Scot Marc Warren finishes in US PGA top 20

MARC Warren secured a top-20 finish in the US PGA Championship for the second year running after a closing 67.It followed a 66 on Saturday to give the Scot, who tied for 12th in the season’s final major a year ago, a nine-under-par total of 275.

Scotland's Marc Warren: Closing 67. Picture: Getty

At the time he finished, Warren was lying joint-14th and needed to be inside the top 15 to secure an exemption for next year’s event at Whistling Straits.

“It was a wee bit up and down today,” said the 33-year-old of an effort that contained seven birdies, including two in the last three holes.

“I’d been driving well all week and hit a good one off the first but was right at the second then left at the fourth.

“I suddenly felt out of sync off but the good thing is that I didn’t get ahead of myself and trusted what I’ve been doing lately.

“I went through some check points and discovered that my shoulders were closed a bit.

“At the tenth, I my swing felt free again and I played some really good golf from then on.”

Earlier, he’d knocked it to just over four feet for a 2 at the eighth - the closest of the day there.

“I gave myself birdie chances at the last five holes and, after making one at the 16th, I thought I’d made another one at the 17th,” admitted the two-times European Tour winner.

“I felt I’d read it really well but it kept breaking and narrowly missed.”

After then knocking in a ten-footer to sign off with a birdie, he clenched his fist in delight.

“I felt as though I’d played an aggressive chip there but got up to find that it had landed in an old pitch mark,” reported Warren.

“But I was determined to hole the birdie putt and it has been another good week for me in this event.”