‘Unbelievable’ – Eddie Pepperell and Paul Waring make back-to-back eagles on same hole at Cazoo Classic

There were fireworks on the 17th hole in the Cazoo Classic at Hillside, as Eddie Pepperell holed from the fairway for an eagle and his playing partner Paul Waring followed suit from the bunker.

Pepperell, who has been struggling for form and slipped down to 619 in the world, was going along steadily on two-under after 16 holes.

An error off the tee on the par five left him well back with his third shot, as he pulled out a long iron from 239 yards.

The club choice was correct, as the ball landed short of the green, scuttled onto the putting surface and turned superbly into the hole.

Caddie and player shared a joke, as Pepperell moved to four-under.

“Eddie’s shot was unbelievable,” Waring said. “He’s hit this perfect long iron fade, kept running up the bank and holed it.”

First Round Leaderboard

• 1. Paul Waring, nine-under
• 2. Garrick Porteous, seven-under
• T3. Jens Dantorp, six-under
• T3. Grant Forrest, six-under
• T3. Julien Guerrier, six-under
• T3. Richard Mansell, six-under
• T7. Craig Howie, five-under
• T7. Matthew Southgate, five-under
• T7. Jack Senior, five-under

That briefly moved Pepperell to within two shots of leader Waring, but that was doubled to four strokes as – from a horrid position – he holed from the bunker for eagle.

“I’ve left myself a funny stance and am hopping around trying to find some sort of lie,” Waring said. “The lie of the ball was pretty good, just the stance was awkward.

“I hit it perfectly, it was a great shot, so made up.”

Waring was not done, as he knocked in a birdie putt on the 18th to secure a share of the Hillside course record with a 63.

The 17th did not look easy on paper, but the players made short work of it as Thorbjorn Olesen holed his approach from the fairway for another eagle.