PAUL MCKECHNIE EARNS £625 FOR JT 13th FINISH ON EUROPRO TOUR

Paul McKechnie (Braid Hills) won £625 for a joint 13th place finish in this week's EuroPro Tour event, the Clipper Logistics Championship at Moor Allerton Golf Club, Leeds.
McKechnie shot 70, 70 and 68 for a five-under-par total of 208 over the par-71 course.
Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel) finished joint 18th on 210 with scores of 72, 71 and 67. He earned £406.
Elliot Saltman (Archerfield Links), the only other Scot to survive the 36-hole cut, finished joint 32nd on 214 with rounds of 71, 72 and 71 for 214. He earned £285
The £10,000 first prize won by England's Billy Hemstock at the first hole of a sudden-death  play-off against compatriot Daniel Gavins who earned £5,000. They had tied on 12-under-par 201.

LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 213 (3x71)
201 Billy Hemstock (Eng) 70 65 66 (£10,000); Daniel Gavins (Eng) 71 66 64 (£5,000). Hemstock won sudden-death play-off at first extra hole.
204 Marcus Armitage (Eng) 69 68 67, Ryan O'Neill (Eng) 67 65 72 (£2,100 each).

SCOTS' TOTALS
208 Paul McKechnie 70 70 68 (T13) (£625)
210 Paul Doherty 72 71 67 (T18) (£406).
214 Elliot Saltman 71 72 71 (T32) (£285) 

NEWS RELEASE

Billy Hemstock won the Clipper Logistics Championship at Moor Allerton Golf Club on Friday, beating Daniel Gavins in a play-off to win the 888poker.com PGA EuroPro Tour event.

The pair finished tied on 12 under par after 54 holes but it was agony for Gavins (De Vere Oulton Hall) who shot a course-record equalling 64 (-7) on the final day, only to lose by play-off for the second event running.

However, the Yorkshire man has guaranteed himself a 2014 Challenge Tour card, with a victory at Dale Hill coupled with his two second-placed finishes ensuring Gavins a place in the 888poker.com PGA EuroPro Tour Order of Merit top five.

When the pair finished tied for the lead on -12, they replayed the 18^th as a sudden-death play-off. However, Gavins’ tee shot strayed into the trees lining the right-hand side of the green and  though he recovered for par, Hemstock (Teignmouth GC) got to the green in two and made four on the par-five closing hole to win the £10,000 winner’s cheque and a brand new Motocaddy trolley.

Hemstock shot an unblemished 66 in the final round but has been struggling for form in recent weeks. He failed to make it beyond the first stage of European Tour Q School and had missed the cut at his previous two EuroPro Tour events.

“It has been a tough few weeks,” he admitted. “I have been struggling with my form but I came here with no expectations and it has been a fantastic week.

“I played a lot, 13 out of 15 weeks, and travelling all over the place. I got a little bit stale towards the end and that makes you take a look at what you’re doing and reset the dial a little for the end of the season and I did that well.

“I felt I was doing a lot of things well, but I just wasn’t getting the results. I stayed patient and you have to check through what you’re doing and make sure it is the right things. Backing myself in those situations really helped this week.”

Marcus Armitage (Howley Hall GC) and 36-hole leader Ryan O’Neill (Penwortham Golf Club) tied for third with scores of nine under, with Ruaidhri McGee (Rosapenna), Greg Payne (Chobham Golf Club) and Order of Merit leader George Woolgar (Capitalservices) sharing fifth on seven under par.

Only the top 60 on the current Order of Merit have been invited to play the 888poker.com Tour Championships at Prince’s next month. Janne Kaske, who finishes the season 61^st, misses out by just £57.25.

Highlights of the Clipper Logistics Championship will be broadcast at 8pm on Sky Sports 3 on Tuesday, October 8, repeated four times on Wednesday, October 9.