Close shave for Shaun as Musselburgh Edge home

Joiner Shaun Tiffney nailed down a place in the Lombard Trophy final after he and PGA Professional Norman Huguet ended their round in style at the Scottish Regional Final.

The Musselburgh Golf Club duo edged home on countback - but only after they birdied the last three holes of the day.

That put them level at the top of the leaderboard with Paul Jamieson and Gary Aitken of Dunblane New Golf Club - and both had identical scores for their respective back nines.

But Musselburgh’s storming finish gave them the honours.

Now Huguet and Tiffney will travel to Portugal for the £41,450, Coca-Cola and Pestana Resorts supported, National Pro-Am grand final which will be played at the Vila Sol resort in the Algarve between September 20-21.

“I’m over the moon with the win, the conditions were very difficult but the course was great,” said Tiffney, aged 23.

“Personally, I wasn’t checking the scores so I didn’t know how close it was. I prefer to keep my mind off it and keep things going. It was a great way to finish the round.”

Twelve handicapper Tiffney has been a member at Musselburgh for three years.

“I played as a junior but gave up when I got to my mid-teens before getting back into it again," he said.

“My dad plays at Musselburgh, he got me back and encouraged me.”

Huguet returns to the final after a four-year absence.

“It was a brilliant win, and Shaun birdied the 16th and 17th holes, I birdied the final hole and we had a great finish,” he said.

“The contests are getting closer, a lot of the amateur players are coming in with good form.

“I qualified for this event when it was held at Gleneagies, and it was such a good competition I always make sure it’s on my calendar every year. But this is the first time I’ll have played it abroad. I know the Vila Sol venue from holidays, but I’ve never competed there before.”

THE LOMBARD TROPHY

PGA Regional Final at Crieff Golf Club
 
Monday, June 18, 2018
 
Pos  Score     Professional/Amateur                 Representing

1      65 (-6)    Norman Huguet/Shaun Tiffney       Musselburgh Golf Club
2                    Paul Jamieson/Gary Aitken             Dunblane New
3      6 (-5)      Mel Douglas/Alistair Fraser            Inverness Golf Club
                      Andrew Crerar/Nick McGill             Panmure Golf Club