Local knowledge pays off

for Philip McLean at

windless Peterhead

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfview.com

Paul Lawrie protégé Philip McLean, a +3 full-time amateur, was always going to be difficult to beat in a North-east Alliance competition over his home course, Peterhead.And so it proved today when McLean left a field of 85 trailing with a two-under-par score of 67 in unusually benign, windless conditions at the Buchan links.

He had two shots to spare from Hazlehead shop professional Colin Nelson who was bidding to win three competitions in a row.

McLean, pictured right by Cal Carson Golf Agency, who played recently in two South American events at the SGU's expense, had only one bogey on his card – at the eighth – and he turned in one-over-par 35 before reducing the inward half to 32 shots, three under par, with birdies at the 11th, 15th and 18th.

Nelson had a little bit of everything in his 69, collecting four birdies but running up a double bogey 5 at the short 16th and dropping single shots at the fifth and eighth in an outward 35.

Leading scores (par 69)

SCRATCH

67 P McLean (Peterhead).

69 C Nelson (Mackenzie Club).

70 G H Paterson (Northern).

71 A Campbell (Deeside), D Law (Hazlehead), D Garrett (Turriff).

72 B Nicolson (Auchmill), R Pirie (Caledonian), R Fitzpatrick (Inchmarlo), H Dougal (Peterhead), M Jenkins (Duff House Royal).

73 S Davidson (Banchory), L Taylor (Auchmill).

74 B Ritchie (Inverallochy).

75 S Murray (Newburgh), S Finnie (Caledonian), F Bisset (Banchory), S Cooper (Banchory), C Law (Hazlehead).

76 S Scott (Auchmill), S Chalmers (Banchory).

77 J Borthwick (Craibstone), C Buchanan (Hazlehead), L Prouse (Hazlehead), H Roulston (Stonehaven), M Lawrie (Kemnay).

78 C Cassie (Nigg Bay), B Harper (Newburgh), P Morrison (Oldmeldrum), J H Hamilton (Murcar Links), J Scott (Peterculter), M Booth (Kemnay), J Murray (Banchory), J Short (Peterculter), J Mooney (unatt), A Nelson (Banchory).

79 B Brooks (Meldrum House), D Philip (Newburgh), M Holley (Braemar), L Roger (Royal Aberdeen), C Selby (Kemnay), B McPherson (Northern).

80 J Roberts (Cruden Bay).
HANDICAP

Class 1 – J Borthwick (Craibstone) (8), C Buchanan (Hazlehead) (8), R Pirie (Caledonian) (3), S Cooper (Banchory) (6), L Taylor (Auchmill) (4) 69; B Nicolson (Auchmill) (2), C Cassie (Nigg Bay) (8), G H Paterson (Northern) (scr), P McLean (Peterhead) (+3), D Garrett (Turriff) (1) 70.

Class 2 – J Scott (Peterculter) (12), M Booth (Kemnay) (12), J Short (Peterculter) (12) 66; B Lumsden (Northern) (14) 67; R Brown (Craibstone) (14) 69; M Ord (Royal Aberdeen) (12) 70; I Strachan (Royal Aberdeen) (12), R Lumsden (Northern) (2) 71.

PETERHEAD WINTER SCORECARD (yellow tees). Par 69.

OUT: 4-3-4-4-4-3-4-4-4--34. IN: 3-4-4-4-4-4-3-4-5--35

PHILIP McLEAN 67 (-2)

OUT: 4-3-4-4-4-3-4-5-4--35. IN: 3-3-4-4-4-3-3-4-4--32.

COLIN NELSON 69 (level par)

OUT: 4-3-4-3-5-3-4-5-4--35. IN: 3-4-3-4-4-4-5-3-4--34.

GEORGE PATERSON 70 (+1)

OUT: 4-3-4-3-4-3-4-4-5--34. IN: 3-4-6-4-4-4-3-4-4--36.

DAVID LAW 71 (+2)

OUT: 4-3-3-4-4-3-4-5-4--34. IN: 4-4-4-5-5-4-2-4-5--37.

ANDREW CAMPBELL 71 (+2)

OUT: 4-3-4-4-5--3-5-5-4--37. IN: 3-4-4-4-4-4-3-3-5--34.

DON GARRETT 71 (+2)

OUT: 4-3-3-4-5-3-4-4-4--34. IN: 4-4-5--4-3-3-3-4-5--37