MUSSELBURGH PGA professional Norman Huguet claimed a place in the Lombard Trophy final at Gleneagles – but it was not all plain sailing at the regional final in Crieff.

Huguet, who teamed up with amateur Kevin Haggart, had to endure a tense wait of over an hour before the pair’s place in the final was confirmed, having had their score of eight-under-par matched by Gourock pair Derek Watters and James Wall.

The Musselburgh duo had their place in the final confirmed on countback, having registered four successive birdies on the back nine.

They will now play in the final in September, just three weeks before the biggest names in golf grace the same venue at the Ryder Cup.

If they are successful at Gleneagles, the duo could walk away with £43,600.

Haggart, who took a 20-year break from the sport before returning four years ago, admitted the wait to find out who had won tested his nerves.

“It was a tense wait for us of about an hour,” he said.

“We came in ahead and I could see our score had been tied while I was on the phone in the car park. Then it seemed to take forever to work out which of us had won.” However, the 43-year old admitted his shock at claiming victory.

He said: “I’ve never played a Pro-Am of any kind before, so to not only win but get to the final at Gleneagles is fantastic.” “I’d played Crieff in the past, but once I got out there, I realised I couldn’t remember a thing about it. I was just thinking about getting past the first hole without making an idiot of myself.” He is now relishing the chance to play on the famous Gleneagles course “I’ve played the Queen’s Course [at Gleneagles], but not the King’s Course, so it’ll be a great experience.” Meanwhile, Musselburgh professional Huguet hopes that his familiarity with the course will stand the duo in good stead ahead of September’s final.

He said: “When it comes to the final, I’ll probably have played there more than most. I was there for the Scottish PGA event this year, so I hope it gives us the edge.”