WHEN Sam Torrance sank the winning putt in the 1985 Ryder Cup to deprive the Americans of the trophy for the first time in 28 years, Kevin Spurgeon was plying his trade as a club professional at Shirehampton Golf Club.

And a decade later when Torrance finished runner-up on the European Tour order of merit, Spurgeon was still in the pro shop, only this time he had moved to Dorset from Middlesex to become head pro at the Isle of Purbeck, a post he held for three years.

The gulf between the players remained in 2002 when Torrance captained Europe to another Ryder Cup victory at The Belfry while Spurgeon was starting a second spell at Dudsbury.

But turn the clock forward to December 2009, and Torrance has to play second fiddle to Spurgeon and is one of the first people to congratulate the Ferndown GC touring professional on his maiden European Senior Tour victory.

Torrance carded an equal-best final-round score of 67 in the Mauritius Open, but could only watch as Spurgeon held his nerve to take the title and earn 34,000 Euros.

Spurgeon had gone into the final day with a two-shot lead after rounds of 71 and 67.

But a shaky start saw him lose the lead to Nick Job before an incredible five-shot swing when his rival took eight compared to his birdie three at the 12th.

“Sam was over the moon for me,” said Spurgeon, who birdied two of the final six holes for a level-par 72. “He thought it was fantastic I had won and was chuffed about it.

“In fact, he can be seen on the Sky Sports coverage pushing my wife Elly out on to the green to help me celebrate.”

So how did a popular 54-year-old journeyman golfer eventually cross swords with one of the game’s most successful players?

To understand Spurgeon’s sporting background you have to go back to the early 1960s when his father Keith embarked on a fascinating football management career that took his family halfway around the world.

At just four-years-old, Walthamstow-born Spurgeon was taken away from his English roots to live in Holland.

“My father played for Spurs, mainly for the second team, before suffering knee injuries that eventually forced him to quit the game and he went into management,” explained Spurgeon. “After taking his coaching courses he became the boss of Ajax. How he got such a good first job I just don’t know!”

One of his dad’s biggest claims to fame was nurturing the teenage talent of Johan Cryuff during the Dutch legend’s time at the Ajax academy.

After two years in Holland, his father moved his family to America to manage the Dallas Tornadoes before taking the Libyan national job a year later. It was while living in Tripoli that Spurgeon first picked up a golf club at the age of nine.

“I got into golf because my dad played a bit, although I never really did an awful lot with it. I never had an amateur career, so I had no handicap.”

Further moves saw Spurgeon live in Belgium before he came back to England when he was 16-years-old.

It was only then that Spurgeon’s natural talent for golf took a grip on his life. He worked at several golf clubs before qualifying as a PGA pro in 1974. His first job was at Hillingdon before moving to Shirehampton. Spurgeon also played five European Tour events in the seventies and dabbled on the Europro circuit in the 1980s.

But life as a tournament professional couldn’t pay the bills and Spurgeon went back into the pro shop by joining the Isle of Purbeck in 1992.

It was during this time that Spurgeon first made his name on the West Region by winning the order of merit. While in Dorset, he has qualified to play in the PGA Championship at Wentworth several times.

And his biggest pay day before his Senior Tour success came in 2001 when he finished 14th in the Welsh Open at Celtic Manor.

“It was the year Paul McGinley won,” said Spurgeon, who earn-ed £11,000. “I was due to play with Simon Dyson in the third round when the competition was abandoned due to heavy rain.”

Four years later Spurgeon came to a significant crossroads in his life as his 50th birthday loomed. “It was the Senior Tour or go out of golf altogether,” he admitted. “I thought I could play a bit and I was coming up to the qualifying age, so gave it a go.”

Spurgeon graduated from the 2005 Qualifying School in Portugal and has never looked back. He became rookie of the year with several top-10 finishes and came second in the Irish Open a few seasons later.

“I want to play for another five years until I’m 60 and if I’m still competing I will carry on,” said Spurgeon, who enjoys a two-year exemption for winning the Mauritius Open.

He is also guaranteed a place in the next two British Opens at Carnoustie in July and Walton Heath next year. Spurgeon is also on track to play in the US Senior PGA Championship at Colorado Golf Club on May 27-30.

“Now I’ve won I want to go to the next level,” added Spurgeon. “I’ve always been a happy-go-lucky type of guy and I’m not going to change how I am to other people. It’s my attitude that I want to change. I can earn 100,000 Euros a year easily if I put my head to it.”

Spurgeon’s next port of call is the Brunei Senior Masters next month (March 5-7) but until then it’s celebration time.

“Ferndown Golf Club and my sponsors Will and Christine Shade (Deanside Lettings) have given me great support and organised a surprise party for me which was fantastic.

“Finally I would like to say a big thank you to my wife Elly who is retiring as my caddy after five years on the bag. She’s my biggest supporter,” added Spurgeon.