FIVE players were racking their brains wondering where they left another shot out on the course when finishing joint runners-up in the prestigious Birthday Vase at Cirencester Golf Club on Sunday, one of the qualifying events for the season-long Victor Ludorum series.

Jeremy Homan-Green, Ken Russell, Steve Bishop, Paul Simmonds and Tom Waller finished in that order on countback to take second to sixth places with their net 68s.

But it was Chris Yeates who was blowing out the candles at the top of the leaderboard with his net 67.

Chris took a firm grip on the glassware with a run of five pars from the 12th and could afford the cushion of dropping three shots over the last two holes when he was perhaps rehearsing his victory speech.

Gerry Coetzee put in the best gross round of par 70 without recording a two. He parred in from the 7th.

Birdie twos came at the 2nd – Leighton Rees, Glenn Skinley, Chris Yeates; 9th – Simon May, Terence McQuirk, Dan Skinley; 11th – John Kilminster; 13th – David Gardiner, Jeremy Homan-Green, Paul Simpson and 18th – Chris Pollard, Luke Risby.