Record breaker

9:19am Thursday 17th July 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

BELBROUGHTON’S Matthew Morris smashed the course record at Kedleston Park yesterday on his way to winning the Parque da Floresta Midland Masters – the region’s third PGA Order of Merit title.

Morris, the PGA Midland Region’s top ranked player last year, carded an astonishing 61 in his morning round at the Derbyshire club, beating by three strokes the previous record held since 2004 by Ian Lyner.

Steady golf in the afternoon handed him victory with a 13-under-par total of 131, five shots clear of Kenilworth’s James Crompton. Paul Wesselingh, the home pro, finished in third place on seven-under-par while Daniel Taylor, of Swingers Golf Centre, was a shot further back.

The Bromsgrove professional, who earlier this year was the only PGA teaching pro to make the cut at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, struck two eagles and three birdies to go through his first nine holes in seven under par. Thereafter, five further birdies on the back nine saw him top the leaderboard at 11-under-par after the first round.

Had he holed a twenty foot putt for an eagle on the 17th and put his approach shot from 157-yards on the last closer to the hole he might have closed with a 58.

The champion said: “I just played good today.

“I have played like that a few times this year but have not carried it through to wins.

“I had been mis-hitting my putts but, in the Pro Am, I changed my grip and I really started to get a feel for the greens.”

After narrowly missing an eagle putt on the 17th, Morris came up the last well placed but his seven-iron from 171 yards out left him 30 feet short on the last green. His putt came up short and he was left kicking himself when he took two more blows to sink the ball.

He added: “It was nice to have a putt for a 59 but it was just too far after my approach shot and leaving my first putt short.

“I just could not read the second.”

Watched by PGA captain Parnell Reilly and David Wright, director of regions and heritage, many of the field struggled with the increasingly-blustery wind, with only 18 breaking par.

Morris, with his excellent first round under his belt, merely had to get the ball around the course safely to win the £1,500 top prize.

This he did but his four birdies in the afternoon bore testament to his desire not to just rest on his laurels.