Curtain comes down on Bob's brilliant season

The result means the Oban man equalled his best performance in the Race to Dubai standings with a ninth place finish in the final table.

After opening with a level par round of 72 on day one, Bob played himself into contention with an impressive bogey-free round of 68 on Friday.

His round of 69 on Saturday left him with an outside chance of victory on the final day, but despite a solid performance from tee to green, the putts just would not drop and that, coupled with a bogey at the last after dumping his approach into the water, meant he eventually signed off with a one under par 71, leaving him six shots adrift of winner Rory McIlroy.

The slight disappointment of his finish should not detract from what has been an unbelievable year for the 28-year-old Scot.

After a shaky start as he got used to life on the other side of the Atlantic, a top 10 finish at the USPGA Championship was memorably followed by his first PGA Tour victory at the Canadian Open in May.

No-one who watched it will forget the emotional scenes as Bob lifted the trophy with dad Dougie by his side, after he was drafted in for emergency caddie duties.

With his confidence now sky high, the left hander would then pull off the biggest win of his career, triumphing at the Scottish Open in front of his home crowd at the Renaissance Club in East Lothian, making him the first Scot to win their home open in a quarter of a century.

Reflecting on his year after his final round in Dubai, Bob said: “It’s been an unbelievable year, with two fairy tale victories.” 

He also made it clear a place in next year’s Ryder Cup is an absolute priority, saying: “I’m in a good position and if I play well next season I should be in the Ryder Cup, and if I don’t, then I don’t deserve to be there.”

Before all that, and before he puts his clubs away for a well-deserved break over Christmas and New Year, Bob is taking part in the prestigious, invitation only, Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, hosted by Tiger Woods, which begins on December 5.