Self-confessed former choker Tom Watson believes Adam Scott has all the qualities to win a golf major and will be steeled by his agonising collapse at the British Open.

Watson, who suffered his own painful Open near-miss three years ago when he bogeyed the final hole at Turnberry to blow his historic shot at a sixth championship, said he felt Scott's pain as he frittered away a four-stroke lead at Royal Lytham in July.

After playing flawlessly for three rounds, the Australian No.1 finished with four successive bogeys to hand the Claret Jug to Ernie Els.

"It certainly tears you up inside," Watson said on Thursday ahead of his appearance at next month's Australian Open in Sydney.

"A great chance at winning the Open championship - I call it the World Open - and the disappointment is severe.

"I felt sick for several days afterwards watching it.

"Those types of collapses always stick in your craw as an observer and 'that can happen to me', you think.

"And at times, it has happened to you, where you just couldn't get into the finish."

While Scott rebounded impressively with a tied 11th at the US PGA Championship three weeks after his Open heartbreak, Watson said only time would tell how the Lytham letdown would impact on the world No.6 long term.

But, speaking from experience, Watson was backing the Queenslander to eventually break his major duck.

"You learn from your mistakes, which he did, and build on your strengths that he had during that week," said the eight-times major winner.

"I saw a lot of wonderful swings from Adam Scott that week and Ernie Els played a magnificent last round.

"It's happened to all of us on the golf course, in golf tournaments, and it just happened in an inopportune time for Adam.

"I think it fortifies you.

"In my early part of my career, I choked away a bunch of tournaments and they asked me about it later on in my career and I said: 'I learned to win by losing. I learned to win by failing and correcting my errors."

Watson quoted new world No.1 Rory McIlroy - who won last year's US Open by eight shots after throwing away a Masters jacket two months earlier - as a perfect example.

"Rory McIlroy said it great this year," Watson said.

"He won in America and they asked him: 'What's different now than it was last year?'

"He said: 'Well, I'm more comfortable under pressure'.

"The more you put yourself in that position and win or lose, the better you're going to be the next time."

After also finishing joint runner-up at Augusta last year, Scott backed up with an eighth at the Masters and T15th at the US Open in 2012, prior to his second at the Open and T11th at the PGA.

"I've always really admired his golf swing, his posture. His plane, I've always felt he's been excellent," Watson said.

"I don't know much about his putting. I know he's gone to a long putter and it seems like it helped.

"But you've got to have the whole package to win in championship golf. I think he has the package."

Watson, the 1984 Australian Open champion, said he planned to play a practice round with Scott at the Lakes on the Tuesday before this year's event in Sydney from December 6-9.