Simon Dyson is lifted by Open boost
Simon Dyson celebrated his call-up to The Open by moving up the leaderboard in the Barclays Scottish Open at Castle Stuart near Inverness today.
The Yorkshire golfer, who is due to have a cortisone injection in his troublesome back next Wednesday, was only the fifth reserve for next week's Major at Sandwich on Tuesday.
But he comes in following the injury withdrawals of Tiger Woods, Thomas Levet, Tim Clark and David Toms and the decision by Australian Brendan Jones not to play because his wife is expecting a child.
The 33-year-old received the news after his round of 68 yesterday and on resuming in perfect conditions this morning, he added further birdies at two of his first three holes.
That put Dyson on six under but it was his playing partner, Scott Jamieson, who was going even better.
When the European Tour rookie hit back from a bogey at the 10th - their first hole of the day - with a hat-trick of birdies, he was seven under and shared the lead with Lee Westwood and Chile's Mark Tullo. Justin Rose set off with two birdies to be five under, Irish pair Graeme McDowell and Padraig Harrington stood four under and Phil Mickelson improved his hopes of surviving the cut - he needed a 67 to have a realistic chance - when a birdie at the short 11th took him to level par.
Dyson remained six under after six holes but 27-year-old Jamieson - with four top-six finishes already this season - was on a superb burst of five successive birdies and at nine under, the former Scottish men's amateur champion led by two strokes.
Jamieson parred the next two holes before an eagle on the 18th moved him three shots clear of McDowell and four ahead of overnight leaders Westwood and Tullo.
McDowell eagled the 530-yard 12th and birdied the next, making it four threes in a row to start his round.
Angel Cabrera, the 2009 US Masters champion, also enjoyed a fine start this morning after a disappointing round yesterday that saw him finish on one under par.
The 41-year-old Argentine hit five consecutive birdies between the 12th and 16th to move within five shots of Jamieson at the top of the leaderboard after eight holes.
