Wallis wraps up early Christmas present
16/12/2016
Canterbury’s Richard Wallis has won the PGA Kent Christmas Fayre, shooting a classy three-under-par 68 around Royal Cinque Ports at Deal to win by two and bag the £555 winner’s cheque.
Trailing on one-under-par was the following pack of Peter Appleyard (Sittingbourne), Chris Evans (Tandridge), Mark Belsham, and Paul Stuart (The London) who each took home cheques for £277.
Wallis said: “2016’s been a much better season than I’d originally imagined. Six months in, family commitments meant I hadn’t been particularly focussed on my golf, but things started going my way with some really good wins at Bearwood Lakes, North Foreland and The PGA in Kent Championship.”
He continued, “After playing just 12 holes in the last month, defending this event at Royal Cinque Ports to mark the end of a good season is a special pleasure.”
After a shotgun start, four time Virgin Atlantic PGA South Order of Merit champion Wallis started on the 12th but dropped a shot at the next hole. A good run of pars got him to the 18th green unscathed and he then made birdies at the first and second. A disappointing bogey at the third was followed by two more birdies at the fourth and the sixth.
He completed the front nine in three-under-par 33, and then with two holes left made another birdie at the 10th and a par on the 11th saw him home with his winning 68. This also helped Wallis bring home the winning team with his partners Tony Adams, Brad Russell and Johnny Thompson pipping David Green’s Wildernesse team on a countback, as both teams finished on 91 points.
In the traditional end to the PGA South season, the great and the good of the Region had a fantastic day on Deal’s championship links and ended with the usual raffle and auction in aid of local children’s hospice Demelza House, raising over £2,500 in time for Christmas.
