KEIGHLEY Golf Club professional Andrew Rhodes paid tribute to his playing partner Luke Roberts after the pair tied for eighth place in the Lombard Trophy Grand Final.

The duo were right in contention at the halfway stage of the prestigious PGA pro-am event at Pestana's Vila Sol Golf resort in Portugal.

They were in the final group after shooting an opening round 68 but a second-day 72 saw them drop down the field as Hartford Golf Club pair Adam Powell and Matt Leach charged to victory with a ten-under-par 62.

Rhodes said: "I would like to say a huge 'thank you' to Luke for being such a good partner throughout this journey, and also to his caddy and dad Brian, who added not only his own bib but humour and a calming influence when needed.

"To experience this event was truly amazing, but to experience it with Luke and Brian made it even better. Keighley Golf Club members can be extremely proud of Luke, and how he represented us all. We made a fantastic team and have some great memories."

The Keighley pair got off to a positive start when Roberts made two early nett birdies and a birdie from Rhodes at the par five eighth put them in a strong position heading into the back nine. Further nett birdies followed as Roberts parred the tenth and 16th, with their only blemish being a costly bogey on the short but tricky 12th. That left them second behind a team from Cirencester after day one.

The second round turned into a real rollercoaster. The pair produced more shots under par but seven bogeys thwarted their progress.

Rhodes said: "I told Luke that if he were to come in on a few holes with a couple of shots that I should be the steady one, making pars and the odd birdie – a formula that took us through qualifying and got us to this stage.

"To Luke's credit, he did everything that was asked and more. I feel disappointed that I let so many dropped shots sneak into my game and never really had the ball in position off the tee, always putting pressure on a recovery."

An amazing run of holes by Hartford Golf Club saw them finish six under for the last six holes to pip Cirencester by a shot.