Terry Pilkadaris found it hard to hide his disappointment after a closing 74 at the Made in Denmark but vowed to keep working towards a first European Tour win.
The Australian was playing just his eighth European Tour event of the year with his best result this term coming on the Challenge Tour, a fourth placed finish at the Najeti Open Presented by Neuflize OBC in June.
But rounds of 66-68-65 had him just a single shot behind leader and eventual winner David Horsey going into the final round at Himmerland Golf Resort & Spa and he even held the lead on the eighth tee after Horsey dropped a shot on the seventh.
But back-to-back bogeys on the eighth and ninth saw him drop out of the lead and a double bogey after having to take a drop on the 15th ended the 41 year old's chances of becoming the oldest first time winner since James Kingston won the 2008 South African Airways Open.
"I'm disappointed," he said after finishing in a tie for second. "I bogeyed 14 and doubled 15 so I couldn't keep the pressure on. I had a half chance on the 18th with an 18-footer but just pushed it right. That's the way golf goes.
"The wind was really up today. From the seventh onwards it was a two to three club breeze. I paid the penalty on eight, and again on 15 when I had a flier out of the rough.
"That's golf. I was just missing the fairway today and then you're struggling from there with the lies in the rough. If I'd driven it better I would've had a better chance.
"It was a fun tussle with David. Credit to him for closing it out. He gave us hope on 16 by missing that short putt but I didn't put the pressure on down 17 and 18 as I would've liked.
"It's my best ET finish, but there's a lot of disappointment from today.
"I know the game's there so I'll keep plugging away."
