For a man who gives everything and more for his team-mates it is

perplexing Colin Montgomerie cannot do it for himself.

Another near miss at the US Open on Sunday was Monty's fifth second place in a major - one record the Scot does not want in his bag.

In a way it is remarkable he got himself into such a position again as his chances of winning one golf's elite tournaments had been written off years ago.

But on the other hand, his double-bogey six at the 72nd hole having just a seven iron in his hands for his approach will perpetuate the assumption that Montgomerie just does not have the bottle for the big occasion.

Yet in the sport's biggest test, the Ryder Cup, the 42-year-old becomes a mountain of a man.

He has yet to lose any of his seven singles matches, winning five, and in 32 rounds at seven Ryder Cups he has won 21 points.

That is only bettered by Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer and Seve Ballesteros.

Monty will be remembered for being the man who holed the putt to win the Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills in 2004.

Unfortunately, he will also be remembered for not winning a major, for surely his final chance has slipped through his fingers.

After twice losing play-offs in the US Open and US PGA in the mid 1990s and then faltering at the last to finish second in the US PGA in 1997 - all while he was in his pomp - no-one believed Montgomerie would be a contender again.

But credit must go to the belief and strength he showed to arrest his slide, which saw him plummet to 84th in the world 17 months ago.

He ran Tiger Woods a close second in the Open at St Andrews last year and his Indian summer ended with a record eighth European Order of Merit title.

However, golf is becoming a younger man's game - Vijay Singh was the last major winner over 40 when he won the 2004 US PGA six months before his 42nd birthday - and Montgomerie will be 43 on Friday

Julius Boros is the oldest winner of a major at the age of 48 but that was the 1968 US PGA and the physical demands of the game have come on leaps and bounds since then.

The ticking of the clock must almost be as loud for Montgomerie as the echoes in his major trophy room.