Queensbury, NY—Forget instructional golf DVDs. Forget yoga. Forget mental gurus.

Josh Hillman wife’s, Angela, is the source for his inspiration.

On Monday, the Taconic assistant shot a 4-under 68 in the first round of the Northeastern New York PGA Professional Championship. That night, he celebrated his 30^th birthday with his wife, who gave him a scrapbook of his golf achievements.

As he went through it, she said, “Why don’t we add another piece for tomorrow?”

With that as an incentive, Hillman shot a 3-under 69 in yesterday’s final round and won by three shots.

“That was a piece of motivation,” Hillman said of his wife’s gift. The win, worth $1,400, also earned him a spot in next year’s PGA Professional National Championship at Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Ga., where the top 20 finishers receive exemptions into the 2008 PGA Championship.

“This is a huge birthday present for me,” said Hillman, in his 2^nd year at Taconic. “Something I’ve always wanted to do is qualify for the Professional National Championship. This is probably the biggest win I’ve ever had.”

That’s quite a statement from someone with more than 35 professional wins and 11 course records in his name. But don’t expect the success to go to his head. Hours after yesterday’s victory, Hillman was at his home in Williamstown, weed whacking and mowing his lawn.

Wyantenuck’s Tom Sullivan (70-70) finished 2^nd and also qualified for next year’s PGA Professional National Championship. Greenock’s Bob Mucha shot 72-71 and is 2^nd alternate.