DAVID Howell will be looking to recover from an ultimately disappointing weekend at The Open following one of the most difficult challenges of his career.

Despite finishing well down the field, after carding four-under-par for the championship, which ran over five days for only the second time in its history, Howell was left still feeling good about his game.

A two-under-par fourth round added some gloss to what was a weekend that took its toll physically on the Broome Manor pro.

“Ultimately, it was a little disappointing,” he said.

“I felt like, in general, I was playing better than I have ended up finishing. St Andrews is always a bit of a different test.

“With the weather, there is a lot of wind to play in, and links golf is a great test, but it is different to what we play in normally.

“I still feel like I am swinging the club well and I am feeling pretty good about my game.”

Howell admitted that the damage was done on Sunday, when those around him made a move up the leaderboard but he fell backwards with a one-over-par score of 73.

“To shoot one over yesterday, when it was really quite easy, that really cost me,” he added.

“I hit some good shots that didn’t quite come off. I didn’t hole a putt of any note.

“I had two five-foot putts for birdie in the first five holes, so that summed up how the day went for me.”

Howell took full advantage on the outward nine on the final day, carding three birdies to reach the turn in 36.

The two-time Ryder Cup star picked up a shot on the second, then added back-to-back threes on the sixth and seventh.

Another followed on the 10th but Howell endured a messy end to his tournament.

He dropped a shot on the long par-five 14th before the infamous Road Hole - the 17th - caught him out as he had to mark down a double-bogey six, before concluding with a birdie three at the 18th.

“I got it going. That was nice - to get things running again - and then it all turned around on 13 and 14,” said Howell, whose back issues from Friday cleared up.

“I had a five-footer for birdie on the tough 13th hole, which horseshoed out, and then there was a real tough drive on 14 and I didn’t hit a good one and found the bunker, which cost me the shot.

“If I had holed the putt and got the drive away on 14, then I would have been five-under-par with the chance to birdie going into the next three holes. Next thing, I was four under and making bogey.

“I made a pig’s ear at 17 but that was all a bit after the Lord Mayor’s Show at that point.”

Howell will now be looking to rest up ahead of the Omega European Masters in Switzerland later this week.