Englishman Paul Wesselingh will have an historic hat-trick in his sights this week when he defends his title in the ISPS Handa PGA Seniors Championship, the first event of the 2014 Senior Tour season on European soil.
Wesselingh has a flawless record in the tournament, triumphing at De Vere Slaley Hall in his rookie Senior Tour season in 2012 and then retaining the title at De Vere Mottram Hall 12 months ago courtesy of a wonderful final round of 64.
The 52 year old will now attempt to make it three victories in consecutive years at three different venues, with the tournament returning to The Stoke by Nayland Club, Golf & Spa, in Colchester, for a third time.
Only Christy O’Connor (1981-83) and Neil Coles (1985-87) have managed a hat-trick of victories in the prestigious tournament, which is the oldest on the Senior Tour schedule having first been played in 1957.
Wesselingh’s four stroke victory over Angel Franco last year was the first of four successes in 2013 for the former club professional, who has close links to the PGA having represented Great Britain & Ireland against the United States in PGA Cup on six occasions.
The win helped him to finish top of the Senior Tour Order of Merit last year, and after missing the cut when Colin Montgomerie won the US Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid a fortnight ago, Wesselingh will be determined to make up vital ground on the Scot in his defence of the John Jacobs Trophy.
Joining Wesselingh in the field this week is the man who won the last time the Senior Tour visited Stoke by Nayland in 2007, the tour's most prolific winner, Carl Mason.
Mason succeeded Sam Torrance as champion in 2007 and the Englishman has an impressive record in the event, having also claimed the title in 2004 and 2009.
Former European Number One Ronan Rafferty makes his first appearance in a regular European Senior Tour event after making the cut at Harbor Shores on his return to competitive action following an absence of more than a decade.
Another debutant is Frenchman Jean-François Remesey, who won three times on The European Tour, including his national Open in consecutive years in 2004 and 2005.
