Wootton shows champion form

PGA Kent Open champion Adam Wootton (Oxford Golf Centre) produced a demonstration round of five-under-par 66 to win the Rochester & Cobham Park Pro-Am in impressive style.

His first visit to the club, Wootton’s bogey-free round earned him a cool £750 and was in marked contrast with those of the two players in second spot.

Starting at the 16^th, Wootton made his first birdie at the third, and made some more at the fifth, sixth, ninth and 10^th, with nothing but pars everywhere else thanks to some excellent course management around the challenging Kent layout.

Starting on the fourth, Zane Scotland opened with an eagle two, marred slightly by a bogey at the ninth. Another eagle at the 10^th was offset by two more dropped shots at the 12^th and 15^th, but the tour player dug deep and made three more birdies to finish with a 67 for his £500 cheque.

Tom Muchmore (Ashford) started on the 14^th with a double bogey six, but immediately bounced back with two birdies, only to drop another at the 17^th. An eagle three at the third followed by birdies at the fourth and seventh put him good shape, but another bogey at the ninth left him on two-under. Birdies at the 10^th and 12^th saved the day and the share of second spot.

Wootton was delighted with his winning form, saying: “Playing for the first time here meant I didn’t know where the trouble was, and I was picking all my targets, setting up birdies and pars and making some nice putts.

 “Beyond the semi-rough, you could lose your ball in stuff that was knee-high, but I stayed well clear, played well tee to green and holed all my putts of eight feet  and under bar one, with a couple of good par saves on the way home that kept me in the frame. Putting well is the key to my game.”

Wootton’s got a busy month ahead of him, and he’ll be practising hard to keep his form sharp for the 10 Pro-Ams he’ll be playing in over the next few weeks, with the main target being the Titleist & FootJoy PGA Professional Championship on his doorstep at The Oxfordshire. Starting on the July 26y, there’s some serious money up for grabs and a £10,000 cheque for the eventual winner, along with a Peugeot 308 GT for a year.