Mum’s the word for Eddie the eager as her pair of mittens help him turn the heat on his rivals

EDDIE PEPPERELL holed another miracle shot on his way to winning the British Masters – and this time gave the credit to his mum.

The Oxford star aced the ninth in sunny conditions on Thursday as he shared the first-round lead. And in the freezing cold yesterday, he holed out on the 10th from heavy rough from 124 yards for a stunning eagle on his way to a two-shot win at Walton Heath.

“Credit for the eagle goes to my mum,” he said. “She gave me mittens as I was walking off the 10th tee to keep my hands warm. Mums are great for everything. Mums always know best.” The quirky 27-year-old could now get a mitten sponsor as well as a hat sponsor. “I am definitely available,” he said.

Pepperell ground out a levelpar 72 in the wintry conditions for the biggest win of his career – and then enjoyed warm celebrations with his parents Marian and Ron and girlfriend Jen.

“I am really pleased that they were here to see it,” he said. “They weren’t in Qatar for my first win in February so for them to be here is pretty awesome. This proves I am not a one-hit wonder.”

He took a three-shot lead into the final round but two late bogeys saw his playing partner Alexander Bjork move to within a stroke on the 18th tee. But after the Swede found heather and then a bunker on his way to a bogey, Pepperell drilled his drive down the middle and made a cool sand-save for his closing par.

“It was tough – I didn’t sleep too well the last couple nights,” he revealed. “I played terrible leading up to this – Wednesday was the worst I’ve played for ages – and then it was hard to keep my mind on the golf because I was leading all week.

“My mind was very active, especially with all the stuff after the hole-in-one, the social media. It’s hard to avoid that – I am slightly narcissistic.”

From being outside the world’s top 500 in May last year, Pepperell will now climb into the top 35 after banking £500,000.

And he is now set to make his US Masters debut next April. “I am not really ready for the extra attention, I don’t think anybody looks forward to that,” he said. “I won’t ever be that famous – except maybe for the wrong reasons. I can see myself being infamous at one point.”

Pepperell admitted he was desperate to follow up his Qatar victory six months ago to avoid being labelled the Rick Astley of golf.

“I was worried I’d be a one-hit wonder and the pop star who came to mind was Rick Astley,” Pepperell said after his nineunder-par total.

“I think he only had one hit but I could be wrong. Nobody can call me Rick Astley from now on.”

Tournament host Justin Rose, who finished eighth after a closing 70, said: “I love the way he swings it. He’s got talent and he’s a character. He’s out there with his opinions and not worried about toeing the line.”