PGA EuroPro Tour report and scores in Spain

GAVINS TAKES FOUR-SHOT LEAD 

By NICK TEALE

Victory at the PGA EuroProTour’s showpiece season-finale at Desert Springs, Almeria in Spain would see Gavins (Walton Driving Range) make an immediate return to the Challenge Tour, which he played last year having graduated from the EuroPro in 2013.

 That year he held a one-stroke lead after 36 holes of the Tour Championship, where his second-place finish saw him seal promotion to European golf’s second tier.

Aaron Rai (68, 68; DCD Group), Paul Howard (68, 68; Southport and Ainsdale), Sebastian Garcia Grout (68, 68; Tponiente Golf Mallorca) and Sam Connor (67, 69; Alsager Golf and Country Club) share second on eight under par. Robbie Busher’s second-round 65 took him from level par to sixth on seven under.

Rai, Howard and Connor currently sit inside the top six of the Race To Desert Springs Order of Merit but while Connor looks secure inside the crucial top five, Rai and Howard are battling it out to land a Challenge Tour card for 2016.

“I didn’t get much sleep last night,” said Gavins, who had felt unwell ahead of his unblemished second round. “I was just trying to get around, I didn’t come with any expectations of shooting under par; I was just trying to get around the course.

“I have been trying to take the pressure off myself by treating this as a warm up for stage two Qualifying School next week and not worrying about what I shoot has helped me today. I am looking forward to tomorrow now, it should be a good day.”

The Matchroom Sport Tour Championship is a 54-hole strokeplay event which concludes on Friday, October 30. A two-hour highlights package from the tournament will air on Sky Sports on Tuesday, November 10 with a season review show to broadcast the following week.

CAMERON CLICKETY CLICKS TO MOVE UP TO

 

JOINT 7th AT PGA EUROPRO CHAMPIONSHIP

Ellon's Ross Cameron (Saltire Energy), pictured above, took over as the leading Scot in the PGA EuroPro Tour Championship with a sizzling 66 in the second at Desert Springs, Almeria in Spain today (Thursday).

Cameron's six-shot improvement lifted him to joint 7th place on six-under 138, six behind the leader by four, Daniel Givens (England) (67-65).

Cameron birdied the second, third, sixth, seventh and eighth in an outward 33 which included a solitary bogey at the fourth. He parred his way in until birdieing the 16th and 18th.

Neil Fenwick (Dunbar) slashed 14 shots off his first-day score with a 65 to be sharing 32nd place on level par 144 with Jordan McColl (Kingsbarns) (70-74) and Lloyd Saltman (Archerfield) (69-75).

Paul Shields (Kirkhill) had a 70 for 145 and joint 36th place while Michael Stewart (Troon Welbeck) is joint 44th on 147 after a 73.

PGA EUROPR0 TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

Desert Springs GC, Almerica, Spain.

LEADING SECOND-ROUND SCORES

Par 144 (2x72)

132 D Givens (Eng) 67 65

136 A Rai (Eng)( 68 68, P Howard (Eng) 68 68, S Garcia Grout (Spa) 68 68, S Connor (Eng) 67 69

SCOTS' SCORES

138 R Cameron 72 66 (T7)

144 N Fenwick 79 65, J McColl 70 74, L Saltman 69 75 (T32)

145 P Shields 75 70 (T36)

147 M Stewart 74 73 (T44).

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