Wallis Strikes Again
Richard Wallis has once again displayed his prowess with a course record shattering 63 to take the Tylney Park Classic title. The following story is taken from the PGA website.
Wallis takes Tylney Park Classic by storm
Richard Wallis (Walmer & Kingsdown) shot the lights out with a 63 to take the Tylney Park Classic title, supported by Glaceau Vitamin Water, by no less than five shots.
Despite the stormy weather, Wallis set yet another new course record, the third in three days, and walked off with the winner's cheque of £1,750 to add to his season's earnings. With two winners' titles out three so far, this result places Wallis in the lead of the Virgin Atlantic Airways PGA South Region Order of Merit, and well ahead in the money list.
Since the PGA South Region's finest arrived on Monday for the Pro-Am, Tylney Park's course record has been officially broken three times, with the added bonus of an unofficial round of 59 from Matt Ford (afordawards.co.uk) as he demolished the field in the Pro-Am.
In the first round, Jamie Harris (Nevill) and Ben St. John (Woodcote Park) both shot 65s to share the first round lead and set a new course record. Then on the final day Craig Cowper (Horton Park) added a blistering 64 to his first round of 70, setting another course record to share second place at 10-under-par with Harris, who finished with a 69 in the final pairing of the day.
Just in front of the final pair, 2010 PGA Southern Open winner Wallis worked out what he had to do: "I shot a 66 in the Pro-Am and another 66 in the first round, but on a course set up to be a little kinder. Now it was off the very back tees, stretching the course to just over 7,000 yards, plus the added factor of blustery winds and showers made club selection challenging.
"I knew I had to get off to a fast start. I set myself a target of 12-under-par for the tournament, so I was looking for another 66. The standard of golf in these events is now so high that rounds of two or three-under simply isn't going to be in the frame, and the fact is you now have to shoot the lights out when you're playing in this sort of field."
Wallis's round was flawless with no dropped shots, seven birdies and one eagle. He birdied the first and the second, adding three more birdies on the fifth, sixth and ninth to be out in 31 and 11-under-par for the tournament with nine holes to go.
"Playing with Gary Marks (World of Golf) helped a lot, as he was playing some fabulous golf on the way to a 69 and it became a bit of a match play game with both of us trying to outdo the other one," added Wallis.
Wallis made the 480 yard 10th with a driver and a five iron to six feet, but missed a golden opportunity for another birdie as his putt slid past the hole. He responded with an eagle three at the next to reach 13-under-par, and then solid pars on the homeward run left him in winning shape by the 17th tee.
Wallis paid tribute to the Tylney Park greenkeeping team: "The course was in fantastic condition and with soft, receptive greens that were rolling out well, I felt very confident of making putts. "That took some of the pressure of trying to get it close all the time with my second shots, and in fact I missed just one green - although I then chipped in at that one anyway!"
Reflecting on the final day, the two times 2010 Order of Merit winner added: "I thoroughly enjoyed myself. It's what we all strive to do: get into a tournament leading position, manage the pressure down the last few holes, and see if you can dig even deeper to produce some winning golf."
15 July, 2010
To view the full article on the PGA website click here.
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