MARTIN Payne, the professional at Worcester Golf Range in Lower Wick, fired a superb 66 to secure the Worcestershire Pro-Am title.

Payne recorded a magnificent six birdies in an eagle to claim the honours by one stroke at North Worcestershire Golf Club.

To round off a successful day for the Weir Lane-based pro, Payne joined forces with Wayne Poulton, Tony Perkins and Dave Bell to shoot a combined 14-under-par total to win the team event.

Payne said: “It’s not often you have six birdies and an eagle in a round, so that was great — I putted really well and the course was in excellent condition.

“I didn’t expect to win the event, though, as I had been a bit rusty recently, but I just seemed to find my form and it all felt great.

“The other guys in my team are all members of my Monday night coaching group — they are between 12 and 14 handicappers.

“The team format was the best two scores from four to count and everyone really contributed, so we won by a couple of strokes.

“As the weather was good, there were some low scores, so I only managed to win the gross tournament by one stroke from a guy from Hagley.”

When not playing, Payne teaches from and runs Worcester Golf Range.

He added: “The range has seen significant improvements with all bays being fully fitted with new dividers and true-strike gel mats.

“Five of the bays now have automated tees, which have proven to be very popular.

“We are open from 9.30am to 9.30pm on weekdays under floodlights and from 9.30am to 5.30pm on weekends.

“To book a lesson, golfers can call me on 07583-090899.”