Golf: Lloyd Saltman satisfied with week's work in Aviemore

He needed a top-five finish in the Scottish Hydro Challenge at Macdonald Spey Valley to earn one of the five spots up for grabs in the dual-ranking event in France.

He gave it his best shot with a closing 68 but ended up just outside the top ten on 277, seven-under-par. "It would have been nice to get into Saint-Omer but it's still been a good week's work," said Saltman.

"Instead of France, I'll be going to Morocco for a Challenge Tour event and (brother] Elliot is also playing in that."

Saltman's finish was his best since he secured sixth place in the Russian Open nearly two years ago. He arrived in Aviemore on the back of five straight missed cuts but is hoping his performance there can be the turning point in his season.

"I'm prone to throwing in the odd double and triple-bogey, but I've not had any of those this week," he said. "That's a positive and I definitely think I'm learning how to become a bit more patient as I get older.

"I've always been someone who would try and keep pushing in a round but yesterday was a good example of how I have changed. I didn't push too hard and, after sitting on what I had, I was eventually rewarded with a 68."

Jamie McLeary, who lives just outside the Capital, ended his brave defence of the title with a 72 to finish outside the top 20.

"I've just got to be patient and I'll eventually be up there again," he said. "Saint-Omer would be a nice one to win as that would get me on to the main Tour for the next year and a half."

Elliot, the older of the two Saltmans, closed with a 72 to finish on two-under and was annoyed with himself after going to tap his ball in at the third only to miss it completely. "It was one of those days when nothing really went for me," he said.

Fifer George Murray lifted the title after following three straight 67s with a 66 for a winning total of 17-under.

He claimed the title by four shots from Sweden's Magnus Carlsson, with England's Lee Slattery sharing third place with Norwegian Marius Thorp on ten-under. Murray had began the final round with a three-stroke lead over Carlsson and Thorp and managed to maintain a comfortable cushion between himself and the chasing pack throughout the afternoon.

After sinking a 15ft birdie putt on the first, Murray settled into the final round perfectly. He dropped a shot on the fourth but roared ahead with a superb run of three consecutive birdies from the eighth to the tenth holes to set up his maiden win, despite late pressure from Carlsson's back-to-back birdies on the 12th and 13th holes and another on the par five 17th.

Standing on the 18th tee, Murray held a two-stroke advantage but he would end the tournament four clear as Carlsson could only bogey the last, giving Murray a chance to go for his 35ft birdie attempt, which he duly accepted, much to the delight of the watching home crowd.

"It feels great to win my first tournament – doing it in Scotland, with my family and friends here supporting me just makes it all the more special," said Murray. "I played great all week and I didn't really feel too much pressure out there.

"I kind of knew that Magnus was having a run but I tried not to pay too much attention to what anyone else was doing and looked after my own score."

Murray's first Challenge Tour victory saw beating his previous performances of second in the 2007 Lexus Open and tied second in the 2008 Vodafone Challenge saw him leap 41 places on the rankings, from 45th to fourth.

That significant move gives Murray a wonderful opportunity to win a place on the European Tour via the top 20 on the end-of-season rankings.

"I think the aim now has to be to try and stay in the top five for the rest of the season. I have done it here so there's no reason to think that I can't do it more often if I play to my abilities."