Dwayne Pearman's bid for a tenth straight Bermuda Professional Golfers' Association title has been scuppered by a leg injury.

The annual BPGA championships, which attract most of the Island's club professionals as well as amateurs aspiring to earn their pro 'card', is due to tee off at Port Royal this morning.

But Ocean View pro Pearman, who has totally dominated the tournament for the last decade, informed organiser Alex Madeiros yesterday that he would be forced to pull out.

"It's just a pulled a muscle but there's no way I could play at the moment," said Pearman. "I'll probably be out for a couple of weeks."

"He'll be missed," added Madeiros. "He's been winning this tournament for as long as most of us can remember, and he would have been favourite to win again this year."

Pearman's absence, however, will open the door for some of the Island's younger pros with Brian Morris of Belmont Hills, Chris Garland (Mid Ocean Club) and Andrew Trott (Tucker's Point) expected to be among the frontrunners.

Two amateurs, Quinton Burch and Richard Knight, will be shooting for their professional status, needing to return a score of no more than 16-over-par 300 after the four rounds.

Play starts today and continues through Friday.