HOYLAKE, England -- He didn’t have a choice. So he went for it.

He swung away on the final three holes at Royal Liverpool and went one-for-three.

A birdie at the par-5 16th, a bogey at the 17th. And a closing double-bogey after a drive wild right.

It was Adam Scott's only chance to catch Tiger Woods. Even if it was slim. Eagle two of the last three and ... well, we know what happened. Tiger cruised to his 11th major title -- this one coming with emotional sobs rather than celebratory fist pumps -- and Scott? The young Aussie fell back into a tie for eighth.

"Those last three holes I was really going for it, I had to," Scott said. "(Tiger) was three in front and I had the par-fives to play."

Scott looked a little like his mentor Greg Norman down the stretch. Bold. Decisive. Contending for yet another major. And coming up with his best finish ever at one.

He tied for ninth at his first Masters in 2002 and again at the 2004 PGA Championship. And this one? Would a tie for third or fourth with the likes of Ernie Els or Jim Furyk felt better? Maybe, but that wasn’t what Scott was looking for.

This was the first major where he came into the back nine with a real chance. His birdie at the 16th pulled him to 11 under for the tournament, but his tee shot on 17 came to rest in a bad lie. He bogeyed that hole to fall to 10 under, then doubled the final hole.

At 26, Scott has a PLAYERS title (2004), two other PGA TOUR wins -- three if you count the rain-shortened unofficial 2005 Nissan Open -- and five other victories world wide. He decided when he turned pro that he was going to play his way onto the TOUR and put in several years on the European Tour before heading to the States.

Scott is a major in waiting. He has an incredible swing, watched over by Butch Harmon, and a terrific short game. And when he’s on ... well, he blew us away against the best field of the year at the 2004 PLAYERS.

At Royal Liverpool -- his seventh Open Championship -- he played well all week and, when it seemed as though Tiger might be trying to run away with it after three rounds, Scott was one of those who didn’t buy into the idea that everyone else was playing for second.

“This course can bite anyone, even Tiger,’’’ he said. “He's not foolproof, but he is obviously playing well and he has his eye in and we know how he goes when that happens for four days. My goal is to somehow get a couple back on him on Saturday and you never know what's going to happen on Sunday. It's obviously going to take some great golf to beat him though."

In a way, Scott came in under the radar. He’s ranked sixth in the world, but Tiger, Phil Mickelson, Colin Montgomerie and Els were the ones everyone had an eye on. He’d played well coming in, finishing in the top four at four of his last six events, including a second at the Barclays Classic and a third at the Wachovia Championship.

In addition, he has one of the best caddies in the game on his bag -- Tony Navarro, who spent a large part of his career with Norman.

"I didn't really feel I was under any pressure," Scott said. "I hit some good shots but the wind didn't budge them. And then I had to decide whether to go for it on the last or not and it cost me. But I was pretty happy, I didn't feel like I hit poor shots. Just a bit unfortunate."

If anything, Scott can look back at the tough opening holes. He bogeyed the first two holes of the final round -- and two of his first four in the third round.

Scott continues to get stronger mentally, which could move him farther up the world rankings.

"I have had to believe in myself a little bit more than I have before," he said of this season. "I have to trust that my game is good enough to get around these courses and beat players here.

"I talked a lot earlier in the year about being more aggressive in the majors. But it's more about believing in myself, picking my target and hitting it right at it, rather than steering out of trouble."

And as for that tie for eighth?

"Whether you finish ninth, 12th or third (doesn’t matter),’’ he said. ‘I was trying for the best finish possible," he said. "I tried to muscle one up there (at 18) and it squirted right. But I played well here."