Thomas Detry insisted he had no regrets after a short missed putt on the final green cost him a place in a play-off at the 2020 Hero Open.
The Belgian has won the ISPS HANDA Melbourne World Cup of Golf alongside Thomas Pieters and claimed a solo victory at the 2016 Bridgestone Challenge on the European Challenge Tour by a record breaking 12 shots but has yet to lift a trophy on the European Tour.
On Sunday, he trailed Sam Horsfield by three shots as the long time leader made the turn at Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club but birdies on the 12th, 13th and 16th had him breathing down the Englishman's neck.
Another gain on the 17th coupled with a Horsfield bogey on the 15th then meant that Detry held the lead as he stood on the 18th tee.
But a closing bogey left the door ajar for Horsfield and it was the 23-year-old who claimed his first European Tour title with a birdie on the 17th.
Despite that disappointment, a philosophical Detry was pleased with his week's work in Birmingham, and will now have an eye on U.S. Open qualification after moving up to fourth on the UK Swing mini Order of Merit.
“A lot of things have been going through my mind but honestly I have nothing to be disappointed about right now," he said. "I played some really good golf today, the greens are getting trickier down the stretch and I over-read that putt on 18.
“But I’m very pleased with the way I finished on those last few holes to be honest. I hit some very good shots out there. Another missed opportunity but I’ll move on and forget about it and just try to win next week.
“It was tough out there, the wind started to swirl a little bit and 16 and 17 are tough holes with a lot of water around. You have to be careful because you can quickly make a high number but I handled it pretty well, like I said, I’ll just move on.
“I’m feeling very positive about the rest of the UK Swing now, I’ve picked up a few points for the UK Swing Rankings so it will change a few things. I might not play every single tournament now but we’ll see how things go but I’m definitely playing next week so I’m looking forward to that.”
