Suffolk pair pack a punch in PGA National Pro-Am Championship

05/07/2021

A Cambridge University student studying marine microbiology is on his way to Turkey for the PGA National Pro-Am Championship final.

Suffolk Golf Club amateur Dominic Absolon, 26, in tandem with PGA Professional Stephen Hall won the qualifying event held at Thetford Golf Club.

The Bury St Edmunds pair recorded nine birdies and an eagle in the Stableford format event to amass 44 points and finish one clear of the host club’s Owen Mills and Ian Brown.

Absolon and Hall will now take their place in the £25,000 grand final at Antalya Golf Club, Turkey, in November.

Absolon, who plays off 14, says the triumph was an unexpected one for a number of reasons.

“When I won the qualifying event at my club to play alongside Stephen, I was told the Thetford event would have a place in the Turkey event for the winners,” he said.

“I didn’t expect to win the club event and when they told me what the eventual prize was, I certainly didn’t think we’d win the regional event.

“Stephen will also tell you that he hadn’t played a round goal since the summer of 2019. So he was a little out practice, but things just seemed to align.

“There was no pressure, Stephen’s very relaxed and that helped. We weren’t constantly looking at our scores and it didn’t feel as though we’d done that well. It was a bit like playing with your mates. We cruised around then realised we had 44 points.”

Absolon says he is nearing the end of his Phd studies, but will make time to ensure he is free to play in the final.

“My project is in marine microbiology, which is algae in general terms,” he explained. “I’m in my last nine months now and coming up to the end.

“I’ll be writing my thesis at the time of the final, but I’m sure I can get some days off.

“I started playing golf when I was young, but started again properly about three years ago when my mum and dad started playing again. Then one of my mates played as well so I got back into it.

“I played a lot of cricket before and couldn’t find a club I wanted to play for in Cambridge. So now I’m playing less and less cricket, and more and more golf.”

CLICK HERE for a full list of scores from Thetford Golf Club