Kings Hill golfer Benn Barham shrugged off a back spasm to finish third in the Glenmuir PGA Professional Championship at De Vere Slaley Hall, Northumberland.

The former European Tour player was on the verge of pulling out but won a place in the Great Britain & Ireland PGA team who take on the United States in September.

Barham, 37, carded a level par 72 to end on two-over, 10 shots behind winner Danny Greenwood (Forest Pines) and one behind runner-up David Callaway (Milton)

He said: “My back seized up on me when I went to put some stuff in my car.

“I spent an hour trying to stretch it out and played through the pain. I went on the range and struggled and had it been any other tournament I’d have pulled out but I really wanted to play PGA Cup as I have never played in it before.

“I made a good bogey on nine and got some momentum from that. It was a relief to get in.”

Picture: Jan Kruger/Getty Images