdeen man couldn’t find the low score he needed to shoot up the leaderboard, as Frenchman Mike Lorenzo-vera had showed by posting an eight-under 64 teeing off early yesterday morning.
And with no birdie putts holed from outside five feet in the last 36 holes, it was easy to work out where the problem was.
“It was frustrating,” said Ramsay. “There were too many missed putts as there were opportunities out there to make birdies.
“It’s a disappointing week in the end because the potential was there, especially after the first two rounds.”
At three-under on Thursday evening, the 37-year-old was only four shots off fellow-scots Calum Hill and Bob Macintyre’s halfway lead.
But a poor opening nine on Friday ruined any hopes of challenging and he could not spark anything yesterday morning.
Birdies at the fourth and the seventh were undone by dropped shots at the fifth and ninth as he turned in 36.
A bold tee shot over the water at the Brabazon Course’s famous short parfour 10th went just through the green into a bunker, but he couldn’t make it up and down for birdie.
And it was a solitary bogey at the 14th with the rest pars as he signed off on a rainy afternoon in the West Midlands.
With seven cuts made from his nine tournaments in 2021, Ramsay has been largely consistent.
But no finishes inside the top-20 means he is yet to have a big week and is the reason why he’s down in 110th place on the Race to Dubai list.
Scotland’s Craig Howie will take a three-stroke lead into today’s final round of the Range Servant Challenge by Hinton Golf in Sweden after posting a bogey-free three-under-par round of 69 on day three.
The 26-year-old carded three birdies without dropping a shot to reach 16-under-par, three strokes clear of Niklas Nørgaard Møller who sits in second place on 13-under after a four-under 68.
Howie has enjoyed a solid start to the 2021 Road to Mallorca campaign, with two top-10s and a tie for 14th place in his first three starts, and will today go in search of his maiden European Challenge Tour.
“I’m really pleased,” he said. “I didn’t really have my A-game, I wasn’t at my best, but I ground it out and I’m happy with the day.
“Any lead’s a good lead to be honest, the more the better. A lot can change around this golf course, a lot of birdies can be made quite quickly, so I’ve got to be pretty good tomorrow.
Sam Burns takes a oneshot lead into today’s final round of the AT&T Byron Nelson in Texas.
Seeking a second win in just two weeks, the overnight leader fired a three-under 69 to move to 20-under-par.
Korean KH Lee is his nearest challenger following a five-under 67.
Home favourite Jordan Spieth is in a four-way tie at 17-under with Matt Kuchar, Charl Scwartzel and Swede Alex Noren.