A stranger-than-fiction true story is spun with ample comic flair in a film that charmingly demonstrates that the hopeless and heroic can sometimes go hand in hand. The Phantom Of The Open is the brainchild of Ghosts co-creator and star Simon Farnaby, who conceived the project 14 years ago. With Farnaby penning the script, the film has been brought to life by the young Welsh director Craig Roberts (also known for his acting work in Submarine et al). This is the 31-year-old's third feature following Just Jim and Eternal Beauty and, taking a more commercially accessible tack this time, he delivers another triumph.

The Phantom Of The Open is a feelgood, working-class underdog story in the mould of Brassed Off and The Full Monty, but with a more eccentric air. In a stroke of genius, it casts the great Mark Rylance as its protagonist, Maurice Flitcroft, an aging crane operator working in a Barrow-in-Furness shipyard. When Maurice's job is threatened, he opts to take up golf, a leftfield decision made with the full support of his wife Jean (a typically superb Sally Hawkins), with the pair encouraging their twin sons (played by Christian and Jonah Lees) to follow their own disco-dancing dream. Early on, we see Maurice commit a seemingly innocent act of fraud when, believing himself to be coming on strides with his practice, he applies for the 1976 Open Championship as a professional.

As Maurice takes his place in the aforementioned competition to the astonishment of those watching, what transpires is often a hoot. Rylance has spoken about admiring how seriously Maurice took it all, despite overwhelming evidence of his incompetence, and plays him accordingly. The scenarios are frequently, sometimes hysterically farcical (an incognito Maurice being pursued across a golf course with his dodgy pal flanked by 'Ride Like The Wind' is a wonderful highlight), but Rylance brings a strange, slightly heartbreaking sincerity to Maurice throughout in a beautifully judged turn.

On the opposing side, Rhys Ifans is well cast as Maurice's sneering and enraged nemesis Keith Mackenzie, the secretary of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club, organisers of the Open, for whom Maurice becomes a surprisingly persistent problem. If this is a less embellished take on the material than 2015's similarly themed Eddie The Eagle, some of the true-life details beggar belief. Keeping things buoyant means that the film can feel a little on the slight side, yet it's delightfully quirky and a real spirit-lifter, with Maurice a perversely inspiring figure who reminds us that winning isn't everything.

The Phantom Of The Open is in cinemas from Friday 18 March.