Dyson strikes as McIlroy comes up short

Golf:England's Simon Dyson captured a third Dutch Open in six years in Holland today — and this one took him into the world's top 30 for the first time in his career. The 33-year-old birdied four of the last seven holes to beat compatriot David Lynn, champion himself in 2004, by one shot.

Rory McIlroy finished third, good enough to take him back to third in the world rankings, while number two Lee Westwood’s closing 66 lifted him from 18th to fifth. Dyson’s victory was also his second in seven weeks. He took the Irish Open at the end of July.

Also round in 66, Dyson had to wait to see if his 12 under par total of 268 was good enough.

Lynn, whose triumph on the same Hilversum course seven years ago was his only one in 351 European Tour events, and Scot Gary Orr were both on the 16th two behind. They did well to save par there, then Lynn’s 15-foot birdie attempt at the next hung on the lip.

It left both of them needing to eagle the par five last and while Orr’s chance went after he pushed his drive and had to lay up — in the end he took six to drop to fourth — Lynn had a 30-footer to force a play-off, but ran it wide.

Dyson joins a list of three-time winners of the title that includes Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer and he said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be on the same trophy as names like those two. It’s something special, a dream come true really. To win any title once is tough, but to win it three times is a fantastic feeling.

“I started a bit shakily — my timing was just a little bit off — but after my bogey on 11 I played pretty flawless golf.”

He birdied three in a row from the 12th to take over at the top and then made the task harder for those chasing him with a two-putt birdie four on the last. Dyson wins his third Seve Trophy cap for Britain and Ireland against Continental Europe in Paris this week, but a Ryder Cup debut is the big target.

This was the second counting event in Europe for next September’s match in Chicago and he is now just behind Dane Thomas Bjorn, last week’s winner in Switzerland, at the top of the standings.

McIlroy was playing with Dyson and a hat-trick of birdies from the second, even though they followed a bogey, made the US Open champion favourite. But the 22-year-old played the next 12 in one over and two closing birdies were too little, too late to give him his first professional victory on European soil.

He was also third in the European Masters and said: “It’s not been a bad two weeks. To be able to give myself a chance when I didn’t have my best stuff I was quite pleased, but I should have made more of that fast start.”