Rory McIlroy quickly turned his sights to the BMW PGA Championship after suffering more play-off heartbreak at the Omega European Masters.
It was 11 years ago that the Northern Irishman bogeyed the last and then lost out to Jeff Lucquin as he went in search of a first European Tour title, and he admitted that had given him some motivation this week at Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club.
This time he was going for European Tour win number 14 and he fought back from being four shots back with eight holes to play, making five birdies and a remarkable par on the 18th in his last seven to make the five man play-off.
McIlroy had a good look at birdie on the extra hole but a par was not sufficient as playing partner Sebastian Soderberg had already made his birdie putt to lift his first European Tour crown.
After making three bogeys in his final five holes in round three, McIlroy admitted to feeling "flat", and he is now ready to recharge his batteries before going in search of a second triumph at Wentworth Golf Club in 18 days' time.
"Too many mistakes," he said. "I think I made 13 bogeys during the week. I made enough birdies but I just didn't have it over the weekend.
"It's been another solid week, coming back across the Atlantic, now I'm looking forward to a couple of weeks off.
"This is my seventh event in eight weeks, I've played a lot of golf. Playing so much, little mental errors can creep in here and there. The sloppy finish yesterday probably cost me but I fought back today and did my best. It just wasn't meant to be.
"I'll put the clubs away for a few days, rest, recover and reflect on what has been a pretty good season so far, and try to get myself back up for Wentworth.
"I had a good battle with Francesco (Molinari) last year and I've won before at Wentworth, so I'm looking forward to it (the BMW PGA Championship)."
