Captain leads the way

Midlands PGA captain Ian Walley gave an early indication that his extra duties for the year are unlikely to affect his golf game by firing a three-under-par 67 at Blackwell during the region's fourth pro-am event of the winter season.

He had to settle for a share of the spoils however as visiting professional Richard O'Hanlon from Cornwall matched his score to share first place.

The pair enjoyed a two shot cushion over Craig Shave (Whetstone GC) and Walley's predecessor as head pro at Kedleston Park, Paul Wesselingh, using the pro-am as a warm up for a busy season defending his Order of Merit title on the European Senior Tour.

The forecasted heavy showers stayed away and the course stood up well following a weekend of downpours.

In the team event O'Hanlon and Shave both guided their teams to a 129 total for another shared first place.

In the overall standings Sutton Coldfield GC based Andrew Cheese gave himself a chance of overhauling Order of Merit leader Paul Streeter (Lincoln Golf Centre) by closing the gap at the top of the table following an up and down level par 70. The final event takes place at Luffenham Heath on April 23rd.