Jackson aiming to shake off illness and make final return

Scott Jackson (left) with partner Ian Ridgway.

Disley Golf Club’s Scott Jackson admits he is facing a battle to return to the Golfbreaks.com PGA Fourball Championship final this year.

Jackson and fellow Disley professional Ian Ridgway tied for 13th spot at the showpiece event at Carden Park in 2016.

And they will be looking for an improvement this time around if they can get through the qualifying round which will be held at Huddersfield’s Woodsome Hall Golf Club on July 20.

But Jackson has had to fight back from a blood clot which left him in hospital and out of action for two and a half months.

Yet he is still looking to play at Woodsome Hall and - if he does - says there is no reason why he and Ridgway cannot make the final again.

“I have arthritis and my knee swelled up badly, that caused a blood clot which spread to my lungs, I was in hospital for a little bit but I’ve been out for a few weeks now,” explained Jackson.

“I’m still struggling a bit but I’m still looking to make it to the qualifying event and play in that.

“As a result though, Ian’s had to cover for me at Disley so that’s affected his preparations as well.

“But I still think we can qualify for the final again if we play.”

The Stockport-based duo will be aiming to get to the £32,250, BMW and SkyCaddie supported, showpiece event which will this year be held at Whittlebury Park Golf Club in Northamptonshire between August 16-18.

Jackson says he would like the chance to put last year’s display right when he felt the pair missed a chance to do better.

“We were disappointed in how we played last year, even though we were reasonably pleased with the result,” he added.

“It just seemed as though we never had that chance to aggressively go for birdies.  But I haven’t played 18 holes in over 10 weeks now. It’ll be interesting when it comes around.”

Jackson says Disley is thriving at the moment with a number of initiatives happening.

“We’ve increased the membership this year which is a bonus, we have Get into Golf schemes, the junior coaching is picking up with a good group coming through,” he explained.

“And we’ve developed an indoor training area with a simulator and an indoor putting green. It’s great for the winter especially because we’re a bit above sea level and we get quite a bit of snow.”