HENDERSON WINS £1,500 PRIZE AND PLAY-OFFS PLACE

By COLIN FARQUHARSON Colin@scottishgolfview.com  Former European Tour Rookie of the Year, Scott Henderson still has the game, at the age of 43, and the nerve to respond to pressure. Halfway leader in the final event of the Tartan Tour season, the Optical Express PGA 36-hole tournament over The Duke's Course, St Andrews, the Aberdonian (pictured) also had on his mind that he needed to earn enough Scottish PGA Order of Merit points to finish in the top three and so qualify for the Titleist play-offs in Turkey in December. Greig Hutcheon (Banchory) had already nailed down the No 1 Order of Merit position, which left Scott only second or third spot to aim at with his late surge. To Henderson's great credit, he pulled off a double whammy - he won the Optical Express PGA tournament - and landed himself one of the places in the Titleist PGA play-offs. The Kings Links Golf Centre tour pro won the £1,500 top prize with a five-under-par total of 137, made up of rounds of 68 and 69. He won by a shot from Paul McKechnie (Braid Hills) who could have set Henderson a lower target had he not bogeyed the short 16th and 18th for a second-round 67 for 138. McKechnie had gone to the turn in four-under-par 32 but came home in 35. He earned £1,100. Henderson also had a couple of late bogeys over The Duke's tough finishing stretch. He dropped shots at the 14th and 17th but earlier birdies at the long first, long 11th, short 13th and 13th had virtually secured victory for the joint overnight leader. Chris Kelly (Cawder), who had shared the pole position after 18 holes on three-under 68, sagged to a 72 for joint third place on 139. Kelly started his round well and birdied the 17th but the middle part was his undoing. He had a double bogey 7 at the long sixth and dropped shots at the short eighth and par-4 nine to be out in 38. Kelly and joint third Chris Currie (Caldwell) (69-71) earned £712 apiece. The best round of the second day was a five-under-par 66 by rookie pro Kris Nicol (Fraserburgh), one of the Paul Lawrie Foundation "stable."  Nicol had seven birdies and two bogeys in halves of 33. He finished joint 10th on 143 alongside Greig Hutcheon (Banchory) who was more like his old self with a 68, seven shots better than his first-round effort. Hutcheon, winner of the Scottish PGA money table and Order of Merit, completed a clean sweep by winning the PGA Optical Express Order of Merit which put another £500 into the Banchory man's bank account. The other placings were: 2 David Patrick (Elie SC), 3 Neil Fenwick (Dunbar), 4 Scott Henderson (Kings Links). The final placings in the Scottish PGA Order of Merit were as tight a finish as Tournament Director Roy Murray could remember. They were: 1 Greig Hutcheon 971.65 2 Scott Henderson 787.50 3 David Orr (Mearns Castle) 785 4 David Patrick 783.75 5 Gareth Wright (West Linton) 781.25. Henderson's victory today saw him leapfrog up to second place from outwith the top five. The significance of that is that Hutcheon, Henderson and Orr plus Glenmuir PGA champion Gareth Wright (West Linton) go forward to the Titleist play-offs over Antalya Golf Club's Sultan course in Turkey from December 10 to 13 SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE FINAL TOTALS AT THE DUKE'S TODAY AND THE PRIZE MONEY ALLOCATION