Course specialist Bond on form

Last year’s Order of Merit winner Liam Bond (Marriott St Pierre) made the perfect start to his bid for a third successive win in the Players Championship at Cumberwell Park by sharing first place in the pre-tournament pro-am.

He shot six-under-par 65 at the Wiltshire complex just outside Bath to share top place with Dorset pair Mark Wiggett (Dudsbury) and Paul Jones (Canford Magna) in an event supported by Lansdown Mazda.

Both Bond and Jones played faultlessly with six birdies and no bogeys. Bond made three successive birdies from the 12^th and Jones three from the 11^th.  Wiggett bagged eight birdies, including four in a row from the tenth, after dropping shots at the second and fourth.

Bond is clearly a course specialist and shared fifth in a Europro Tour event at the Bradford-on-Avon complex last month.

Russ Berry (Professional Golf Europe Ltd) also made six birdies and dropped one shot in finishing one behind in fourth.

Ross Langdon (South Cerney) would have joined the leaders but for a double bogey at the 14^th followed by a bogey. Dan Carter (Upavon), Adam Frayne (Yelverton), who eagled the 13^th, and Stuart Little (Minchinhampton), who made a double at the last, shared fifth on 68.

Berry led a Travis Perkins team of Tommy Atkins, Alan Pilkington and Andy Potepa to 18-under-par 124 as top prize winners. Wiggett’s team from Dudsbury, Sean Reynolds, Dan Cullum and general manager Paul Palmer, were one shot behind while Andrew Sherborne (Trevose) piloted another Travis Perkins team of Peter Hall, Dave Castle and Neil Harding into third on 127.