Bicknell hoping to put recent illness behind him

Clive Bicknell is determined to battle back from a recent illness to achieve his Portugal dream and compete in the grand final of Europe’s biggest pro-am.

The former boxer is no stranger to blows to the face, but even he was taken back by a rare infection which forced him to have surgery on his eye.

The 47-year-old was playing in a pro-am when he started to feel bad. He suffered headaches and was forced off work for several days before being taken to hospital.

“I literally felt like I was dying,” said Bicknell. “I was sweating buckets so I went to the doctors but they said there was nothing they could do.”

Bicknell eventually ended up in hospital where he was told the he had a severe infection and had an abscess at the back of his eye. It needed surgery which put his dream of playing in grand final of the Lombard Trophy in jeopardy.

“It has been touch and go whether I would be able to play,” he continued. “I kept saying to the hospital staff, ‘I am going to Portugal, I will recover.’

“Thankfully they’ve said that they see no reason why I can’t play as long as the infection has gone. Hopefully there will be no problems between now and then.”

Bicknell will be pairing up once again with Newquay Golf Club Head PGA Professional Chris Gill in Portugal. They clinched their spot in the grand final after winning their regional qualifier at Burnham & Berrow Golf Club back in June.

More than 700 clubs entered the popular PGA National Pro-Am Championship which reaches its climax at Pestana’s stunning Vila Sol Golf & Resort Hotel on the Algarve from September 21-22.

Despite his recent illness, Bicknell remains confident it will be a triple celebration in Portugal next week.

He added: “It’s my birthday two days before the competition starts and it will also be my wedding anniversary on the 20^th so hopefully it will all be worth it.

“I’ll have a week to get my energy levels up but my game has been good, I just wish I was feeling a bit better.

“Chris has been cool as a cucumber. He’s been on the phone texting and he was over the moon when I told him I could play.

“He’s a very good player so I do fancy our chances especially in the best ball format. I will get my confidence back and as soon as I have that bit of energy I’ll be back fighting.”