GRAHAM FOX WINS GLENEAGLES SCOTTISH PGA TITLE BY TWO SHOTS

 

Graham Fox with the championship trophy at Gleneagles

             Image by ANDY FORMAN

FROM THE PGA WEBSITE

A battle royal among the final three-ball in the Gleneagles Scottish PGA Championship ended with Graham Fox duly winning his first-ever 72-hole title.

Playing over a calm King's Course, the 35-year-old Ayrshireman pegged away, with hardened stalwarts, Greig Hutcheon and Scott Henderson, trading blow for blow with him all the way round.

After carding a closing 69 for a two-shot win over Hutcheon, with Henderson a further shot behind, the Rowallan Castle pro commented: "I stuck at it, kept believing and trusting all the work I've done with Ross Aitken (head pro at Rowallan) and the fitness programme set by John Welsh at Maximum Potential."

By the eighth hole, Aberdonian Henderson had wiped out Fox's three-stroke overnight lead, but a Fox birdie at 11 and a par at the next stretched the gap to two as Henderson faltered.

Hutcheon, out in a two-under 33, birdied 10, as did the two others, but got into trouble at the short par-four 14th, where Fox picked up a valuable birdie.

The Banchory pro was two behind as they stood on the par-five final tee, but even an eagle there was matched by the new champion.

Fox will again bid for his European Tour card at the end of the year, bolstered by this victory, "now that I've got the puppy fat removed."

The round of the championship came from last year's runner-up, Chris Currie, who swept round in a staggering 63.

"I failed to hit only two greens in the last 36 holes", said the Caldwell pro. "I was hitting them so close I couldn't miss holing the putts." The outcome was nine birdies and a solitary bogey

FINAL TOTALS

Par 284 (4x71)

269 Graham Fox (Rowallan Castle) 68 67 65 69 (£8,900).

271 Greig Hutcheon (Banchory) 68 68 68 67 (£6,500)

272 Scott Henderson (Kings Links) 68 69 66 69 (£4,500)

274 Greg McBain (Gamola Golf) 73 67 68 66 (£3,250)

276 David Orr (Mearns Castle) 71 69 68 68, Chris Kelly (Cawder) 68 70 69 69 (£2,475 each)

277 Christopher Currie (Caldwell) 71 72 71 63, Kenny Hutton (Downfield) 68 67 69 73 (£1,800 each)

278 Gareth Wright (West Linton) 68 70 72 68 (£1,500)

280 Jonathan Lomas (unatt) 71 71 68 70 (£1,300)

281 Paul McKechnie (Braid Hills) 71 73 70 67, David Patrick (Elie SC) 70 72 70 69 (£1,100 each)

282 Stephen Gray (Hayston) 73 70 71 68, Robert Arnott (Bishopbriggs) 71 68 70 73 (£875 each)

283 Steven Taylor (Bothwell Castle) 71 71 69 72 (£800)

284 Ronan Raffery (Roxburghe) 71 72 69 72 (£750)

285 Neil Fenwick (Dunbar) 76 70 70 69 (£725)

287 Paul Wardell (Whitekirk) 75 70 73 69, Ross Dixon (Renaissance Club) 75 70 73 69, Iain Colquhoun (Dundonald Links) 78 67 70 72, Alan Lockhart (Ladybank) 67 69 78 73 (£661 each)

290 Ed Wood (Crow Wood) 75 72 75 68, James McGhee (Duddingston) 73 74 73 70, Jonathan Cliff (Murrayfield) 70 73 76 71 (£560 each)

291 Scott Grieve (Turnhouse) 74 73 7371, Scott Herald (Mearns Castle) 71 72 74 74, Craig Gordon (Edinburgh GC) 72 71 74 74, Andrew Crerar (Panmure) 74 71 72 74, Ian Taylor (Drumpellier) 71 72 73 75 (£450 each)

294 Jason McCreadie (Buchanan Castle) 70 77 71 76 (£380)

296 Keir McNicoll (Gullane) 74 72 79 71 (£360)

299 Paul Wilson (Cawder) 71 73 79 76 (£350)

300 Stephen Lamb (Macdonald Cardrona) 79 68 75 78 (£340)

301 Alastair Mackenzie (Renaissance Club) 72 72 82 75, Terry Mathieson (Murcar Links) 72 72 81 76 (£325 each)