Seamus Power believes he still has time to stake his claim to a Ryder Cup spot after firing the lowest nine-hole score of his PGA Tour career to close with a seven-under 64 in the John Deere Classic in Illinois.

Down from 29th to 50th in the world after failing to register a top-10 finish this year, the West Waterford man started with seven consecutive threes as he made an eagle and four birdies in his first six holes to go out in six-under 29.

It was Power’s lowest nine-hole score in 470 PGA TOUR rounds and he went on to make two birdies and a bogey on the back nine to finish tied 13th on 15-under for his best result since he tied for 15th at Pebble Beach in February.

“I know my golf recently has probably put me out of the (Ryder Cup) fold, but this is a step in the right direction,” said Power, who has the Scottish Open and The Open over the next two weeks as well as the FedEx Cup playoffs to impress European captain Luke Donald and improve his chances of winning one of six automatic spots or one of six wildcards.

“So the next couple of weeks will be big, especially with a major coming up in The Open and then I know that the FedEx Cup playoffs will be huge for me as well. So I've got some good opportunities, but you know, a lot of work to do.”

As for his game, he said: “It's actually getting better. It's been good recently. It's been kind of frustrating things haven't been quite happening. But a couple of good signs this week couple of really good stretches of golf. So, you know, hopefully, I can turn into 72 holes over the next couple of weeks.”

Power knows competition for places in Donald’s team is hotting up after finishing six shots behind Ryder Cup rival Sepp Straka.

The Austrian went out in seven-under 28 before picking up another four birdies in a row from the 11th to go 11-under for the day.

He was on course to shoot 59 but double bogeyed the 18th after pulling his approach into a lake and carded a 62 to set the target at 21-under.

Brendon Todd and Alex Smalley had chances to catch him but came up two strokes shy on 19-under.

After starting his week with an outward 30 and closing it with an outward 29, Power knows he’s close and he’s looking forward to coming home.

“Yeah, all week, it was just getting slightly better, just cleaning up a thing here and there,” Power said. “And then today, I just felt like it was in control of a lot of stuff. So it was very promising.

“Approach the green is a stat that's been disappointing this season. So I'm probably close to top 10 this week, so that's a huge sign for me because I know the rest of my game is there.”

As for the Scottish Open this week and The Open at Hoylake, he added: “Yeah, I can't wait. I really enjoyed it earlier this year when I got to play some DP World Tour stuff. And I've heard great things about the course next week in Scotland. And obviously, I've played Hoylake years ago at the British boys and stuff, and I loved it.

“And it’s The Open, so really looking forward next couple weeks, and then I get to go home for a couple of days after that. So it should be a great month.”

The Ryder Cup, he believes, will come his way if he plays well.

“I feel like if my game is in the right spot, all the rest of it kind of takes care of itself,” he said.

On the DP World Tour, Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard (22) also strengthened his Ryder Cup credentials when he beat Spain’s Nacho Elvira with a par at the sixth extra hole to become the first home winner in the final staging of the Made in Himmerland.

Six shots behind Elvira overnight, he closed with a six-under 64 to set the target at 13-under before Elvira bogeyed the last for a 70 and Richie Ramsay made a double-bogey to miss out on the playoff by a shot.

“I don’t know; I’m speechless at the moment, Højgaard said after Elvira hit his approach out of bounds in their six trip down the difficult 18th in sudden-death.

“To be fair, I didn’t think I’d end up in a play-off today. It’s quite amazing. It’s a dream come true to win our home event. It’s amazing.

“It isn’t that long ago that I was one of those kids trying to get balls and signed gloves. It’s awesome to see them out here supporting us.

“This is better than I could ever dream of. We’ve wanted a Danish winner for so long now, so to be able to do it is amazing.

“It means everything. It’s a childhood dream come true. Ever since the tournament got to become a part of the schedule, we’ve always wanted a Danish winner out here. To be the first one is so cool.

“I felt like I had a chance when I got out on the course today. When Nacho made that double yesterday, going from 15 to 13 under par, I felt like I was within range of maybe having a sniff. It was cool out there. Got off to a good start, tried to keep it going and then that birdie on 18 was amazing. It was cool to put some pressure on the guys behind me.

“It was horrible [waiting]. It was nerve-wracking. I tried to stay patient by doing something; going to the range, hitting some putts, whatever I could do. I was very nervous and just wanted to get in that playoff, so it was awesome.

“It’s cool. It’s not that long ago that me and Nicolai were one of those kids, trying to collect balls and gloves and hats from the players. It’s so cool to be able to write an autograph and see some smiles on their faces. Hopefully myself and Nicolai can inspire, and all the other Danes as well, inspire all the generations that are coming after us.“

Meanwhile, Kinsale rookie John Murphy has announced he’s taking a break from the game after missing his 16th cut from 17 DP World Tour starts on the Made in Himmerland.

“Ever since I started playing the game, all I ever wanted to do was be a professional golfer and play amongst the best golfers in the world,” Murphy wrote on Instagram.

“Whilst I'm grateful for the life that I live and the way we are treated on tour, with this has come a lot of added stresses and demands.

“Over recent months, golf has started to feel like a job for me when it's always felt like a passion. I have lost the sense of enthusiasm I have always had for the game and this, in turn has taken away from my enjoyment of playing.

“Striving for perfection and often doing things because I feel should has made me lose sight of what has gotten me here in the first place.

“After recent struggles, l've decided to withdraw from the next couple of events to take some time away and get the hunger back to play and compete.”

In the LIV Golf Series, Cameron Smith closed with a 68 to win the London event by one stroke from Patrick Reed and Marc Leishman ahead of his defence of The Open next week.

In Rome, Italy’s Matteo Manassero closed with a five-under 67 to win the Italian Challenge Open by three shots from Englishman Will Enefer on 21-under at Golf Nazionale.

Manassero climbs into second place on the Road to Mallorca Rankings with Niall Kearney up to 92nd after a closing 67 left him tied 26th on nine-under with Jonathan Caldwell, who shot 71.