Essex were crowned kings of the PGA’s counties thanks to former PGA Cup player Jason Levermore prevailing in a sudden death play-off with a current one, Phil Archer.
With the scores of Essex and Cheshire and North Wales level after two rounds of the PGA National course at The Belfry, the two were charged with making a second trip down the par-four first to settle the destiny of the trophy and £4,000 first prize.
With Levermore depositing his approach to no more than 10 feet from the flag, and Archer landing his even closer, the odds appeared to favour the latter. But after Levermore rolled his putt home, Archer, a member of Albert MacKenzie’s triumphant GB and Ireland PGA Cup team at Foxhills last month, missed his.
The victory ensured Essex won the PGA in England and Wales Inter-County Championship for the first time but, typically, Levermore was gracious in victory.
“In all fairness, Phil was unlucky to finish on the green where he did,” admitted Levermore, a member of the 2015 Great Britain and Ireland PGA Cup team that was the first to win in the USA. “His shot was heading straight for the flag, but it landed in an old pitch mark which spun it left. That was good for us, but tough on Phil. Then I managed to get mine in the hole first, which is a big help. If your are putting first it gives you the chance to put a bit more pressure on your opponent.”
The decisive putt followed two-under-par rounds from Levermore for a five-under par total of 137, but, coming up the 18th, he did not expect a play-off.
“We had our secretary out there, and he told me Brett (Taylor) was three under with four to play, and I was three under with four to play,” he explained.
“So I thought that if we could both finish on three under that would be good enough. Then I managed to birdie 18 to get to four under. then Brett told me he had a poor finish and ended on level par. That was when I found out I would be in the play-off.”
With the best two from three scores counting, and Taylor and the third member of the Essex trio, James Scade, posting scores of three and eight over respectively, it fell to Levermore to fly the flag in the play-off.
Archer, who finished on three under, carried the hopes of Cheshire and North Wales, after teammates Graham Cox and Michael Jones returned respective scores of four and one over in a combined two-under-par total of 282.
Archer was one of just three players who completed the two rounds in a sub–par score; Craig Shave, whose second round score of 67 equalled that of Levermore as the tournament’s best, was the other.
However, his overall return of two under was not sufficient to prevent Leicestershire and Rutland finishing fifth, ten shots behind Wiltshire, and 13 adrift of Hampshire, who missed out on a play-off place by one.