DAVID Howell endured a disappointing end to his Scottish Open campaign with a two-over par final round of 74 today.

After kicking off the tournament with two straight rounds of level par, Swindon star Howell moved nicely up the leaderboard at Castle Stuart on Saturday with a four-under 68.

However, much of that good work was undone on Sunday in Inverness as the Broome Manor man drifted back down the placings to finish on two-under overall and is currently in a tie for 45th place with the leaders still out on the course.

Things got off to a tricky start for the 41-year-old as he began his round with a bogey, although that was soon set right by a birdie at the third.

A disastrous double bogey five at the par three fourth followed before another shot slipped away on six.

Howell was able to claw a shot back at the eight to reach the turn two over before back-to-back birdies on the back nine brought him back level for the day.

The two-time Ryder Cup star could not sustain that, though, and a pair of bogeys at 14 and 15 meant for a frustrating conclusion to Howell’s final tournament before next week’s Open Championship at Royal Troon.