England (Midlands) Region

Davis show his class

14 Apr 16

Onetime European Tour player Stuart Davis has set the pace in the race to finish top of The PGA Midlands Assistants Order of Merit.

Davis, whose best result on the Tour came when he finished tied 15^th in the 2009 Open de España and earned € 28,800, showed his class in the first event of the series at The Wrekin Golf Club.

The 42-year-old, who is a first year Assistant at Ormonde Fields Golf and Country Club, Derbyshire, signed off with a birdie at the Shropshire course to ensure victory.

That contributed to a one-over-par return of 67 and left him two strokes clear of Ladbrook Park’s Chris Freeman in second place.

Freeman’s challenge effectively ended with a bogey at the par four 16^th but the real damage was done earlier in his round when he posted a Spiethesque triple bogey at the par four eighth.

Triple-bogeys were clearly contagious as Whittington Heath’s Daniel Whitby-Smith, who finished tied third with Ryan Wallace of Shirley Golf Club on five-over, suffered similarly at the par four third.

Meanwhile, Davis also tasted success in the pro-am event, leading his team to a one-stroke victory over the quartet captained by Scott Anderson of Stone Driving Range.