One of the youngest players from an entry of 60 professionals took the plaudits at Benton Hall, near Chelmsford.
Playing in the PGA East Region's qualifying round for the flagship event for Britain and Ireland's assistant professionals, 19-year-old Westley Wray from Rayleigh earned the honour of leading the 17 top finishers to the 54-hole final of the Powerade PGA Assistants' Championship, to be played in August at The London Club in Kent.
Wray, who's just completed his first of three years' PGA training at Three Rivers but still finds time to keep fit in the gym, dipped two under the par at Benton Hall with a fine 69, one ahead of Aldeburgh's Will Shaw.
"My putter was working well for me", said Wray. "I holed for birdies at the third and fifth from 25ft and 15ft."
But his approach work was equally exemplary, feathering gap wedges and lob wedges to within four and three feet respectively at the seventh and ninth - again for birdies.
A three-putt and a missed green caused two inward bogeys, but on the credit side he added another birdie, at the 342-yard 12th, once more shaping a lob wedge to no more than a foot.
Shaw matched Wray's outward 32, but three bogeys in five holes punctured his charge, mitigated though by another birdie at the 509-yard final hole.
The field of 120 at The London Club will be chasing a first prize of £5,000, plus the chance to play in next May's PGA Championship at Wentworth.
09 June, 2009