StrokeAverage.com’s most successful client David Howell snuck into the top 10 at The Open Championship on Sunday and recorded his best ever finish in the world’s oldest golf Major championship.

The Weybridge-based golfer, who is still feeling his way back from a series of injuries that ruined his year in 2007, was way down the leaderboard in a nine-way share of 64th place when he teed off with Kevin Stadler at 8.30am, on Sunday, after carding 15-over for 54 holes.

But the 2006 BMW PGA Championship winner put an early bogey at the third behind him with a birdie three at the fifth and an excellent two at the seventh to get to one-under for the day.

While the wind was still gathering to the pace the leaders faced after lunch, David Howell continued his fine run by picking up another shot at the tough par four 11th.

Even the disappointment of a dropped shot at the par three 12th could not derail his momentum and he got the shot back with a four at the par five 15th where he taken a seven 24 hours earlier on his way to a 78 in Saturday’s high winds.

Even better was still to come as a magnificent eagle at the 17th left him on four-under for his round with one to play but he uncharacteristically missed a short putt to make bogey at the last to card a best of the day 67.

The five-time European Tour winner was the clubhouse leader on 12-under at 12.15pm nearly two hours before the final pairing of Padraig Harrington and Greg Norman walked on to the first tee.

But David Howell had little idea just how far that 67 would propel him up the leaderboard, earning him a cheque for €121,318, and leaving him tied with the likes of past Open champions Ernie Els and Ben Curtis, and Ryder Cup team-mates Paul Casey and Robert Karlsson, who all climbed the leaderboard rapidly during the afternoon.

David Howell said after his round: “That was probably my best Open. The wind has switched across the course which makes it a bit easier to score, but the conditions are still quite tough.

“It was a bitter-sweet end to the round, but probably my best Open.”

David Howell, who lost a play-off to Gregory Bourdy in Portugal in April - his best result in over a year - had missed the cut in six of his nine previous Open Championship appearances.

He finished tied for 53rd at Carnoustie Golf Club last year but his best finish came, ironically, at Royal Birkdale Golf Club 10 years earlier when he finished tied in 42nd place.

Sunday didn’t prove such an enjoyable day for StrokeAverage.com’s three other winning clients, who made the weekend.

First round leader Graeme McDowell was left to rue a poor putting display on Saturday as he limped over the line with a 72 but Ross Fisher was left counting the cost of a quadruple bogey eight, which saw him slide down the leaderboard.

The Wentworth golf club ace was lying in eighth place going up the last but after finding trouble off the tee, the European Open winner, who had been at the point of pulling out on the eve of the tournament he won at the London Club two weeks earlier because of extreme tiredness, saw valuable Ryder Cup points slip through his grasp.

With €121,318 going to the players finishing on 12 under, the 27-year-old had to settle for a cheque for €20,830, which meant he could not overtake Justin Rose, who himself dropped down the European Ryder Cup points list to the fifth and final automatic qualifying spot. Just under 26,000 points separate them now.

Dunhill Links winner Nick Dougherty, who was hoping to find glory on his native Merseyside, suffered for the second day running as he carded a seven-over par 77 on top of his 79 24 hours earlier.

Nick Dougherty is in 13th place in the European list having been overtaken by Ian Poulter, whose runner-up finish behind left the Woburn ace right back in the race to be on the plane to the States in eight weeks’ time.

Golf article end.