Mickelson warms up for Open with final round Scottish flourish

Five-time Major winner Phil Mickelson signalled his British Open intentions with a rousing final round 66 in the Scottish Open at the Castle Stuart course near Inverness, northern Scotland, on Sunday.

The highlight of Mickelson's fourth round came when he holed his second shot for eagle at the ninth and he also recorded four other birdies in an impressive bogey-free display.

Mickelson finished on seven under par, after recovering from a first-day 76 with rounds of 69 and 70 before saving his best for last on Sunday ahead of next week's British Open.

Three years ago, American left-hander Mickelson won the Scottish Open and a week later won a first British Open at Muirfield, near Edinburgh.

Now he heads to the Royal Troon course, southwest of Glasgow, Scotland for a 23rd appearance in the British Open -- golf?s oldest Major -- buoyed by his efforts at Castle Stuart.

"I love the golf course here, and to come in with a good final round feels good,? said Mickelson on Sunday.

"It feels like I?ve got a little bit of momentum heading into next week.

"My game certainly feels better after today's round where I had a good score. But it also helped me identify some areas where I need to work on for next week, this week did.

?My lag putting really cost me two, three shots a round the first few rounds because I wasn't getting it close enough from long distances on the ground. That's an area that I'll have to work on because it needs to be sharp for next week."

He added: ?You're going to be putting from off the green and from long distances on the greens, and you've got to get those close to make easy pars.

"I really made it difficult for me this week and that's why I didn't have a chance heading into the final round today, but it was still a great week.?

- Glove lesson -

And with the similarly wet and windy conditions forecast at Royal Troon, Mickelson reckons he?s found a way to combat the weather.

It is something he picked up in the 2011 British Open in finishing tied second with fellow American Dustin Johnson behind Northern Ireland?s Darren Clarke at Royal St. George's in Kent, southeast England.

"I?ve learnt a few tricks over the years that have really helped, playing with those two all-weather gloves has been very helpful for me because I don't worry about losing control of the club," he said.

"So that's really been a big thing that's helped me perform in these conditions. Also, I'm able to get the ball out of the air and on the ground a lot easier and I'm driving the ball a lot straighter. I really drove the ball quite a bit straighter this week.

"I started wearing two gloves the year that Darren Clarke won and I made that run on Sunday.

"That was the first time I really did that, so I had instant success, and it's been kind of a staple for me. I always carry a pair of those, and any time it rains, I put them on. Any time it rains, I like to do that.?

UK bookmakers have Mickelson at 35/1 to win a second British Open, while world number Jason Day is clear favourite at 8/1 to win a first Open after the Australian fell one shot shy of making the play-off St Andrews last year.