Masters 2013: Lee Westwood blames par-five scoring

Lee Westwood believes that his form over Augusta's three par-five holes prevented him from mounting a serious challenge at the Masters.

Across his four rounds, the Englishman made three birdies and a bogey on the par-fives as he ended three under par and six shots behind the leading score.

"The par fives have cost me. I haven't played them well enough," said Westwood after finishing tied for eighth.

"There are not too many negatives. I was on the edge of contention."

The 39-year-old Westwood, who has finished in the top three of all four majors without winning one of golf's biggest prizes, was left reflecting on a final round of 71.

"I know my way around this course and I felt really comfortable on the greens," he said.

"I had my chances out there. I missed from 15 feet at the first and about three feet for an eagle at the second. Quite conceivably I could have been five or six under through eight but wasn't," he added.

Westwood's fellow Englishman Justin Rose had attracted a lot of backing going into the tournament, but believes his putting prevented him living up to those expectations as he finished on two over.

Rose's best Masters finish was fifth in 2007

"I hit the ball so well this week but struggled to convert with the putter and eventually that led to a couple of mental errors on the back nine and, classic Augusta, if you chase too hard you can make mistakes," he said.

"That was born out of not making the putts and pushing a little bit too hard. Lots of positives to look back on but also some glaring weaknesses so I know where I need to focus my attention."

Rory McIlroy, who memorably threw away a four-shot lead in the 2011 Masters, finished well off the pace after a final-round 69 left him two over.

The Northern Irishman lost touch with the leading contenders with a seven-over round on Saturday.

"I didn't feel that I played that differently today, but this golf course, if you get on the wrong side of it, can make you look a little silly at times," said the world number two.

"Yesterday was very disappointing. If I had kept that round under control then I might have been in with a chance today."

England's Luke Donald felt that the demanding nature of the Augusta challenge meant that his two-over finish did not fully reflect the quality of his play.

"I felt that my game was pretty close this week, but I had a few putts that lipped out and a few shots that I was staring down which didn't quite work out. That is the beauty about Augusta," he said.

"It is a matter of a few feet between being a great shot and making bogey and it was a little bit of a frustrating week in terms of that."

Scotland's Sandy Lyle, who won at Augusta 25 years ago, was left ruing a third-round 81 that kept him among the backmarkers as he finished nine over for the week.

"Other than the third day, everything was good. I was pleased with today and the first two," he concluded.