EDDIE Pepperell secured his third successive top-five finish when he came tied third in the Portugal Masters.

The high placing earned the Frilford Heath golfer €112,600 and lifted him to 54th place in the PGA European Tour’s Race to Dubai money list.

Coming on the back of excellent results in the Czech Republic and the Netherlands, it put him on course for a top-60 finish, which would secure a spot at the season-ending World Tour Championship in the Middle East.

The 26-year-old is also back in the world’s top-200 for the first time in more than a year, having dropped below 500 at one stage earlier this year.

He now has two events on home soil, beginning with the British Masters at Close House, near Newcastle.

Abingdon’s Pepperell, who led briefly during the third round, shot a three-under 68 in the final round to finish on 15-under-par, five shots behind the winner, Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard.

Starting two shots off the lead after a third-round 68, Pepperell had a bogey-free final day.

But his three birdies at the fifth, seventh and 15th were not enough to close the gap at the top.

It looked like he would finish tied fourth, but South African George Coetzee dropped from joint second to a share of seventh after a triple-bogey seven at the last.