St Andrews Links Trophy tournament tees off today

Keir McNicoll hopes return to happy

hunting ground will rekindle flame

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.SPORT.COM WEBSITE

By NICK RODGER
Keir McNicoll begins the defence of the St Andrews Links Trophy today, hoping a return to the scene of his biggest success can rekindle his season.
The 24-year-old from Carnoustie, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, who birdied the final hole of the Old Course to win the 2008 event by a shot from fellow Scot Michael Stewart and Frenchman Rudy Thullier, has watched his amateur campaign hit the buffers in recent weeks after a solid start to the year.

A fourth place finish in April's Edward Trophy and a share of seventh in the Lytham Trophy at the start of May got McNicoll up and running but missed cuts in the Brabazon Trophy and last weekend's Scottish stroke-play championship has halted the early momentum.

"The last three weeks have been pretty poor," said the 2007 Scottish amateur championship runner-up who also won the Leven Gold Medal last year.

"The golf has been ok but I've been misfiring on the greens and that's been the problem."But coming back to St Andrews is a chance to get going again. It's a place I feel comfortable at and I've always played well round here."

McNicoll, the lowest handicapper in the 144-strong field at +5.6, is joined in one of the strongest line-ups of the year by Perthshire's Eisenhower Trophy-winning duo Wallace Booth and the in-form Gavin Dear, winner of May's Irish Open Strokeplay and runner-up in the Scottish stroke-play at Murcar Links last weekend.

Banchory's James Byrne, a student at Arizona State University, will be bidding to reinforce his claims for a Scotland international recall after finishing joint fourth in the Scottish stroke-play, having set a course record 65 in the second round.

Other players competing in an event packed with Walker Cup hopefuls include Tommy Fleetwood, the runaway winner of the Scottish event last Sunday, and Lytham and Brabazon Trophy champions, James Robinson and Niall Kearney.

Players will contest the opening 36 holes over the New and Old courses today and tomorrow with the top 40 and ties playing the closing two rounds on the Old Course on Sunday.
*The full article contains 305 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

+A live scoring service from the St Andrews Links Trophy should be available on the following website from late morning onwards:

http://www.standrews.org.uk/events/annual_tournaments/links_trophy.html