BASINGSTOKE golfer Stuart Archibald was able to put a back injury behind him and claim his first victory on the England (South) PGA circuit.

A six-under-par round of 63 saw the Worting man win the Dartford Pro-Am by a single shot and pick up a cheque for £1,000. It was a great way to return to form after being forced out of Open Final Qualifying with a back injury.

Archibald, pictured below, didn’t get off to the best start, making bogey at the first hole, but birdies at holes three and four had him under par at the turn.

Five birdies in the space of six holes on the back nine got the 30-year-old into contention and while he bogeyed 16, a birdie at the next hole took him to a winning score of -6.

“Despite playing the course blind, I used my driver quite a lot and set up a number of birdies,” Archibald said. “Some of my second shots were really close, to the point of almost holing two wedge shots, but I didn’t actually hole anything over 10 feet.

“I had been off injured for two weeks with a back problem, so I just decided to go for it rather than protect my back, a gamble that paid off handsomely.”

Archibald is currently back in EuroPro action, playing The Simpson and Marwick Championship, an event that got under way at The Royal Burgess, in Edinburgh, yesterday.