Greig Hutcheon secures PGA Cup spot plus Wentworth trip

A week after reclaiming the Tartan Tour Order of Merit title, Greig Hutcheon secured all sorts of rewards thanks to a late thrust in the PGA Play-Offs at Saunton in Devon.

Greig Hutcheon and PGA Cup captain Albert MacKenzie give the thumbs up to Hutcheon securing automatic selection for next year's match at Foxhills

Level-par for day with six to play in the final round, Hutcheon went birdie-birdie-eagle before finishing with three straight pars for a closing 67 and a five-under-par 279 total.

That secured a share of third in an event won by Englishman Matt Cort, earning the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre Inchmarlo man a cheque for £1,100.

Even more attractive, though, are some of the rewards Hutcheon secured. Through finishing in the top 10, for example, he’s into next year’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, where fellow Tartan Tour player Graham Fox is also heading after he finished seventh.

Having defeated Irishman Damien McGrane in a play-off, Hutcheon has also secured automatic qualification along with Cort and another Englishman, Robert Coles, for the GB&I team to defend the PGA Cup at Foxhills in Surrey next September.

Hutcheon played on the team that staged a rousing last-day fightback to earn a 13-13 draw against the Americans at Slaley Hall in 2013.

But he was bitterly disappointed on then missing out on the side that recorded the first win

“I was pleased to have a good score at the finish because I have squandered a lot of shots out there this week,” said Hutcheon, a two-time PGA Play-Offs winner. “It hasn’t been a great scoring week, but I have battled hard.”

Cort closed with a 71 for 277, claiming a £2,000 top prize by a single shot from Coles (67).

“I am thrilled,” said Beedles Lake pro Cort. “I have had a couple of seconds in this event so it’s fantastic to finally win it.

“This caps off a great season. It is great to finish it number one.”