Ramsden takes route 66 in quest to repeat Leeds Cup success
05/08/2020
Michael Ramsden ended the first round of the Leeds Cup a shot clear of the field and on course to win the historic trophy for a second time.
Ramsden won the oldest trophy in professional golf that is still contested in 2017, adding his name to a list of winners that includes four Open champions.
A two-round return of six-under-par did the trick back then for the pro from Renishaw Park Golf Club.
Fast forward three years and, in terms of scoring, he is half-way towards following suit thanks to a three-under-par round of 66 at Leeds Golf Club.
Having been one-under at the turn and then recording an eagle at the par five 11th and birdie at the 14th, his progress was checked by a bogey at 15.
When it comes to birdies, however, Ramsden was upstaged by Peter Finch who lies joint-second with Penwortham Golf Club’s Ryan O’Neill and Lee Rooke of Royal St David’s, Harlech.
The trio are on two-under, a return that looked beyond Finch after the par-three 13th. A double and two single bogeys tempered by birdies at the first and seventh holes left him two-over at that juncture.
But Finch, a YouTube star who represents Quest Golf Academy, finished with a flourish to delight his 250,000-plus subscribers with four birdies in the final five holes.
The threesome are a shot clear of a septet sharing fifth place, a group that includes Staysure Tour winner David Shacklady, while previous champions Jason Shufflebotham and Garry Houston are four shots adrift of Ramsden on one-over.
Meanwhile, the defending champion, Abbeydale Golf Club’s Gareth Davies, is a shot further back on two-over.
Full scores can be accessed here
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