Gurkha Raju eyes pace-setting performance at Fulford

A member of the Gurkhas will be battling for a place at Gleneagles when he plays in the Lombard Trophy regional final at Fulford Golf Club.

Raju Tamang, of Catterick Golf Club, will team up with PGA Professional Alex James (pictured) for the National Pro-Am Championship event which takes place at the York venue on Wednesday 17 July.

The North Yorkshire duo is aiming to make the £43,600 Grand Final which will be held at Gleneagles in Scotland - the venue for next year’s Ryder Cup - on September 3-4.

Tamang, 35, has only been playing golf since 2008 and arrived in England from Nepal a year later.

But he has already seen his handicap reduced from 24 to seven.

“I played some golf in Nepal, but when I arrived here I started playing more,” said Tamang who is a physical training instructor at Catterick Barracks and tutors Gurkha recruits.

“I took it up and found I was doing okay even though I had the usual ups and downs.

“But since I came here my game has improved and I’ll also be playing in the Inter Corps Golf Championship just before Fulford. It’s quite competitive.

“I tend to play more on my own so I haven’t practiced much with Alex yet, but I’m sure we will.”

If fitness counts for anything then Tamang may have an advantage.

He explained: “The work I do at Catterick involves training new Gurkha recruits for nine months.

“We put them through physical and combat training before they leave us.”

James, 32, has been a professional at Catterick for two years and was the Welsh Assistants’ champion in 2006 and 2007.

Other teams taking part at Fulford include: Andrew Driver and James Saywell (Ilkley); Michael Ure and Gary Watson (Billingham); Gordon Townhill and Peter Wilcox (Brough); Jon Lupton and Danny Watkins (Close House); Graham Laidlaw and Christopher Marshall (Hartlepool); Jonathan Pyle and Gary Eyre (Birley Wood); Andy Herridge and Ken Armitage (Leeds).