Scottishgolfview.com says Thanks a Million!

We've just received the 2008 Stats (record of hits) for http://www.scottishgolfview.com/.
Very close to 1,000,000 unique visitors (930,826) who viewed 1,699,639 pages says Webmaster Gillian Kirkwood.
Thanks a million, folks! Keep calling.

BOGEY MAN CATCHES UP WITH

RUSSELL KNOX IN FLORIDA

Russell Knox had an uncharacteristic poor last round to slump from joint 12th to a tied 22nd finish in the NGA Hooters Tour Winter Series event at Providence Golf Club, Davenport in Florida today.
The Inverness-born player, who lives at Jacksonville Beach, Florida, had rounds of 67, 69 and 74 for a six-under-par total of 210 and a $1,106 pay-out. He finished 14 shots behind the winner of the $11,191 first prize, Tyler Leon from Dallas, Texas. Leon shot a 10-under-par 62 in his final round to win by five shots.
Knox had only one bogey over his first 36 holes. But he dropped five shots to par in his final round, including a double bogey 6 at the third. Birdies at the fifth, ninth, 11th and 15th could not repair the damage.
The Scot, who played on the US college circuit for four years as a Jacksonville University student, has won $12,707 from five events in the Hooters Tour Winter Series over December and January. But his deteriorating finishes - tied second, tied ninth, tied 11th, tied 14th and now tied 22nd - must be worrying the former Scottish youth cap who built up a reputation for finishing strongly last season when he was one of the leading money-winners on the Hooters Tour.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 216 (3 x 72) 6,950yd
196 Tyler Leon (Dallas) 65 69 62 ($11,191).
201 James Vargas (Miami) 67 65 69 ($5,548).
202 Ryan Gildersleeve (Clearwater, Florida) 66 68 68 ($4,615).
203 Brad Klapprot (Lakeland, Florida) 68 67 68, Brian Stuard (Jackson, Michigan) 67 67 69 ($3,449 each).
Selected total:
210 Russell Knox (Scotland) 67 69 74 (jt 22nd) ($1,016)

Cargill and Rae tie for Midland Alliance victory

By LEE SUTHERLAND
This week's Midland Golfers' Alliance was held at a cold Drumoig Golf Course, Leuchars. There was a tie for first scratch between Arbroath one-handicapper Steven Cargill and Michael Rae, the Alyth assistant professional.
They both scored two-under-par 70.
Leading handicap return was a net 68 off 10 by Downfield's David Morrison.
LEADING SCRATCH
Par 72
70 S Cargill (Arbroath), M Rae (Alyth) ap.
73 A Lockhart (Ladybank) ap.
74 R Stewart (Tulliallan), K Hutton (Downfield) p.
75 D McKay (Wellsgreen) p, K Bruce (Edzell).
76 D Wilson (Monifieth) (4), P Wytrazek (Burntisland) p, L Sutherland (Ballumbie Castle) p, E Walker (Burntisland) ap, J Stevenson (Braehead) p, S Harrod (Ballumbie Castle), G Finlay (Ballumbie Castle).
LEADING HANDICAP
68 D Morrison (Downfield) (10).
69 S Cargill (Arbroath) (1).
70 J Rennie (Dunfermline) (12).
72 D Wilson (Monifieth) (4), K Bruce (Edzell) (3), J Roy (Panmure) (5), C Westland (Alloa) (8).
73 A Douglas (Caird Park) (12), R Stewart (Tulliallan) (1), D Black (Dunfermline) (12), D Redford (Murrayshall) (7).
74 H Salmond (Tulliallan) (4), R Barton (Alloa) (8).

Qualifiers for the JTC Kitchens Midland Golfer’s Alliance Championship in April at Pitlochry
M Rae (Alyth) ap.
R Stewart (Tulliallan) (1)
K Bruce (Edzell) (3)

Next week's meeting will be held on Thursday, February 12 over the Carnoustie Buddon course.
Tee reserved from 8.30am to 12.30. Caledonian Golf Club will be the host club.


Lee Sutherland

Bad light ends play with 20 groups still to finish

Rory McIlroy better

than Tiger at his age,

says Mark O'Meara

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Northern Ireland teenager Rory McIlroy, pictured right, underlined his Ryder Cup potential with a timely eight under par 64 to open up a one-stroke first round lead at the Dubai Desert Classic before play was suspended due to bad light.
The talented 19 year old carded nine birdies to lead from Sweden's Robert Karlsson only a day after new Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie named him as a potential candidate for Celtic Manor next year.
McIlroy's only blemish came on his fourth hole of the day when he drove into a bush but he made amends as he holed from 15 feet on the last for a birdie to ensure the outright lead after calmly striking his approach into the heart of the green.
"It was actually nice to be out late because I wanted to do a little work on my putting before I went out. I was able to do that and holed a few nice ones," said McIlroy.
"The conditions were perfect, the greens were soft, the fairways were soft. It was ideal scoring conditions."
American Mark O'Meara, the 1998 Open and Masters winner, who partnered McIlroy, was fulsome in his praise of the young man who is already ranked in the world's top 40.
"“Ballstriking-wise, Rory is probably better than Tiger was at that age,” O'Meara said. “His technique is better. Certainly, Tiger has developed his game and modified his swing over the years to be able to hit the ball pin-high, but Rory is already doing that at 19. He's kind of a step ahead.
“I've witnessed Tiger at that age [Woods turned professional at 20] and have played a lot with Anthony Kim in the past two years, and Rory's got all the tools to become an extremely dominant player in this game. His technique is extremely good.
“He hits it far enough, he is very composed and he has a great short game. I can't see any weaknesses or why he can't win many major championships. It's hard to compare anyone with Tiger because of his mind and heart, but certainly Rory has those qualities, there's no denying [that]. He shot eight under today but it looked pretty easy.”
Last year’s European Order of Merit winner Karlsson, a Ryder Cup team winner in 2006, carded a bogey-free seven-under 65 to sit in the clubhouse a shot clear of early pacesetter Gonzalo Fernandez-Castaño and South Africa's Charl Schwartzel, who was only able to play 14 holes of his first round and will join 59 others in completing their rounds early Friday morning.
Karlsson was also happy to take advantage of the conditions which be believes will set a winning total of 20 under par come Sunday - a similar level to the recent tournaments in Abu Dhabi and Doha.
"It was a solid game. There wasn't anything spectacular, but I got my chances, I took most of them and I still missed a couple of chances, but all in all very solid," he said.
"It was a great day for scoring with the greens fairly soft and not much wind.
"I think I had a quick look at 27 putts and I hit ten fairways, I missed a couple of greens but when I missed them I got up and down.
"It's easier this year because the greens are soft so the chipping and pitching is quite a bit easier than normal."
Fernandez-Castaño continued the form which saw the Quinn Insurance British Masters winner finish a strong seventh in Qatar last week.
He stormed out of the blocks with five birdies over his opening nine holes but despite carding a further three birdies was only able to pick up a single stroke on his way home.
"I'm quite happy with the result, but I have to say I didn't really hit the ball well as I was doing but I managed to score and that's the main thing around here, you have to score," he said.
"It's not about how you hit the ball, but how many you do at the end of the day. That's what I did and I am very happy with that."
Frenchman Grégory Havret and Sweden's Alexander Noren sit three back after opening with first round 67s, with Abu Dhabi winner Paul Casey bouncing back from missing the cut last week in Qatar with a bogey free 68 to join in form South African Louis Oosthuizen, who has finished second at his last two events, Hartlepool's Graeme Storm and Justin Rose at four under par.
Hennie Otto made it three South Africans inside the top ten as he joined the quartet at four under with four holes to play of his first round.
"I think it was not a bad start, obviously I could have done better. Having said that, I made a couple of good par saves coming in" said Casey.
"Not a bad start, but I am four behind Rory. That's a hell of a round, eight under around here is very impressive."
Click here to listen to Rory McIlroy's thoughts on his first round of 64
But it was not a good day for everybody. Scot Marc Warren, who has spent the last few months wintering in Florida, sagged to a sad 81. He was the only Scot to complete his first round. Perhaps he is wishing he hadn't!
Editor's note: Hailstones at Qatar Masters last week ... thick fog that caused a lengthy hold-up which shortened the number of hours left to play today ... this desert weather is not all it's cracked up to be.
CLUBHOUSE LEADERS
FIRST ROUND
Par 72; 7301yd.
Play was suspended for the day due to bad light with 20 groups still to complete their first rounds. They will go out again at 7.30am Friday local time.
64 Rory McIlroy
65 Robert Karlsson (Swe)
66 Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa)
67 Gregory Havret (Fra), Alex Noren (Swe).
68 Paul Casey, Justin Rose, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa), Graeme Storm
69 Oliver Fisher, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra), Alvaro Velasco (Spa), Martin Erlandsson (Swe), Mark Foster, Scott Strange (Aus).
70 Graeme McDowell, Martin Kaymer (Ger), Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg), Alvaro Quiros (Spa), Thongchai Jaidee (Tha), Anthony Wall, Ignacio Garrido (Spa), Lee Westwood, Mark Brown (US), Matthew Turner.
71 Peter Hanson (Swe), Steve Webster, Stephen Dodd, Oliver Wilson, Simon Dyson, David Lynn, Erik Compton (US), Jarmo Sandelin (Swe).
72 Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Alejandro Canizares (Spa), Kenneth Ferrie, Shiv Kapur (Ind), David Frost (SAf), Garth Mulroy (SAf).
73 Peter Lawrie, Pablo Martin (Spa), Miles Tunnicliff, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa), Thomas Levet (Fra), Damien McGrane, Simon Wakefield, Miles Tunnicliff, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind).
74 Robert Dinwiddie, Chapchai Nirat (Tha), Ariel Canete (Arg), Darren Clarke, Simon Khan, Mikael Lundberg (Swe), Simon Khan.
75 Gary Murphy, Peter Hedblom (Swe), Pablo Larrazabal (Spa), Soren Hansen (Den), Barry Lane.
76 John Bickerton, David Dixon.
77 Mark O'Meara (US), David Horsey, Phillip Archer, Ross McGowan
79 Wayne Westner (SAf).
81 Marc Warren.

PGA Super-6os event goes to Blackwell

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE PGA
One of the country’s most exclusive courses will play host to the PGA’s elder statesmen this summer.
Worcestershire’s exquisite Blackwell Golf Club will stage the 36-hole PGA Super 60s Tournament on August 20 and 21.
The event, which carries a professional prize fund of £10,000, is one of the most popular tournaments on the PGA national schedule as pros and amateurs, who both must be aged 60 or over to compete, pair up in pursuit of the title.
Last year’s winners were Wollaton Park professional John Lower and his partner Stuart Belcher, while former champions include two-time Ryder Cup captain and eight-time player Bernard Hunt, who claimed the title with John Welch in 1997, and former Ryder Cup player Lionel Platts who succeeded with David Dupree in 1996.
It will only be the second time in its 116-year history that the course has staged a PGA event and senior tournament director Simon Higginbottom welcomed the return.
“It is an honour for the Association to take one of its tournaments to Blackwell,” he said.“Without doubt Blackwell is one of the finest courses in the Midlands and one which all the players will no doubt relish testing their skills on.”
The choice of venue has left 2007 PGA Super 60s champion and former Hagley professional Iain Clark ecstatic as his son Finlay is the head professional at Blackwell.“This is brilliant news,” said Clark, who won the title with partner Colin Day.
“It’s a cracking golf course with some wonderful holes on it. Colin will be delighted to hear where it is. He’ll certainly be up for that.“It’s great for me too as it’s where my son works and so I’ve played it a few times, which might give us a little bit of an advantage when it comes to the tournament.”
Blackwell hosted regional qualifying for the Open six times during the 1990s as well as hosting the inaugural Senior PGA Professional Championship in 1995, which was won by former Ryder Cup player Tommy Horton.
It also has a prestigious place in golfing history as the legendary American golfer Bobby Jones, played the course 24 hours after winning the Open at Hoylake in 1930.
Visit www.PGA.info for up to date reports and scores throughout the season from the PGA Super 60s Tournament and all PGA tournaments.

WATCH THE WORLD’S BEST IN STYLE AT LOCH LOMOND

Loch Lomond Golf Club, home of the Barclays Scottish Open, has announced that it will be making the club’s luxury private motorboat available for exclusive daily hire at this year’s tournament, which takes place from the 9th-12th July.
Moored in the harbour beside the 18th green, the motorboat will be available for guests to use as they wish throughout the day. With a skipper at hand the lucky few will be able to cruise around the loch, taking in the beautiful surrounding scenery, as well as taking advantage of some fantastic viewing points alongside the course to watch the golfing action.

A complimentary pass into the magnificent Rossdhu House is also included in the package.
Since its inception in 1986 and in particular following its move to Loch Lomond in 1996, the Barclays Scottish Open has developed into one of the most popular events on The European Tour.

Traditionally staged the week before the Open Championship, the tournament attracts some of the biggest names in the game. Last year Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Ernie Els, Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood and Colin Montgomerie among others competed alongside the banks of Loch Lomond.
With its stunning setting on the shores of Loch Lomond and views of Ben Lomond and the Scottish Highlands, Loch Lomond Golf Club is a private international club with members from over 30 countries. The course, which was designed by renowned architects, Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish, opened in 1994 and was most recently voted 11th in Golf Digest’s Top 100 courses in the world ranking. The Club has played host to the Barclays Scottish Open for the past 10 years.
Private hire of the Loch Lomond yacht requires a minimum booking of eight people. Further information on boat hire and other hospitality opportunities is available from Vicky.Nesbitt@lochlomond.com . Tel: 01436 655555.

Good career news for qualified

and ambitious greenkeepers

PRESS RELEASE
The Club Managers Association of Europe (CMAE) has signed an agreement with the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) that could enable course managers to develop their careers and become club managers.
The agreement, signed during BIGGA’s annual exhibition and education event, Harrogate Week 2009, opens the door to BIGGA’s 6,000 members developing their management skills through education with a view to taking the internationally-recognised Certified Club Manager (CCM) qualification.
CMAE Chief Executive Officer, Jerry Kilby, said: “This is good news for qualified greenkeepers and Master Greenkeepers who have reached a point in their careers where they say, ‘What next?’
“The opportunity to take CCM, which is a globally recognised qualification, means that the step up to general manager level is now a realistic possibility and career ambition for greenkeepers and course managers.”
A small number of senior greenkeepers have blazed a trail and risen to prominent club manager positions, including David Roy, at Crail Golfing Society, Fife while others have already expressed their desire to move into club management, viewing CCM as an opportunity to prove their professionalism and qualify for top jobs.
To sit the CCM exam, greenkeepers must first attain a minimum number of CCM credits, for which membership of BIGGA plus previous professional education courses automatically counts.
John Pemberton, Chief Executive of BIGGA, said: “This is a significant new opportunity for management development and another building block for greenkeepers aspiring to senior management and club manager positions.
“In today’s job market, just being a good course manager isn’t enough. CCM is an opportunity for greenkeepers to demonstrate their skills and professionalism in management and we welcome the signing of this agreement with the CMAE.”
The Certified Club Manager qualification is open to suitably experienced managers and involves a two-day review and examination focusing on key club management disciplines. There are approximately 10,000 clubs with professional managers in Europe, half of which are golf clubs, the remainder being sports, leisure, health and fitness clubs, plus city and dining clubs.
For more information about CCM, entry requirements and to download the registration form, visit: http://www.cmaeurope.org

Captain Monty expects to be granted

three personal picks for Celtic Manor

FROM THE WWW.GUARDIAN.CO.UK WEBSITE
By BILL ELLIOTT in Dubai
Colin Montgomerie immediately began his attempts to regain the Ryder Cup by declaring that he expects to be granted an extra captain's pick after being appointed yester­day to lead the European team.
Traditionally only two of Europe's 12-man team have been selected as wild cards by the captain but Montgomerie hopes to persuade the Ryder Cup committee that he needs three choices for Celtic Manor. Paul Azinger, America's captain in Valhalla last year, insisted on four.
"I would like more options than we have now," said Montgomerie. "We have committee meetings in Ireland in May, long before qualification starts in September, and all those terms and conditions will be in place before qualification starts. I will abide by the committee's decision but I think you'll find we'll go for one more captain's choice than we have in the past."
Montgomerie was unanimously chosen by the 15-man tournament players committee after a meeting lasting an hour and 10 minutes here but it emerged that only fears over José María Olazábal's ongoing health problems and his dithering over whether he wanted the role led to consideration of a rival candidate to the Spaniard for next year's competition when the panel met a fortnight ago in Abu Dhabi.
Olazábal, at 42 three years younger than Montgomerie, was subsequently expected to be announced as the 2012 captain yesterday but he suffers from a progressive form of rheumatism, has played only twice in the last nine months and the committee decided to delay this decision.
The claims of Sandy Lyle and Ian Woosnam were also discussed but neither man came close. At least Woosnam was skipper in 2006 but Lyle, despite his major victories, nowwill now never realise his ambition.
Oliver Wilson, who made his Ryder Cup debut last year with Nick Faldo in charge, expects more talking and a greater team spirit under Montgomerie. "The best thing will be his communication to all the players," Wilson said. "Anyone who makes the team will know him really well. Every­one's going to be comfortable with him. He's going to be able to talk to every­one, bring everyone together and put every­one in the right frame of mind.
"Faldo and Montgomerie have two very different personalities. Monty is going to be more communicative with the players. Everyone will know him better than Faldo – and they may be more comfortable with him because he is younger."
Darren Clarke, a member of the players' committee, said the Scot's playing record – he has won 23.5 points, only 1.5 points behind Faldo's record – was an important factor. "He's been the Ryder Cup talisman for many years," Clarke said. "He'll be very player-orientated; he'll take a keen interest in how the players are doing."