It’s been quite some time since we’ve seen Lee Westwood compete in a major championship. Had he missed out on the Open Championship later this month, it would have been three full years since he competed in one.

But Westwood’s major drought never made it that far, the former World No. 1 earning a spot at Royal Portrush via Final Qualifying on Tuesday at Dundonald Links in Scotland. Westwood, who has just one top- 10 finish on the LIV Tour in 2025, shot rounds of 70 and 67, a seven under total that was the lowest of anyone in the 68-player field.

Westwood claimed one of the five spots up for grabs at the Dundonald site. When he tees it up at Royal Portrush later this month, it will be his first start in a major championship since the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews, where the now 52-year-old Englishman tied for 34th. Three years earlier, the last time they Open was at Portrush, Westwood tied for fourth with Brooks Koepka.

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“I’ve always said it’s the greatest championship in golf and as a British player you get phenomenal support,” Westwood told reporters on hand after the round. “I really enjoyed Portrush last time. I finished fourth and played nicely. I’m just looking forward to enjoying the week at Portrush. Seeing a few old friends and enjoying that golf course. For me, it’s in the top three links courses in the British Isles.”

Making Westwood’s improbable day even more impressive was that he had come straight from LIV Dallas, arriving to Scotland at 7:30 p.m. on Monday evening. His result at Maridoe—a T-25—certainly didn’t indicate something this special was coming, either.

But Westwood is happy it did, telling Bunkered.com’s John Turnbull how much he’s missed playing in the big four over the last few years.

“I think if you play golf to a high level, the major championships are the ones you want to play,” he said.

“They are the biggest tournaments. It’s always nice to test yourself on the toughest golf courses against the best players.”

RELATED: LIV golfer DQ’d from Open qualifying after walking off course

Another LIV golfer, Lucas Herbert, earned one of the five spots available at the West Lancashire qualifer with an eight-under total, also the lowest of anyone in the field. Herbert, who has yet to pick up an individual win on LIV but does have a PGA Tour victory, has only played in one of the last seven major championships (T-43, 2024 PGA). This will be his fifth career Open start. The 29-year-old Aussie has two missed cuts while notching T-51 and a T-15 in his prior four appearances.

England’s Harry Hall finished T-2 at eight under at Burnham and Berrow to advance. Hall shot consecutive rounds of 67 with a local caddie on his bag, to earn a trip to the Open Championship for the first time in his career.

At Royal Clinque Ports, LIV’s Dean Burmester finished four clear in the top spot at 10 under, and the South African will play in his fourth Open. He’s gone T-11, T-19 in his last two.

Main image: Ross Parker/R&A

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