Montgomerie falls short but proves he's not done yet

Colin Montgomerie didn't win The Open Championship on his home course of Royal Troon, as he failed to mount a rally on Sunday. But a strong performance in front of a supportive crowd proved that he's still an elite player and worthy of a wild-card selection to the European Ryder Cup team.

TROON, Scotland (PA) -- All around Colin Montgomerie, there were mini-explosions of genius.

Chip-ins for eagles, birdies by the bucketload, golf as brilliant and dramatic as it comes. But for Montgomerie, the final 18 holes of The Open Championship at Royal Troon proved a round too far.

Not even the raucous support of a hometown crowd, the sort every sportsman must dream of, could inspire Montgomerie one last time as the swirl of emotion that has surrounded him in the past four months finally took its toll with a 5-over-par 76 that left him at 2-over 286 for the tournament.

So he went the way of Tim Henman and David Beckham and Clive Woodward's England, all high-profile casualties of a British summer of discontent.

Montgomerie did not deserve the humiliation of three-putting from four feet on the par-4 13th or the double-bogey that scarred his card on the 17th hole. But by then the needle on the rocket fuel on which he has been operating as he emerged this past week from the sadness of his marriage break-up was close to empty.

Not even those setbacks, however, could entirely depress the new Monty.

"I can still win this championship one day if it all goes my way," he said defiantly. "I wouldn't say this was a chance lost. It was a very good Open for me and there are a lot of positives.

"The first three days were a wonderful experience and I'll always remember the support from the British public," he said. "I'll look back on that in years to come. I always knew I had to score 7- or 8-under to win today."

The truth is Montgomerie never looked like he was producing an action replay of the magical 65 shot in the final round by Justin Leonard here in 1997 to get his arms around that old claret jug.

As he marched purposely to the first tee, he remarked to caddie Alastair Forsyth: "Brace yourself for this."

The gallery did not disappoint. The saltires fluttered as they have done all week and a great wall of sound urged Montgomerie on his way.

He had said he needed to be at least 2-under after four holes to seriously be in contention, but as he reached the par-5 fourth he had not troubled the red figures on the scoreboard.

A 320-yard drive followed into the middle of the fairway as he searched for the eagle he required. And as he lined up his approach, a Monty fan, with hands clasped in mock prayer, remarked, "Please be on the green."

He missed it left but pin-high, and a deft little chip to 12 inches gave him his birdie.

Monty was on the march. Well, at least he was moving in the right direction. But even now the roars drifting on the Ayrshire air were telling the tale of more pressing feats elsewhere.

The men of the moment, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, were making their charge unburdened by the millstone of being the 'best golfer never to win a major,' and unfettered by the emotional baggage that Montgomerie has carried on his heart and sleeve these past four months.

Meanwhile, Montgomerie tried. Oh, how he tried. Too hard at times. He saw birdie chances at seven and eight stop agonizingly short, but when he missed a 10-foot putt for par on the ninth even his most fervent fans must have known it was all over.

There was a communal and sympathetic, 'Aaah' from the gallery.

Another bogey at the 10th when his 10-foot putt rolled by saw a shrug of the shoulders and a tightening of the lips replace the optimism of two hours before.

And then came the cruel ignominy of three-putting from four feet to record that double-bogey six at the 13th. The concentration was gone, the resolve shattered, and another double-bogey scarred the 17th hole. But amazingly, the smile with which he has wooed the galleries and the cameramen this past week was still intact.

That is why it would be wrong to consign Montgomerie's work solely to the ultimate disappointment of his final round. At least the last four days at Royal Troon have proved that he is still the best golfer never to win a major.

With his mind freed from the dislocation and loneliness of his impending divorce, he demonstrated he still possesses the technique and the consistency to compete with golf's major players.

He doesn't hit the ball as straight or as true as once he did, and his putter sometimes takes the day off without giving due notice. But his form this week should at least persuade Captain Bernhard Langer that Montgomerie is a wild-card must for the European team in Detroit come September.

It would be nonsense to ditch the passion, desire and raging will-to-win that Montgomerie brings to the party.

Just as it would be sad if Montgomerie were to forsake the fresh perspective with which he has approached life of late. This past week he has apologized to photographers, been courteous to stewards and gone out of his way to be helpful to the media.

"And if that putt at eight had gone in, who knows," said Montgomerie of the strike that halted one roll away from a birdie. "It would have taken me to 5-under, and then it might have been a different back nine.

"That putt was the turning point," he added. "If it had gone in, it might have been a different story."

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