Brilliant Belt leads Yorkshire to victory
15/10/2014
Alex Belt was the ace in the pack as Yorkshire refused to buckle under the pressure of a first round lead to win the SkyCaddie PGA England and Wales Inter-County Championship at the Belfry.
The Bridlington man, left, fresh from taking the PGA in England and Wales (North) crown last month, was the only player able to break 70 during the championship final which was held over two days on the famous Brabazon course.
His round of 68 over the rain-soaked Warwickshire layout, home to the Ryder Cup on four occasions, featured five birdies including one at the risk-and-reward 10th made famous by Seve Ballesteros.
He along with team-mates Gareth Davies, right, this year’s Powerade PGA Assistants’ champion, and captain Adrian Ambler, centre, walked away with a winners’ cheque of £4,000 after carding a four-under-par final score of 284.
They finished five shots clear of closest challengers Derbyshire, captained by the irrepressible Ian Walley, who carded the second best round of the day, a two-under-par 70.
Essex finished in third place three shots further back with a final four-over-par score of 292.
Belt, a mainstay on the Europro Tour this term, was delighted to bag another piece of silverware ahead of a trip to Turkey for the Titleist PGA Play-Offs in November.
“It’s a very proud moment to play on behalf of your county and win an event like this,” he enthused.
“For me from a personal development point of view this year has been amazing and its been great to be able to add this title before I head over to Turkey for the play-offs.
“The highlight of the day personally was definitely the 10th hole. To have the opportunity to take that shot on in a tournament is rare – I went for it and I think it was it was the best shot I’ve ever hit!”
Ambler, meanwhile, relished the chance to play a different format. The event saw only the best two scores count towards each county’s final total.
“It’s a strange format and something a bit different to what we’re used to, but it is one that we enjoyed playing.
“It’s weird because you can’t relax as you don’t know what’s going on with other members of your team.
“To represent your county is always a huge honour, and one that we don’t get enough of an opportunity to do.
“I came here not expecting my score to count. In the end it did, but credit to these two lads, they’re excellent golfers and we must remember the season isn’t over for them yet – they still have plenty of other things left to play for in the coming weeks.”
