Darren Clarke jets out of Heathrow Airport this morning, with his Ryder Cup team-mates, very comfortable after his performance in the British Masters and quietly excited about the task of tackling the United States in Spain next weekend.

Clarke, with a five-under-par total at the Forest of Arden course, outside Coventry, collected a £12,146 cheque for his share of 12th place, an amount that helped him retain his second-placed standing in the Volvo Order of Merit.

New Zealand's Greg Turner, with a drama-charged up and down shot from a bunker at the final green, held off a fast-finishing Colin Montgomerie to win by one shot. The victory is only the 34-year-old Kiwi's fourth in 12 years of contesting the tour.

Montgomerie stormed his way into contention with a course record nine-under par 63 to finish at 12-under, one behind Turner.

Clarke's excellent performance is a great turnaround in form for the Ryder Cup rookie particularly after the disappointment of missing the cut in last week's Lancome Trophy in Paris.

"I've hit the ball really solid this week, but it was one of those weeks where I was unable to convert my chances," Clarke said. "I'm happy enough because going to the Lancome last week and not playing so well and missing the cut, I came here this week after putting a lot of hard work in and I've actually struck the ball very well again, so I'm looking forward to next week."

Unfortunately a double bogey six at the par-four 16th took the gloss off Clarke's last day. "I had made birdies at 14 and 15, but got to 16 and my ball hit the green and spun back into the water," said Clarke. "I thought up to then I could have sneaked into the top five; but generally I'm very happy with my effort this week".

There was an enormous sigh of relief from Turner as he gently sank the winning putt. Turner, who led at 11-under heading in to the final round, looked certain for the title when his nearest rival, Thomas Bjorn of Denmark, double-bogeyed the par-five 12th hole to hand the New Zealander a four-shot cushion.

Little did Turner, or anyone else present, know that Montgomerie was on a charge towards the lead. The Scot, who has been ranked Europe's best golfer for the past four seasons, was back in a distant 57th place at the commencement of the third round and established a new course record with his closing nine-under par 63. Playing five groups ahead of Turner, Montgomorie was in the clubhouse at 12-under as Turner holed his eighth par in succession at the par-four 14th.

But with Monty's 63, Turner's lead was reduced to just two shots. The tournament then took a further twist when Turner bogeyed the par-five 17th. Turner's lead was down to one shot.

"When I saw Colin's name creeping up the leaderboard, it wasn't a particularly pleasant feeling," said Turner.