PGAs of EUROPE TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

Captain Fantastic Leads England

from the Front

FROM THE PGAs OF EUROPE WEBSITE
Jon Bevan assumed the role of Captain Fantastic to put England on course for victory in the PGAs of Europe International Team Championship at Vale do Lobo on Portugal's Algarve coastline.
The England skipper, who had not contributed in the first two rounds of the 72-hole tournament in which the best two scores of the three-man team count, came good at the third attempt.
An experienced PGA Cup player, Bevan, posted a four-under-par 64 as England, who began the penultimate round just one stroke ahead of second-placed France, quadrupled their lead in pursuit of the €6,000 first prize.
He was ably aided and abetted by David Shacklady who maintained his fine form in the €35,000 tournament by carding his third successive sub-par round. This time he weighed in with one-under as England extended their lead over the French and maintained their four-stroke advantage over Scotland who share second place.

This looked an unlikely scenario for the Scots until Jim McKinnon ended his round with a birdie blitz. Four of them came in the last five holes as McKinnon posted a three-under-par 65 to go one better than team-mate Sam Cairns and keep his team’s hopes of a record seventh title.

By contrast, the French go into the last round chasing their second ITC success thanks to splendid efforts by Rogez Sabarros (two-under) and Jean Pierre Cixous (level). The pair made up for a rare failure from skipper Benjamin Nicolay whose six-under-par round of 62, on a course shortened by waterlogging, was the best of the second round.

“They showed how well they can play,” said Nicolay. “So I wasn’t really needed. But it’s good that everyone’s contributing and that gives us a good chance in the final round.”

Nicolay’s tournament best was matched in the third round by Ireland’s John Kelly, a score that fired his team to six-under and put them in there with a chance of making a concerted challenge in the final round. Kelly, who posted two birdies on the outward nine and four on the inward, was fulsome in his praise of team-mates Eamonn Brady and Glen Robinson for keeping the Irish in contention.

“We’re nicely placed for the final round,” said Kelly. “That’s because anything is possible in a tournament with this format. The fact you’ve got two team-mates is a great help. “It gives you licence to go for things you might otherwise not try, which is what happened today.

“ If I scored six-under on my own, I’d be delighted. But in this format, it’s not that special.” Kelly also praised PGA tournament director Ben Groutage for his revamped weather-beating schedule that is set to ensure all 72-holes are played.

Heavy rain prior to the second round left parts of the Ocean Course water-logged but adjustments to two holes, shortening par fives to par threes, and an earlier start on day three, means no play has been lost.

He added: “Ben Groutage and his team have worked wonders and we’re indebted to them for still being in the tournament with a chance of winning it. If it had been reduced to 54-holes as it could have been, that would have been it for us.”

The ITC is supported by Associacao Turismo do Algarve along with Glenmuir, The Tivoli Victoria, Vale de Lobo Golf Club and the Ryder Cup European Development Trust.


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