Andrew Johnston qualified for this week's Open Championship after storming through the field to finish in a five-way tie for fourth at the Scottish Open.

The North Middlesex Golf Club professional fired a superb nine-under-par final round of 62 at the Renaissance Club to end the tournament on 19-under-par to claim one of the three qualifying places available for Royal Portrush.

Johnston recently opened up about the mental health struggles that followed his rapid rise to fame and fought back tears as he spoke to reporters afterwards.

The 30-year-old's ready smile, trademark beard and nickname 'Beef' quickly made him a fan favourite and his cult status even led to sponsorship deals in the United States, including burger restaurant Arby's.

However, Johnston revealed in a recent blog on the European Tour website how he found himself crying alone in hotel rooms and unable to play competitive golf after putting too much pressure on himself to follow up his victory in the 2016 Spanish Open.

"It means a lot, it's been a tough year," Johnston said. "I was out there enjoying golf again, high-fiving the fans. It was a different kind of mindset. In the past I had put too much pressure on myself.

"I came back from America (in 2017) and finished 21st at Wentworth, 23rd in the French Open, 27th in the Open and I walked off every time disgusted with my performance. Now I look at it and think that is absolutely crazy.

"It's madness and that was the change of mindset but I didn't even realise it was happening and I was just slowly beating myself up for no reason."

Johnston was eventually persuaded to seek professional help and is on the road to recovery after working with sports psychologist Ben Davies and receiving a positive response to his blog.

"I've had a great reaction from it, some nice comments from players saying it has helped," Johnston added. "I think a lot of the guys have been through similar things which in a way is nice to hear. You don't want to see anyone down or anything like that but I'm not the only one.

"It can get tough out here, I want to do so well and win tournaments and I think the pressure I put on myself after 2016 and expectations were way too high instead of just having fun with it."