Ellis flies to victory

Ian Ellis (Great Yarmouth & Caister) got his 2016 season off to a flying start by winning the Overseas Pro-Am in Portugal.

Ellis edged out his old rival Jason Levermore (Channels) by two shots at the Oceanico Amendoeira Resort. The Norfolk professional finished at four-under-par with a three-round total of 212.

The groundwork for the triumph was laid on the first day when Ellis made no less than eight birdies in surging to a six-under-par 66. Levermore also laid out his credentials with a fine 69 on the Faldo Course.

The two weekend rounds were played out over the O’Connor Course, which proved to be a stiffer scoring challenge. But Ellis still proved to be a birdie machine, collecting five on Saturday in his round of 73.

That meant he opened the final round with a four-shot advantage, which Levermore trimmed with a 71. But Ellis kept his nerve down the stretch and signed off with a second successive 73 to secure the win.

He was pleased, in particular, with his work on the greens – which showed the worth of a winter trip to top putting coach Phil Kenyon at Formby Hall near Southport.

Ellis said: “It’s always nice to win and to come out on top in an event that Jason is playing in. It also showed me how much my putting has improved.

“But there’s still lots of work that needs to be done on the rest of my game – certainly my putting and driving.”

Ellis and Levermore’s domination of the tournament was highlighted by the fact that they finished a respective 11 and nine shots clear of third-placed Nick Ansell (Centurion). Levermore led the successful quartet in the pro-am, five points clear of Mark Stokes’ team.