MALTON & Norton Golf Club ace David Hague has capped his best season yet by smashing a course record on home turf.

Having topped the York Order of Merit table for 2016, he then set the Park Course record at M&N with a gross score of 63 during the Prize Day Stableford.

That means he now holds the amateur course record for both the Park and Welham courses at the Ryedale club.

Hague has enjoyed a busy year all-round, playing in 62 handicap qualifying competitions and finishing with a lifetime best handicap of plus-3.3.

He is also now ranked 254th out of 13,584 players in the European Amateur Golf Rankings with 5,487.13 points from only six qualifying events.

“I've been pleased with the progress made this season," said Hague. "I worked hard on my game as well as my strength and conditioning and this has really helped.

"It’s great to have such excellent facilities at Malton and I'm now looking forward to spending time abroad working on my game over the winter.”

Over the year Hague has travelled the length and breadth of the country, from Rye in East Sussex for the Darwin Salver to Devon for the West of England Amateur Championships, where he finished 12th and gained Amateur European Ranking points.

This was followed by a trip to the Scottish Men's Open Stroke play Championship.

However, his best successes occurred mainly back in Yorkshire.

In June, he was runner-up in the York Union Amateur Championships, and won the Yorkshire Union Pannal Rose Bowl at Harrogate, his third Yorkshire Order of Merit victory.

Also came a qualifying place, bagged at Fulford, for the Brabazon Trophy, arguably the top strokeplay event in the world for amateur men. He went on to make the cut at the London GC.

In July, Hague won the Vardon Grip at Harrogate, and reached the third knockout round of the English Men's Amateur Championship at Ganton.

He then won the York Union Open Championship at Fulford in August, which saw Hague's handicap move to plus-2.8, and the York Union Matchplay Finals at Pike Hills in September.

Last month brought victory in the York Union Crossley Trophy and, for a second successive year with playing partner James Walsh, in the coveted Yorkshire Foursomes.

He duly topped the York Order of Merit table, and finished third in the Yorkshire Order of Merit standings.