Robert Coles was a merry old soul as the PGA pro made a purposeful start to his challenge in the Staysure PGA Seniors’ Championship at the Trump International Golf Links.
While Simon Khan set the pace with a neatly assembled five-under 67, Coles thrust himself into early contention with a 68 to lurk in a tie for second with Germany’s Thomas Gogele
On a day that began with teeming rain before being illuminated by glorious sunshine, Coles made hay while that big fiery orb in the sky shone and he thrived in this robust examination of links golf with a display of poise and polish.
“We were in waterproofs and had the umbrellas out at 8am and then it turned into a beautiful day,” said Coles of the meteorological mixture. “It was as good as you are going to get it. It is so tricky and penal around here if you start missing. I managed to keep it pretty safe and, importantly, in play. This course can easily get you.”
One-under after nine holes – he started on the 10th – Coles made a telling thrust on his inward half and picked up three birdies in four holes from the first. “I made a 12-footer on the second and that was probably the longest putt I had all day,” the 50-year-old noted. “That little run was a real help.”
Coles, a sturdy stalwart of The PGA scene, just missed out on a full card for the Legends Tour at the qualifying school earlier in the year but he has posted a couple of top-10 finishes in the starts he has earned.
“I’ve been quite fortunate to get starts but I know that isn’t long term,” said the two-time PGA Cup player. “I’ve been disappointed with some of the opportunities I had in the summer as I didn’t take full advantage of them but hopefully I can do something here.”
Coles’ fellow PGA pro, Liam Bond (pictured), also made a sprightly start to his campaign with a three-under 69 to share fourth in a posse that includes the 2005 US Open champion Michael Campbell and former Ryder Cup player Peter Baker. The round didn’t start too promisingly for Bond with a bogey six on his opening hole but he rallied with a bag of four birdies to repair that earlier damage.
“It was a bit of an iffy start but then I only missed one green over the next 17 holes so it was a really solid performance,” said the former Welsh PGA champion of a spirited salvage operation.
Bond, who notched two top-10s on the over-50s circuit last season, had his son, Oscar, on the bag for the first time. It was an alliance that worked well even if the day itself didn’t get off to the best of starts for Bond junior.
“He got his GCSE results just before we went out and they didn’t go as well as he’d hoped,” reported dad. “But he was chipper on the bag today and it was a pleasure to have him. He’s a cracking kid. He might get 10 quid a day if I keep this form going.”
Other PGA pros in the upper echelons after day one included Andrew Raitt, who birdied two of his last three holes in a 71, and local veteran Scott Henderson who had a 72.
At the head of the field, Khan, the winner of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth back in 2010, knocked Coles off the summit late in the day with a classy, bogey-free effort.
The pick of his bunch of five birdies arrived on the tough ninth. “I drew a 3-wood off the tee, then cut a 5-iron up into the wind and held it right on line with the pin and it dropped to three feet,” he said.
Khan was the host of last week’s Legends Tour event at Hanbury Manor. “But I prefer this,” he said with a relieved gasp. “Last week was great but it took more out of me than I realised.”
The early leaderboard also features Simon Griffiths who can consider himself one of the unluckiest golfers on the senior scene in 2023. He missed out on full playing rights for both the Legends Tour and the lucrative Champions Tour in the US by just a single place at the respective qualifying schools.
Throw in a withdrawal from the Senior Open after making the cut due to food poisoning and nobody would grudge the former Asian Tour player a good week here on Scotland’s north east coast. “Those q-schools were pretty gutting but someone always misses out by a place in golf don’t they?” he said with a philosophical smile. “It can be a cruel game.”
