MALTON and Norton golfer Simon Dyson enjoyed a return to form on the European Tour last weekend at the Portugal Masters.

Dyson, who has struggled for the majority of the season following wrist surgery, secured his highest placed finish for 18 months in joint 44th position on 11 under par.

His performance was worth £9,250 in prize money and took his winnings for the season to just under £29,500.

Dyson was only four shots off the lead in tenth place going into the final two rounds but slipped down the leaderboard.

Ireland's Padraig Harrington won the tournament and claimed his first European Tour title in eight years - holding off the challenge of defending champion Andy Sullivan. Harrington finished on 23 under par.

Dyson's performance lifted him up to 215th position in the 'Race to Dubai' but he has not qualified for the Final Series which starts on November 3.

He has not entered in this weekend's WGC-HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, which is the final tournament of this season's European Tour.