Alex Chalk would be the first to admit that Stirling Golf Club was never one of his happiest hunting grounds, but it is now after he eased to a commanding win in the latest 36-hole Order of Merit Challenge on the Arnold Clark Tartan Tour.
The 28-year-old Gleneagles pro, who made his breakthrough in an OOM event on the domestic scene at Arbroath last season, posted rounds of 67 and 66 for an 11-under aggregate and won by three shots from Chris Currie.
“I’ve played here a few times and every time I’ve been awful,” admitted Chalk of the delightful yet challenging examination that Stirling provides.
“It’s a brilliant course and I can’t fault it. But I played so poorly the last time I was here, I just blocked it out of my memory.
“The only thing I can recall is that I spent a lot of time in the trees. This time, I hit every single fairway in the last round. That certainly helped.”
Chalk is aiming to play more events in 2026 and has cut down his hours at Gleneagles to focus on his own game.
A share of sixth in the opening Order of Merit contest at Spey Valley recently gave him plenty to build on and the work he put in ahead of the Stirling shoot-out certainly paid off.
“I played well at Spey Valley in the opening round, but my driving let me down on day two,” added Chalk.
“Since then, I’d spent a lot of time focussing on that area and it did wonders for my game at Stirling. Funnily enough, I played a practice round the night before and I didn’t make a single birdie. Then I made 14 birdies in the event itself.”
Chalk made them when it mattered. His back-nine blitz in round one manoeuvred him into contention as he birdied six of his last eight holes to share the halfway lead.
Chalk then cemented his place at the summit with three birdies on his opening five holes of round two as he set about his task with purpose.
Further gains at 13, 15, 16 and 17 made it a procession to a coronation and he could even afford the luxury of a bogey on the last.
“I’m a scoreboard watcher so I knew where I stood,” said Chalk, who pocketed the top prize of £1325 and is now sharing the No 1 spot on the early Order of Merit.
“Walking up 18, I think I was four clear, so that was a nice position to be in. I’m still annoyed I made a bogey, mind you.”
Runner-up Currie carded rounds of 69 and 67 for eight-under while Paul O’Hara was third on five-under after a 67 and a 72.
Click here for all the scores from Stirling.
