Tiger wins the Memorial with

vintage performance

The Tiger is back! Has he ever been away? Woods snapped a four-way logjam for the lead at the Memorial Tournament with birdies on his final two holes, the last one a 7-iron that stopped a foot away from the cup for a seven-under-par 65 and victory by one stroke from Jim Furyk.
The world No 1 hit every fairway in the final round, the first time he has done that in more than five years. He missed only five fairways all week, his most accurate tournament off the tee since the 1998 Masters.
Woods won the Memorial for a record fourth time, and tournament host Jack Nicklaus was there to greet him behind the 18th green. It was his second victory this year after missing eight months from knee surgery, and Woods figured he will only get better.
"I knew it was coming around," Woods said. "I just wasn't as consistent as I needed to be."
Furyk made a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 69 to finish alone in second.
"I just didn't beat one guy," Furyk said. "It [stinks] finishing second. But he played better. A 7 under on those greens and with the conditions we dealt with, that's pretty spectacular. I just wish you all would just quit [ticking] him off ... so he has to come back and keep proving stuff. I think he answered a lot of questions today."
Woods finished at 12-under 276 and won for the 67th time in his career. The timing could not have been better with the US Open coming up.
On a firm, fast course under steamy sunshine at Muirfield Village, he was close to perfect.
Woods surged into contention with a chip-in for eagle out of rough behind the 11th green. He took the lead for the first time with a two-putt birdie on the par-5 15th.
After a bogey from the bunker on the 16th, Woods was tied with Furyk, Jonathan Byrd and Davis Love III. But not for long.
Woods hit his approach to 9 feet behind the hole on the 17th, and rolled it in for a birdie and the lead. After hitting the fairway with a 3-iron on the 18th, he hit 7-iron from 183 yards to within tap-in distance.
It was his best closing round to win since the Dubai Desert Classic last year.
Byrd holed out from 82 yards for eagle at No. 7 to take control of the tournament, only to give it away with a double bogey from the rough and bunker on the 14th. Still, he had the best chance to catch Woods.
Two shots behind, he hit his approach to 4 feet on the 17th, but missed the putt. Byrd finished with a meaningless double bogey for a 72 and tied for third with Mark Wilson (73).
Love, who could have avoided 36-hole U.S. Open qualifying Monday with a victory, got into contention with consecutive birdie putts of about 50 feet, only to miss an 8-foot birdie on the 15th.
He fell out of the hunt with a bogey from the fairway bunker on the 17th, then hitting his tee shot into the water on the 18th and closing with a triple bogey.
Matt Bettencourt, the PGA Tour rookie who started the final round tied with Wilson, held his own for seven holes until a three-putt bogey, followed by a chunked wedge into the water for a double bogey. He closed with a 75 and tied for fifth.
Woods played with Michael Letzig, who shot 75 but was treated to quite a show.
"I've never seen anyone hit irons like that," Letzig said. "I tried not to watch him, but some of those shots were unreal."
Woods' driving set up those iron shots. The fairways at Muirfield Village are among the most generous, but he wasn't close to missing them and often set himself up on the right side to attack the pins.
"I don't know why everyone talks about how bad he drives it," Letzig said. "Every drive I saw was perfect."
FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4 x 72)
276 Tiger Woods 69 74 68 65
277 Jim Furyk 67 70 71 69
280 Jonathan Byrd 69 68 71 72, Mark Wilson 68 70 69 73
282 Davis Love III 72 68 69 73, Matt Kuchar 73 67 71 71, Matt Bettencourt 71 68 68 75
283 Ernie Els (Rsa) 70 70 71 72, Stewart Cink 68 72 72 71
284 Will MacKenzie 70 73 73 68, Mike Weir (Can) 69 69 75 71, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 72 74 63 75
285 K J Choi (Kor) 73 70 72 70
286 Michael Letzig 72 70 69 75, Nick Watney 73 71 74 68, Jerry Kelly 72 72 75 67, Chris DiMarco 73 67 73 73, Dustin Johnson 73 68 72 73, Hunter Mahan 74 69 70 73, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 72 69 73 72, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 70 69 74 73, Luke Donald (Eng) 64 76 72 74
287 Steve Marino 68 72 73 74, Bubba Watson 71 71 70 75, Kevin Sutherland 69 75 73 70, Alex Cejka (Ger) 73 68 73 73
288 Steve Stricker 70 74 73 71, Kenny Perry 72 73 75 68, Rodney Pampling (Aus) 69 71 74 74, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 73 73 70 72, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 72 68 77 71, Woody Austin 75 70 73 70, Jason Day (Aus) 67 73 75 73
289 Kevin Na 71 72 73 73, Camilo Villegas (Col) 71 74 73 71
290 Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa) 74 74 68 74, Jeff Overton 76 69 71 74, Ted Purdy 67 79 75 69, Troy Matteson 69 73 71 77, Richard Sterne (Rsa) 74 71 74 71
291 Robert Allenby (Aus) 72 76 68 75, Steve Flesch 73 75 74 69, Ben Curtis 71 71 72 77, Y.E. Yang (Kor) 73 72 74 72
292 Lucas Glover 75 69 72 76, Tom Lehman 71 74 74 73, Johnson Wagner 69 74 76 73
293 Charley Hoffman 71 72 76 74, Jeff Quinney 75 72 74 72, Lee Janzen 72 73 75 73, D.J. Trahan 73 74 69 77, Webb Simpson 73 71 73 76
294 John Senden (Aus) 71 74 74 75, Ian Poulter (Eng) 75 71 74 74, Reinier Saxton (Ned) 69 75 72 78, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 71 76 72 75, Tom Pernice jun 71 74 73 76
295 Zach Johnson 71 73 75 76, Marc Leishman (Aus) 74 74 70 77, Steve Lowery 76 71 71 77, David Duval 71 74 74 76, Nicholas Thompson 69 75 78 73
296 Paul Casey (Eng) 73 70 75 78, George McNeill 76 69 75 76, Tim Herron 75 73 76 72, Brett Quigley 74 73 78 71, Nick O'Hern (Aus) 73 73 76 74, Chez Reavie 71 74 72 79
299 Jeff Klauk 76 71 79 73, Bill Haas 74 72 77 76, Mark Brooks 75 73 76 75
300 D.A. Points 75 70 75 80, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 72 74 76 78
301 Scott McCarron 74 74 82 71, Marc Turnesa 72 73 78 78
302 Erik Compton 72 75 74 81, Rocco Mediate 73 70 81 78

McDonald Ellon win NE District

championship for Journal Cup

McDonald Ellon Golf Club won the North-east District team golf championship for the Journal Cup at Ballater today ... with the help of a hole in one!
Their team of Adam Dunton, Kevin Duncan and John Godward totalled 417 – five shots ahead of runners-up Fraserburgh who were represented by Justin Duff, Jordan Findlay and John Mitchell.
Bon Accord (Matthew Greig, Alan Shand and Barrie Edmond) finished third on 426.
Newmachar (Martin Lawrence, Chris Simpson and Kevin Riley) came fourth on 429.
John Godward had a double reason for celebration. He had a hole in one at the fifth hole, using a No 6 iron.
The four players with the lowest aggregates in the Journal Cup automatically qualify, if available for the Jaffray Cup match-play tournament, also at Ballater, on Monday and Tuesday evenings.
The draw with Monday’s starting times:

6pm Martin Lawrence (Newmachar) v Adam Lindsay (Banchory).
6.10 Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) v Bryan Innes (Murcar Links).

McLaughlan's bag of birdies earns him

first win of season in Wishaw pro-am

Bothwell Castle's Fraser McLaughlan laced together a six-birdie round of five-under-par 64 to win the first prize of £1,230 in the £9,000 Wishaw Golf Club pro-am today.
It was McLaughlan's first success of the 2009 season and he did it with birdies at the first, second, fourth, 10th, 15th and 17th in halves of 33 (three under par) and 32 (two under par).
His only bogey came at the 14th.
He won by two shots from Mark King (Kingsfield Golf Centre) and by three from third-placed Scott Henderson (Kings Links).
King led the amateur trio of Gary Sirrell (handicap 9), Gordon Ritchie 96) and Ross Murdoch (14) to victory in the team event with a net score of 15-under-par 54. They won on a countback from the team led by Paul Wardell (Whitekirk) who also hit the 54 mark.

PRO SCORES
Par 69
64 Fraser McLaughlan (bothwell Castle).
66 Mark King (Kingsfield).
67 Scott Henderson (Kings Links).
68 David Patrick (Elie), Callum Nicoll (Prestwick), Edward Thomson (Senit Associates), David Orr (East Renfrewshire).
69 Graeme Lornie (Paul Lawrie Foundation), Kenny Walker (Castle Park), David Park (Wishaw).
70 James McKinnon (Irvine), Gary Dingwall (Royal Dornoch), Craig Matheson (Falkirk Tryst), Colin Gillies (Perry Golf).
71 Andrew Marshall (Houston Golf Range), Ewan Davie (Dunblane New), Stephen Gray (Hayston), steven Taylor (Bothwell Castle), Jonathan Lomas (unatt), Craig Lee (unatt).
72 Scott Catlin (Geenburn), Robert Arnott (Bishopbriggs), Stuart Kerr (Strathaven), Greg Paxton (Ralston), Ian Graham (Crow Woo), Paul McKechnie (Braid Hills), Norman Huguet (Musselburgh).
73 Ross Neil (Drumpellier), Euan Cameron (Hamilton), Graham Fox (East Kilbride), Christopher Russell (RAW Golf Course Design), Steven Duncan (Balbirnie Park).
74 George Boswell (Mearns Castle), Paul Jamieson (Dunblane New), Lindsay Mann (Carnoustie), Gordon Law (Uphall), Fraser Mann (Musselburgh).
75 Stuart Adair (Wishaw), Andrew Gibson (North Gailes), Alan Lockhart (Ladybank), Garry Harvey (Kinross), Kevin McAleer (Gelddoch).
76 Grant Robertson (Lanark), Scott Morrison (Acuushnet Europe Ltd), Paul Wardell (Whitekirk), Mark Loftus (Cowglen).
77 Craig Everett (Caldwell).
78 Alistair Brown (Whitecraigs), Stephen McNally (Scottish Inst of Sport).
79 John Ruth (Gary Mitchell Golf).

Irish eyes still smiling as Dunbar

wins St Andrews Links Trophy

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.SPORT.COM WEBSITE
By NICK RODGER
(with some additional words by Colin Farquharson)
Ulsterman Alan Dunbar continued the remarkable run of success for Irish amateur golf when he won the St Andrews Links Trophy over the Old course this evening.
The 19-year-old from the Rathmore club, Portrush, originally a reserve for the event and making his first appearance at the Home of Golf, strung together closing-day rounds of 71 (32-39) and 70 (35-35) for a two-under aggregate of 285 and a one-shot win over Kent's Matt Haines, who also had a 70 for 286.
Dunbar's triumph comes just three weeks after his former international team-mate Shane Lowry won the European Tour's Irish Open and Niall Kearney claimed the prestigious Brabazon Trophy.
"I don't know what it is about Irish golf at the minute, but we're on some roll," said GB&I Walker Cup provisional squad member Dunbar, who was part of the Ireland side that won last year's Home Internationals at Muirfield.
"I'd never played at St Andrews before and just got the call last Monday to say I was in the field. It's a big event at an unbelievable place and to win is huge for me, especially in a Walker Cup year."
For a long spell on the final afternoon it looked like it would be a straight battle for the title between Welshman Rhys Enoch and Motherwell's Paul O'Hara after they reached the five-under and four-under mark respectively after nine holes.
At that point, Dunbar was four off the pace, but the tournament turned dramatically on the closing stretch as the leaders stumbled. Enoch spilled shots at 11, 12, 13, 15 and 17 in a 74 for 287 to slip to third, while halfway front-runner O'Hara three-putted 11, four-putted 12 and smacked his drive out of bounds at the infamous Road Hole 17th on his way to a 75 and a share of fourth on 288 with England's Luke Goddard and Australian Daniel Nisbet
Dunbar took full advantage, covering his inward half in one-under-par to edge to a narrow victory. "The 12th and 13th was where the damage was done," lamented O'Hara, whose older brother Steven won the Links Trophy in 2001. "I was going well up until then and felt I could've won it."
Dunbar, pictured above with trophy by courtesy of John Stewart, St Andrews Links Trust staff, finished strongly to be first past the winning post. He came to the front with late birdies at the 14th, 16th and 18th - bogey at the Road Hole 17th - for 35 home.
Dunbar, who has been helped by Ryder Cup player and fellow Ulsterman Darren Clarke over the last couple of seasons, had 10 birdies over the four rounds but the vital, almost trophy-winning hole for him, was the par-4 third in an outward half of 32 of his third round. He achieved an eagle 2 there - and that made the difference between him and runner-up Matt Haines in the final analysis.
Haines signed off with 73 and 70 for 286.
Haines came home in 33 at the last time of asking, birdieing the 10th, 12th, 13th and 18th - bogeying the Road Hole 17th, to pip Rhys Enoch, a student at East Tennessee State University, for second place. Enoch's brother Ben was tragically killed in a car crash on his way to the Lytham Trophy a few weeks ago.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 287 (1x71, 3x72)
285 Alan Dunbar (Rathmore) 71 73 71 70.
286 Matt Haines (Rochester & Cobham Park) 71 72 73 70.
287 Rhys Enoch (Truro) 71 71 71 74.
288 Luke Goddard (Hendon) 71 75 69 73, Daniel Nisbet (Australia) 74 71 72 71, Paul O'Hara (Colville Park) 68 72 73 75.
289 David Coupland (Boston) 71 74 74 70.
290 Tommy Fleetwood (Formby Hall) 71 77 71 71, Nigel Edwards (Whitchurch) 69 78 73 70, Matthew Nixon (Ashton under Lyme) 73 70 73 74.
292 James Frazer (Pennard) 73 75 69 75, Matteo Manassero (Italy) 68 80 72 72.
293 Miles Mackman (Broome Manor) 72 77 73 71.
295 James Robinson (Southport & Ainsdale) 76 73 75 71, Steven McEwan (Caprington) 76 72 71 76, William Wilcox (US) 73 75 76 71, Pontus Gad (Sweden) 73 75 74 73, Alexander Levy (France) 73 74 74 74, Ross Kellett (Colville Park) 67 77 76 75.
296 Anders Kristiansen (Norway) 74 75 72 75, Wallace Booth (Comrie) 72 76 69 79, Sam Hutsby (Liphook) 71 76 74 75, Ben Westgate (Trevose) 72 75 74 75, Derik Ferreira (South Africa) 72 75 75 74.
297 Jason Barnes (Chart Hills) 71 77 75 74, Mike McCoy (US) 68 79 73 77, Gregory O'Mahony (US) 74 72 78 73, Oliver Farr (Ludlow) 74 72 73 78.
298 Michael Stewart (Troon Welbeck) 73 76 73 76, Adam Runcie (Abergele) 72 76 73 77, Jurrian van der Vaart (Netherlands) 74 74 72 78, Joe Vickery (Newport) 72 75 75 76.
299 Alexandre Kaleka (France) 72 74 75 78.
300 James White (Lundin) 74 75 76 75, Joel Stalter (France) 71 76 78 75.
301 Tom Lewis (Welwyn Garden City) 70 79 75 77.
302 Jack Senior (Heysham) 75 74 73 80.
303 Stuart Phillips (Royston) 70 78 79 76, Sam Matton (Bowood) 71 78 84 80.
304 Jamie Howie (Royal St David's) 73 76 77 78.
308 James Field jun (US) 70 79 81 78.

Withdrew - Jason Palmer (Kirby Muxloe) 69 77 76 w/d

Deeside boy Jack Scott wins Niagara Cup

HISTORIC WIN BY NORTH IN SCOTTISH

BOYS AREA TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

North District have won the Scottish boys' area team golf championship for the first time since the tournament started in 1978.
Represented by Kyle Godsman (Hopeman), Rodger Clarke (Moray), Calum Stewart (Brora) and Gavin Hay (Grantown-on-Spey), the North lads pipped Ayrshire in a "photo-finish" for the title at the Ballumbie Castle course, to the north of Dundee.
North and Ayrshire both finished on the 366 mark. Ayrshire had shared the lunchtime foursomes lead with Perth & Kinross on 148.
But North's singles total of 214 compared with Ayrshire's 218 saw them level at the end of the day on 366, two shots ahead of defending champions Lothians who were bidding to win the championship for a ninth time.
The tie-breaker between North and Ayrshire was the score of the fourth member of their team in the afternoon singles. North's Gavin Hay scored 77 to Ayrshire's Andrew Wright's 84.
Third-placed Lothians (368) were represented by Grant Forrest, Chris Low, Tom Blennerhassett and Stuart Boyle. They scored 151 in the foursomes and 217 in the singles.
North-east, whose team was made up of Chris Robb, Jack Scott, Ryan Bain and Fraser Clarke, finished a creditable fourth on 370 (foursomes 154, singles 216) and they had the distincition of providing the winner of the Niagara Cup which goes to the best individual singles performance.
Again it was the tighest of finishes, requiring a tie-breaker. Jack Scott (Deeside) and Renfrewshire's Andrew McLachlan (Bonnyton) topped the individual leaderboard jointly on the two-under-par 67 mark.
Scott was declared the Niagara Cup winner by virtue of his better inward half, 33 to McLachlan's 34. Picture of Jac Scott with the trophy above is by courtesy of Euan Mordaunt of the Scottish Golf Union.
The last North-east player to win the Niagara Cup is believed to be Craig Cassells (Cruden Bay) who went on to become a Walker Cup player.

SCOTTISH AREA BOYS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Ballumbie Castle golf course, Dundee.
FINAL TOTALS
366 NORTH (Foursomes 152: Kyle Godsman & Rodger Clarke 75, Calum Stewart & Gavin Hay 77. Singles 214 : Clarke 69, Godsman 71, Stewart 74. Non-counting: Hay 77).
366 AYRSHIRE (Foursomes 148: Andrew Wright & Jack McDonald 74, Colin Robinson & David Wilson 74. Singles: 218: Robinson 69, McDonald 74, Wilson 75. Non-counting: Wright 84.
368 LOTHIANS (Foursomes 151: Grant Forrest & Chris Low 77, Tom Blennerhassett & Stuart Boyle 74. Singles 217: Blennerhassett 70, Forrest 73, Boyle 74. Non-counting Low 84).
370 NORTH-EAST (Foursomes 154 (Chris Robb & jack Scott 76, Ryan Bain & Fraser Clarke 78. Singles 216 (Scott 67, Robb 74, Bain 75. Non-counting: Clarke 76).
373 RENFREWSHIRE (Foursomes 154: Andrew McLachlan & Michael McLennan 73, Philip Gordon & James Binning 81. Singles 219: McLachlan 67, Gordon 71, McLennan 81. Non-counting: Binning 84).
373 PERTH & KINROSS (Foursomes 148 (Paul McPhee & Daniel Young 74, Jamie Arthur & Callum graham 74. Singles 225: Young 71, Arthur 75, McPhee 79. Non-counting Graham 85).
374 STIRLINGSHIRE (Foursomes 153: Jamie Lynch & Ryan Campbell 78, Grant Carnegie & Jamie Auchenvole 75. Singles 22: Auchenvole 73, Lynch 74, Campbell 74. Non-counting Carnegie 80).
378 DUNBARTONSHIRE (Foursomes 160: Gary Meechan & Cameron Farrell 76, David Gallagher & John Henry 84. Singles 218: Henry 70, Gallagher 71, Farrell 77. Non-counting Meechan 79.
381 FIFE (Foursomes: 158: Jordan Mooney &^ Neil Beattie 77, Ewan Scott & Ian Redford 81. Singles 223: Redford 69, Scott 73, Mooney 81, Beattie 81.
381 CLACKMANNANSHIRE (Foursomes: 155 (Gary Chalmers & Steven McPherson 73, Grant Dowie & Dnaiel Ashe 82. Singles 226: Chalmers 70, Ashe 75, Dowie 81. Non-counting McPherson 93).
383 ANGUS (Foursomes 156: Matthew Reid & Mark Thomson 72, Ross Storrier & Reece Mitchell 84. Singles 227: Reid 73, Thomson 75, Mitchell 79. Non-counting: Storrier 83).
388 SOUTH (Foursomes 158: Scott Gibson & Liam Johnstone 80, Scott Wightman & John Innes 78. Singles 230: Johnston 76, Innes 76, Gibson 78, Wightman 78).
388 BORDERS (Foursomes: Simon Fairburn & Greg Swinton 76, Daniel Flannery & Craig Howie 85. Singles 227: Flannery 73, Fairburn 74, Howie 80. Non-counting 81).
390 LANARKSHIRE (Foursomes 162: Creaig Ross & Stuart Houston 83, Ian Anderson & Alan Welsh 79. Singles 228: Welsh 71, Houston 78, Anderson 79. Non-counting Ross 81).
394 GLASGOW (Foursomes 158: Conor O'Neil & Calum McLean 77, Mark Murphy & Shaun Connor 79. Singles 238: Connor 75, O'Neil 80, Murphy 83. Non-counting McLean 85).
413 ARGYLE & BUTE (Foursomes 170: Robert McIntyre & Craig Pirie 90, Scott Turnbull & Angus Cowe 80. Singles 243: MacIntyre 80, Turnbull 80, Pirie 83. Non-counting Cowe 85).

Richie Ramsay earns

35,818 Euros for top

10 finish, home in 31

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE (with additional words by Colin Farquharson)
Denmark’s Jeppe Huldahl held off Niclas Fasth and Ignacio Garrido to secure his maiden European Tour title at The Celtic Manor Wales Open today.
The 26-year-old, who held the joint lead overnight, produced a nerveless display on the final day and didn’t drop a shot on his way to a superb 67 and an aggregate score of nine under.
Fellow Scandinavian Fasth surged up the leaderboard with a closing 66 to finish a shot back on eight under, while Garrido finished on seven under after a double bogey at 16.
Huldahl’s performance was all the more remarkable considering he had never previously finished in the top ten on the circuit.
He becomes the ninth first-time winner on the 2009 European Tour schedule and follows Steen Tinning (2000), Simon Khan (2004) and Scott Strange (2008) as players to make The Celtic Manor Wales Open their first European Tour victory.
Birdies at three, eight, ten and 11 put him clear at the head of the leaderboard, and although Fasth briefly drew level on the back nine, Huldahl held his nerve to finish with seven straight pars.
On receiving the trophy, he said: “It feels amazing. I don't know what to say to be honest. I didn't even dream of this coming into this week.
“I couldn't feel my hands on the last three holes. I knew I was doing well, but I didn't know how well until I asked my caddie on the 18th tee.
“He told me I needed a par - and it's nice to have a par 5 hole at a time like that, and have a chance to lay up. But I couldn't put winning out of my head and it was quite emotional.”
Fasth picked up four birdies and an eagle to move from three under to nine under after 15 holes, but back-to-back bogeys on 16 and 17 proved costly for the Swede.
He held an impressive putt on the last to post 66 and move back to eight under, but ultimately it was to no avail.
“I was playing pretty decent golf, a little bit of a mixed bag this week,” said Fasth.
“But what's happened is the putting has come around, and I changed to a new Odyssey putter.
“I worked a lot with the Callaway boys this Tuesday, I mean, all day, and I putted fantastic all week. And that's from putting really, really poorly last week.”
Garrido, meanwhile, got to eight under with consecutive birdies at 14 and 15, but his challenge was ended by a double bogey at the 16th.
He subsequently birdied the last to finish on seven under, one shot clear of Gary Lockerbie and Danny Willett.
“I have to say that once I made a double bogey on 16, it was a bit disappointing,” Garrido admitted. “So I was trying to finish at least with a good feeling after that double bogey and that's what I did.”
The 1997 Ryder Cup player graciously praised the astonishing performance of Huldahl, adding: “He played fantastic. I mean, he was very solid from the beginning to the end, and never shook.
“I was impressed, I must say. For the first time to be leading the tournament, I know how tough it is to go out there and try and put together the same game you did on the first few days, and he did even better, so all credit to him.”
Lockerbie fired a stunning 65 to take the early clubhouse lead on day four. The Englishman picked up birdies on the 1st, ninth, 14th and 18th holes together with a superb eagle on the driveable par four 15th to rocket into contention.
Also on six under was Willett, who bogeyed three of his first four holes before launching an astonishing recovery around the turn.
Willett picked up four consecutive birdies between the eighth and 11th and picked up further shots on 13, 16 and 18 to close with a 67.
Oliver Fisher also carded a 67, the 20-year-old birdieing nine, ten and 11 before eagling the 18th to move to five under overall.
Alongside Fisher on five under were Richard Green and Jeev Milkha Singh, who both posted 69s, and Simon Dyson, who shot 70.
Frenchman Gregory Bourdy eagled the last to join a clutch of players on four under, including Aberdeen's Richie Ramsay, the halfway leader who did not have his troubles to seek over the last two day's play.

Failure to mark his ball before redropping from casual water - under the nose of Tournament Referee John Paramor - cost him a shot but he might consider himself not to be penalised two strokes for possibly improving a lie - when he was testing for casual water - during his third round. But give the Scot full marks for a gutsy finish. He came home in 31 for a 69 to finish joint 10th and earn a nice cheque for 35,818 Euros.
Another Scot, Clydeside-born, South African-raised, Canada-based Alan McLean recorded five birdies in his first seven holes en route to a 68, which took him to two under overall and earned him 26,143 Euros.

Callum Macaulay and Gary Orr earned 16,262 Euros apiece for sharing 31st place.
Nick Dougherty, who started the final round level with Huldahl and Garrido on five under, endured a miserable final round of 79 and slipped back to three over for the tournament.
Ryder Cup captains Colin Montgomerie and Corey Pavin finished 38th and 43rd respectively on three and four over.

European Tour Scoreboard
CELTIC MANOR WALES OPEN
FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4x71)
275 Jeppe Huldahl (Den) 69 71 68 67 (343,086 Euros)
276 Niclas Fasth (Swe) 71 68 71 66 (228,724 Euros).
277 Ignacio Garrido (Spa) 68 69 71 69 (128,863 Euros)
278 Gary Lockerbie 69 70 74 65, Danny Willett 73 66 72 67 (95,103 Euros each).
279 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 69 68 73 69, Richard Green (Aus) 68 71 71 69, Simon Dyson 74 65 70 70, Oliver Fisher 72 69 71 67 (57,844 Euros each).
280 Chris Wood 72 69 70 69, Richie Ramsay 68 67 76 69, Paul Waring 71 68 70 71, Fabrizio Zanotti (Par) 67 71 72 70, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 70 70 70 70 (35,818 Euros each).
281 Klas Eriksson (Swe) 70 72 69 70, Paul McGinley 68 71 71 71
282 Alan McLean 66 73 76 67, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 70 72 70, Rhys Davies 73 69 71 69, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 70 67 75 70 (26,143 Euros each).
283 Mark Foster 69 69 72 73, David Lynn 69 73 72 69, Simon Khan 69 73 71 70
284 Santiago Luna (Spa) 73 69 71 71, Peter Lawrie 69 72 74 69
285 Robert Rock 68 68 74 75, Lee Slattery 68 73 74 70, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut) 72 70 74 69, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 74 70 74 67, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 67 73 71 74
286 Callum Macaulay 68 71 76 71, Gary Orr 68 73 72 73, Magnus A Carlsson (Swe) 70 69 72 75, Ross Fisher 70 66 75 75, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 69 72 75 70, Marc Cayeux (Zim) 70 69 77 70 (16,262 Euros each).
287 Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra) 69 68 76 74, Colin Montgomerie 69 69 78 71, Branden Grace (Rsa) 70 72 74 71, Nick Dougherty 66 72 70 79, Wade Ormsby (Aus) 69 72 74 72, Chris Doak 72 69 74 72 (13,586 Euros each).
288 Richard Finch 71 68 73 76, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 66 73 74 75, Marcel Siem (Ger) 74 68 77 69, Corey Pavin (USA) 72 72 71 73, Scott Drummond 74 70 74 70, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 69 70 73 76
289 Marcus Higley 72 72 73 72, Stephen Dodd 72 67 76 74, John Bickerton 69 70 75 75, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind) 72 72 74 71
290 Christian Nilsson (Swe) 71 71 77 71, Iain Pyman 72 72 72 74, Benn Barham 69 72 78 71, Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 68 76 76 70, Chapchai Nirat (Tha) 73 69 75 73, Bradley Dredge 74 70 71 75
291 Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor) 75 69 74 73, Shiv Kapur (Ind) 73 67 74 77, Taco Remkes (Ned) 67 75 78 71, Sion Bebb 75 69 74 73, Robert Dinwiddie 71 71 75 74, Scott Strange (Aus) 72 72 77 70, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 70 72 74 75, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 72 67 76 76
292 Andrew Oldcorn 76 68 73 75
293 Joakim Haeggman (Swe) 72 72 75 74, Jonathan Caldwell 72 72 74 75
294 Michael Curtain (Aus) 71 72 74 77, David Frost (Rsa) 66 76 75 77
297 Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Spa) 72 71 84 70
299 Tim Dykes 68 75 78 78, Mark Brown (Nzl) 70 73 81 75
300 Birgir Hafthorsson (Ice) 69 73 79 79

It's the Wonder of Woosnam! Ian

wins play-off for Irish Seniors

From Steve Todd, European Senior Tour Press Officer
Ian Woosnam toasted yet more success in Ireland after defeating Bob Boyd in a play-off to win his third European Senior Tour title in the Irish Seniors Open in association with Fáilte Ireland and AIB Bank today.
The former Masters winner and World No 1, who won the Irish Open in 1988 and 1989 and led Europe to Ryder Cup glory at The K Club in 2006, birdied the third extra hole after finishing tied with American Boyd on two under par 211 in regulation play at Ballybunion Golf Club.
Having started the final round a staggering six shots behind leader Roger Chapman, Woosnam fired a superb 67 – the joint lowest round of the week – to cap a remarkable turnaround, having begun the week with his clubs not turning up at the airport and a double bogey on the last hole in his first round for a 74.
It looked certain that Woosnam had sealed the title on the first extra hole when Boyd found the bunker but the American made a superb up and down, holing a 16ft par putt.
They then halved the 18th hole in par again to go back to the tee a third time but Woosnam holed a four foot birdie putt to land the first prize of €52,500 after Boyd’s five-footer drifter agonisingly past the cup.
The victory, which followed his wins in Poland and Russia en route to winning the John Jacobs Trophy in 2008, moves the Welshman to second in the Order of Merit behind fellow former Ryder Cup Captain Mark James. He becomes the third former Ryder Cup Captain to win on the Senior Tour this year following Sam Torrance in Barbados and James in Mallorca.
“Ireland certainly is good to me,” said the 51 year old. “I’ve won two Irish Opens, the Senior Open now and, of course, the Ryder Cup in Ireland which I’ll never forget.”
“I never thought I’d even be at the presentation after the first round. I was so disappointed coming of the course. I’d been working hard but not getting anything.
“It’s just good that I could hit my two iron off the last. My irons got me through that play-off.
“I’m absolutely thrilled with this win. I’ve been struggling along since the end of last year.
“When I saw Roger go back to one under and I got to level par on the eighth I thought I was still in with a chance. I knew it was windy enough to shoot a good score. It’s nice to win in Ireland again and this will certainly help me on my way.”
It was Boyd’s best finished since he won his only Senior Tour title in the Castellόn Costa Azahar Open de España Senior in 2005 and represents an emotional return to form having missed all of the 2006 and 2007 season to have treatment for leukemia.
Chapman, meanwhile, once again missed out on his maiden Senior Tour title having also led by two strokes going into the final round on his debut in the Son Gual Mallorca Senior Open a month ago.
He signed for a 74 to finish tied for third with Tony Johnstone who warmed up for the defence the defence of his Jersey Seniors Classic next week with a superb 67.
“I played rubbish all day to be honest and if you mistakes on this course you get punished,” said the 50 year old. “I didn’t play well enough but then I found a bit of something on 13 and 14 and had chances on 17 and 18.
“It’s another good finish. I would have taken two thirds before I started but I’m just very disappointed today.”

FINAL TOTALS
Par 213 (3x71)
211 I Woosnam (Wal) 74 70 67, B Boyd (USA) 72 68 71 (Woosnam won play-off at third extra hole).
212 T Johnstone (Zim) 71 74 67, R Chapman (Eng) 67 71 74
213 E Rodriguez (Esp) 72 74 67
214 G Cali (Ita) 72 72 70, G Brand (Eng) 71 72 71, E Darcy (Irl) 73 72 69
215 R Drummond (Sco) 72 76 67
216 J Rivero (Esp) 72 74 70, G Ralph (Eng) 69 74 73,
217 P Mitchell (Eng) 74 73 70

218 J Bland (RSA) 72 75 71, G Brand jun (Sco) 73 78 67, M Harwood (Aus) 72 78 68
219 D Smyth (Irl) 69 77 73, S Ebihara (Jpn) 71 80 68, H Carbonetti (Arg) 69 77 73, J Chillas (Sco) 76 76 67
220 S Ginn (Aus) 76 74 70, D Russell (Eng) 75 75 70, K Tomori (Jpn) 70 76 74, D Cambridge (Jam) 70 79 71, A Franco (Par) 78 68 74
221 B Cameron (Eng) 72 78 71, M Cunning (USA) 74 80 67, P Brostedt (Swe) 69 79 73
222 L Carbonetti (Arg) 72 75 75, A Fernandez (Chi) 70 79 73, N Ratcliffe (Aus) 75 71 76,
223 D O'Sullivan (Irl) 77 71 75, J Rhodes (Eng) 72 76 75, J Bruner (USA) 76 79 68, M Miller (Sco) 78 74 71
224 J Quiros (Esp) 73 80 71, I Mosey (Eng) 76 77 71, D Merriman (Aus) 75 73 76
225 J Heggarty (Nir) 75 80 70, C Rocca (Ita) 72 77 76
226 B Lincoln (RSA) 77 72 77, T Giedeon (Ger) 77 74 75
227 G Towne (USA) 77 77 73, M Clayton (Aus) 80 73 74, G Watine (Fra) 77 77 73, C Mason (Eng) 73 78 76, D Johnson (USA) 76 79 72
228 E Polland (Nir) 79 74 75, D Hospital (Esp) 74 80 74, K Spurgeon (Eng) 80 78 70, A Murray (Eng) 69 83 76
229 B Longmuir (Sco) 72 80 77, N Job (Eng) 70 85 74, S Bennett (Eng) 74 73 82, D Durnian (Eng) 82 76 71, P O'Hagan (Irl) 74 82 73
230 P Oakley (USA) 74 81 75, M Bembridge (Eng) 80 77 73, J Hall (Eng) 74 79 77
231 A Garrido (Esp) 78 80 73, D Good (Aus) 74 77 80, M Piñero (Esp) 78 77 76
233 G Encina (Chi) 77 76 80
236 M Williams (Zim) 76 79 81, T Gale (Aus) 80 80 76, A Barrera (Arg) 84 79 73
237 B Smit (RSA) 78 81 78
239 S Owen (Nzl) 80 79 80
242 E Feely (Irl) 79 77 86, E McMenamin (am) (Irl) 80 81 81
244 P Teravainen (USA) 79 86 79, M Coote (am) (Irl) 77 83 84
246 A Spring (Irl) 87 82 77
248 D Morris (am) (Irl) 82 85 81

Aberdeen Links Championship

Edmond v Morrice for Royal

Aberdeen Medal

Bon-Accord's Barrie Edmond and Lee Morrice (Caledonian) will play off on Wednesday, June 17 for the Royal Aberdeen Medal as leading qualifier for the match-play stages of the Aberdeen Links championship.
Edmond, pictured right by Cal Carson Golf Agency, had rounds of 71 and 69 for 140; Morrice 73 and 67 for 140.
The qualifying score was 153 and Monday night's first-round ties are (6min intervals):

Top half of draw
5pm L Morrice (C) v J Annand (BA).
5.06 G Meade (C) v I Welsh (BA).
5.12 G Paterson (N) v B D Rae (N).
5.18 R Neilson (N) v R Stewart (N).
5.24 S Finnie (C) v S Forsyth (N).
5.30 T Robertson (N) v S Murray (BA).
5.36 S Allan (C) v G Geddes (N).
5.42 D Mullen (C) v P McIntosh (BA).

Bottom half of draw
5.48 B Edmond (BA) v A Stewart (C).
5.54 W J Smith (BA) v W Ross (C).
6pm S Carmichael (C) v R Allerton (BA).
6.06 D Gardiner (C) v S Stewart (N).
6.12 M Greig (BA) v G Grimmer (C).
6.18 A Cruickshank (C) v G V Somers.
6.24 A Doig (C) v S Smith (C).
6.20 R Pirie (C) v D Leslie (N).

LINKS HANDICAP CHAMPIONSHIP
Qualifying score: Net 147
Match-play draw:
THURSDAY, JUNE 11
5pm N Gray (BA) v J Duff (N).
5.06 K Smith (C) v D Grieve (BA).
5.12 T Still (N) v R A Cheyne (BA).
5.18 N Walker (N) v A Divers (C).
5.24 J Ritchie (N) v D Forbes (C).
5.30 J Kilman (BA) v P Angelo (N).
5.36 C Ross(N) v A Haining (BA).
5.42 A Sherriffs (N) v W West (N).

MURRAY CUP
Qualifying score: 145
TUESDAY, JUNE 9
Top half of draw
5pm R McCulloch (C) v G Mackie (C).
5.06 J Hosie (N) v C Carson (C).
5.12 L Robson (N) v J Watt (N).
5.18 I Stewart (BA) v M Rimmer (C).
5.24 G Milne (C) v A Buchan (N).
5.30 K Harper (BA) v G Reid (BA).
5.36 J Craig (BA) v G G Whyte (N).
5.42 A G A Forbes (C) v D Stewart (C).
Bottom half of draw
5.48 R Anderson (C) v J L Gall (C).
5.54 M Thomson (C) v I Petrie (N).
6pm S Kelly (BA) v M Flanagan (BA).
6.06 S Kennedy (N) v S Leslie (C).
6.12 B Lumsden jun (N) v R Leslie (BA).
6.18 R Davidson (C) v R Lumsden (N).
6.24 C Taylor (N) v C Murphy (BA).
6.30 D Armour (BA) v S Wright (N).

SENIORS
J HUNTER TROPHY
1st G Paterson (N) 144.
2nd A Fiddes (N) 146.
3rd R A Cheyne (BA) 147.

F SUTHERLAND SHIELD
1st R Jones (N) 137.
2nd C Carson ( C) 138.
3rd J Duff ( N) 138.

VICBON TROPHY
1st J McBeath (C) 136.
2nd A Brown (C) 138.
3rd G Forbes ( C) 138.

Ramsay comes home in 31 for top-10 finish?

Richie Ramsay put his third-round trials and tribulations - which included the threat of a two-stroke penalty for improving a lie (not imposed) and a one-stroke penalty for not marking the place from where he lifted his ball for a lift-and-drop (it was imposed) - to shoot a gutsy two-under-par 69 in the closing round of the Celtic Manor Wales Open.
Coming roaring hom in 31 shots with birdies at the 12th, 13th, 15th and 18th, the Aberdonian looked to have done enough to get a top-10 finish - and cheque.
Ramsay finished on four-under-par 280 with rounds of 68, 67, 76 and 69.

THIRD ROUND TOTALS SO FAR
(Leaders still to finish)
278 Gary Lockerbie 69 70 74 65, Danny Willett 73 66 72 67
279 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 69 68 73 69, Oliver Fisher 72 69 71 67, Richard Green 68 71 71 69.
280 Chris Wood 72 69 70 69, Richie Ramsay 68 67 76 69, Fabrizio Zanotti (Par) 67 71 72 70
281 Klas Eriksson (Swe) 70 72 69 70
282 Alan McLean 66 73 76 67, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 70 72 70, Rhys Davies 73 69 71 69, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 70 67 75 70
283 Mark Foster 69 69 72 73, David Lynn 69 73 72 69, Simon Khan 69 73 71 70
284 Santiago Luna (Spa) 73 69 71 71, Peter Lawrie 69 72 74 69
285 Robert Rock 68 68 74 75, Lee Slattery 68 73 74 70, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut) 72 70 74 69, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 67 73 71 74
286 Callum Macaulay 68 71 76 71, Gary Orr 68 73 72 73, Magnus A Carlsson (Swe) 70 69 72 75, Ross Fisher 70 66 75 75, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 69 72 75 70, Marc Cayeux (Zim) 70 69 77 70
287 Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra) 69 68 76 74, Colin Montgomerie 69 69 78 71
Branden Grace (Rsa) 70 72 74 71, Wade Ormsby (Aus) 69 72 74 72, Christopher Doak 72 69 74 72
288 Richard Finch 71 68 73 76, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 66 73 74 75, Corey Pavin (USA) 72 72 71 73, Scott Drummond 74 70 74 70, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 69 70 73 76
289 Marcus Higley 72 72 73 72, Stephen Dodd 72 67 76 74, John Bickerton 69 70 75 75, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind) 72 72 74 71
290 Iain Pyman 72 72 72 74, Chapchai Nirat (Tha) 73 69 75 73, Bradley Dredge 74 70 71 75
291 Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor) 75 69 74 73, Shiv Kapur (Ind) 73 67 74 77, Sion Bebb 75 69 74 73, Robert Dinwiddie 71 71 75 74, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 70 72 74 75, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 72 67 76 76
292 Andrew Oldcorn 76 68 73 75
293 Jonathan Caldwell 72 72 74 75
294 Michael Curtain (Aus) 71 72 74 77, David Frost (Rsa) 66 76 75 77
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County championships round-up from Robin Wilson

Inverness County golf Championship at Boat of Garten

Eleven years after he last won the Inverness county championship, Gordon Hay (Carrbridge) won the title for a second time with two par-equalling scores of 69 for 138 at Boat of Garten. He won by five shots from Inverness's Ally Cameron (71 and 72), 143.
Scratch
138 G Hay (Carrbridge) 69 69.
143 A Cameron (Inverness) 71 72.
144 D Chisholm (Kingussie) 76 68.
145 D Joel (Loch Ness) 74 71.
147 B Fraser (Inverness) 76 71, G Daun (Inverness) 74 73.
149 B Thomson (Inverness) 78 71, D Hexley (Inverness) 73 76.
151 L Chancellor (Inverness) 79 72, S Wilson (Inverness) 76 75, D Murray (Boat of Garten) 76 76.
Handicap
D Joel (Loch Ness) (3), L Skoudas (Newtonmore) (9) 139.
D Chisholm (Kingussie) (1) 142.

Moray County Championship at Hopeman.

As part of their their Centenary Year celebrations,Hopeman Golf Club staged the Moray county championship for the first time. Moray's Robbie Sheils claimed his first county win since 1999.
Sheils made up five shots on first round leader Mark Ross (Elgin) with a second-round card of three under par 65 for a total of 141.
Ross dropped back to a share of third place on 144. Matching Sheils' second-round 65 after a first-round 77 was Moray clubmate John Matheson to take the runner- up bronze medal with a total of 142.
Heroes of the home club in their Centenary Year were members Eddie Leggat and Graham Mackenzie who shared the lowest leading net return of 135.
Scratch
141 R Sheils (Moray) 75 66.
142 J Matheson (Moray) 77 65, J Wright (Forres) 72 72, R McKerron (Forres) 72 72, M Ross (Elgin) 70 74.
145 K Thomson (Moray) 74 71, N MacWilliam (Garmouth) 73 72, G Mackenzie (Hopeman) 75 70.
Handicap
G MacKenzie (Hopeman) (5), E Leggat (Hopeman) (7) 135.
J Milne (Elgin) (5) 138.

Gordon District Pennant League Scoreboard

RESULTS:
Kemnay 3, Newburgh 1.
Inverurie 4, MeldrumHouse 0.
Kintore 3.5, Westhill 0.5.
Inverurie 1.5, Kemnay 2.5.
Newburgh 2, Kintore 2.
Oldmeldrum 3, Newmachar 1.
Dunecht 3, East Aberdeenshire 1.
Insch 2, Alford 2.
Alford 3.5, East Aberdeenshire 0.5.
Newmacahr 3.5, Dunecht 0.5.
East Aberdeenshire 0.5, Oldmeldrum 3.5

HOW THEY STAND
DIVISION 1
Kemnay .......... 2-2-0-0-5.5-2.5-4pt
Kintore............. 2-1-1-0-5.5-2.5-3pt
Inverurie ........ 2-1-0-1-5.5-2.5-2pt
Newburgh ...... 2-0-1-1-3.5-4.5-1pt
Westhill .......... 1-0-0-1-0.5-3.5-0pt
Meldrum Hse. 1-0-0-1-0-4-0pt.
DIVISION 2
Oldmeldrum .. 2-2-0-0-6.5-1.5-4pt
Alford.............. 2-1-1-0-5.5-2.5-3pt.
Newmachar .. 2-1-0-1-4.5-3.5-2pt
Dunecht ........ 2-1-0-1-3.5-4.5-2pt
Insch ............. 1-0-1-0-2-2-1pt.
East Abdnsh 3-0-0-3-2-10-0pt

McLeary finishes top of Scots in Austria

From Michael Gibbons, Challenge Tour Press Officer
Jamie McLeary finished ‘top of the Scots’ in Austria today at the European Challenge Tour's Kärnten Golf Open presented by Markus Brier Foundation after a final round of three under par 69 saw him finish the week on nine under 279.
Scott Henry, the only other Scot to make the halfway cut, finished his week with a three over 75 for a six under total.
The Scots duo could do nothing to hang onto the coat-tails of eventual winner Christophe Günther of Germany, who fired a quite unbelievable ten under par 62 in the final round to rampage his way through the field and secure a one-stroke win over Carlos Rodiles of Spain and his countryman Florian Fritsch.
The German started the day five shots behind leader Carlos Rodiles, but a quite stunning final round performance, culminating in a tremendous 18th hole wedge approach to three feet to set up his tenth and final birdie of the day, saw him overhaul Rodiles and the rest of the field to win by one from the Spaniard and his countryman Florian Fritsch.
Günther’s 62 saw him post the clubhouse target of 20 under par 268 with only Rodiles and Fritsch the only players left on the course who could catch him. Günther signed his card and went out to watch Rodiles and Fritsch play the 18th, where both men had chances to force a play-off but had to settle for a tie for second place on 19 under as their birdie efforts slid past the hole.
“That was the round of my life, definitely,” said Günther. “It was the lowest score of my career anyway but given the circumstances and the situation it was the best day I have ever had on a golf course.
“This means so much to me – and opens a lot of doors for the rest of the season and it means a lot to be able to prove to myself that I could do it when there were times that I thought I couldn’t. It also shows that the hard work pays off and I have worked very hard recently.”
The work certainly paid off for the German, who had forced his way into contention on Friday with a second round 63 but then seemed to have played his way out of the tournament with a third round 75.
He was not to be denied, though, getting his final round off to the perfect start with a birdie on the first hole to set up what would become a day of fantasy golf for the 34 year old.
“I struggled yesterday in the wind but today it just went great for me,” Günther continued. “It just got off to a great start with a birdie on the first and went from there. I made a great birdie putt on the fourth, a snakey downhiller and I think that was really important to make that one.”
He followed that with further birdies on the sixth, seventh and ninth holes to turn in 31 before repeating that number on the back nine, culminating in that tremendous wedge approach to the 18th to set-up that tap-in birdie for victory.
“There are a lot of people that I have to thank, but special thanks has to go to my sponsor, Mr Arwed Löseke who has supported me and my career for a long time now.”
While Günther celebrated his maiden Challenge Tour victory that netted him €22,400 and propelled him from 96th to tenth on the Rankings, Edoardo Molinari’s joint fourth-place finish alongside tournament host Markus Brier saw him leapfrog Gary Boyd at the top of the Rankings to move to Number One.
Austria’s Martin Wiegele, meanwhile, was also in celebratory mode having won a brand new Mazda CX 7 car for holing in one on the par three eighth hole during the final round. Wiegele’s perfect eight iron from 141 metres saw him drive home in his brand new Mazda.
For Brier, the tournament was also a resounding success. He said: “It was very exciting to host the tournament and I am really happy that the tournament has been a success for the Challenge Tour and for the Markus Brier Foundation. We can now look forward to next year and hosting the tournament again because it has been a big success.”

FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
268 C Günther (Ger) 68 63 75 62
269 F Fritsch (Ger) 65 67 70 67, C Rodiles (Esp) 65 65 71 68
273 E Molinari (Ita) 71 66 66 70, M Brier (Aut) 68 66 70 69
275 C Carranza (Arg) 67 70 70 68, M Wiegele (Aut) 68 70 71 66, A Gee (Eng) 69 63 72 71
276 J Larsen (Nor) 71 68 68 69, J Guerrier (Fra) 66 71 73 66
277 J Olesen (Den) 70 68 67 72, M Laskey (Wal) 71 70 67 69, J Arruti (Esp) 74 67 70 66
278 M Korhonen (Fin) 69 69 70 70, J Parry (Eng) 68 65 74 71, J Abbate (Arg) 73 65 72 68, M Crespi (Ita) 66 70 70 72, J Morrison (Eng) 68 69 74 67, M Zions (Aus) 70 67 72 69, J Billot (Fra) 68 70 70 70
279 L De Jager (RSA) 70 68 69 72, R Swane (Ned) 69 73 67 70, J McLeary (Sco) 75 67 68 69
280 T Ferreira (RSA) 70 71 71 68, O David (Fra) 69 72 71 68, P Lepitschnik (Aut) 69 71 72 68, J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 68 71 73 68
281 M Rodriguez (Arg) 70 70 73 68, L Kennedy (Eng) 74 68 68 71, O Floren (Swe) 67 71 74 69, P Gustafsson (Swe) 71 69 69 72, J Etulain (Arg) 72 70 74 65, F Calmels (Fra) 70 71 68 72
282 U Weinhandl (Aut) 69 73 70 70, B Lecuona (Fra) 71 71 71 69, J Little (Eng) 68 73 68 73, M Mills (Eng) 68 70 73 71, S Henry (Sco) 69 70 68 75, G Boyd (Eng) 68 66 75 73, D Wardrop (Eng) 69 69 73 71, F Praegant (Aut) 68 68 78 68, S Garcia-Grout (Esp) 71 71 71 69
283 L Moolman (RSA) 66 73 73 71, A Zanini (Ita) 68 74 72 69
284 A Haindl (RSA) 72 67 71 74, G Molteni (Ita) 72 67 73 72, M Haremza (Ger) 70 71 74 69, S Saavedra (Arg) 67 74 69 74, G Shaw (Nir) 70 67 73 74
285 J Lerchedahl (Den) 70 66 77 72, B Pettersson (Swe) 71 71 72 71, T Carolan (Aus) 68 74 75 68, J Maurer (Aut) 70 68 75 72, R Gonzalez (Arg) 68 70 72 75
286 L Westerberg (Swe) 69 71 75 71, S Juul (Den) 70 70 76 70
287 J Granberg (Fin) 68 72 71 76, A Mörk (Fra) 71 71 72 73
288 A Bossert (Sui) 68 72 75 73, L Dodd (Eng) 71 70 76 71, R Steiner (Aut) 69 71 72 76
290 P Kaensche (Nor) 69 72 69 80, T Schuster (Ger) 67 73 74 76
291 G Paddison (Nzl) 72 70 73 76
293 A Perrino (Ita) 67 74 76 76, A Crux (Eng) 69 73 74 77
294 C Aguilar (Esp) 71 69 78 76

P&K and Ayrshire set the pace in

Scottish boys' area team event

Defending champions Lothians are three shots off the pace after the completion of the morning foursomes in the Scottish boys' area team championship at Ballumbie Castle golf course, Dundee today.
Perth & Kinross and Ayrshire are sharing the lead on 148 - three ahead of third-place Lothians with North in close-up fourth position on 152.

MORNING FOURSOMES TOTALS
1 PERTH & KINROSS 148
1 AYRSHIRE 148
3 LOTHIANS 151
4 NORTH 152
5 STIRLINGSHIRE 153
6 RENFREWSHIRE 154
6 NORTH EAST 154
8 CLACKMANNANSHIRE 155
9 ANGUS 156
9 GLASGOW 156
11 FIFE 158
11 SOUTH 158
13 DUMBARTONSHIRE 160
14 BORDERS 161
15 LANARKSHIRE 162
16 ARGYLL & BUTE 170

SINGLES BEING PLAYED THIS AFTERNOON.
FINAL TOTALS WILL BE DISPLAYED THIS EVENING

+Log on to our sister website, www.kirkwoodgolf.co.uk for a preview of Monday's Paul Lawrie Scottish schools championship over two Carnoustie courses.

Gordon District League

Results:
Craibstone 3, East Aberdeenshire 2.
East Aberdeenshire 4.5, Kemnay 0.5.
Inverurie 3, Kintore 2.
Craibstone 2.5, Dunecht 2.5.
Kemnay 1.5, Inverurie 3.5.
Newburgh 4, Craibstone 1.
Dunecht 3.5, East Aberdeenshire 1.5.
Kintore 2.5, Newburgh 2.5
Insch 4, Westhill 1.
Westhill 2, Oldmeldrum 3.
Newmachar 3, Meldum House 2.
Alford 4, Meldrum House 1.
Insch 3.5, Newmachar 1.5.

HOW THEY STAND
DIVISION 1
played-won-drawn-lost-for-against-points
Craibstone ... 3-1-1-1-6.5-8.5-3pt
Newburgh ... 2-1-1-0-6.5-3.5-3pt
Inverurie..... 2-2-0-0-6.5-3.5-4pt
Dunecht ...... 2-1-1-0-6-4-3pt
East Abdns.. 3-1-0-2-8-7-2pt
Kintore ....... 2-0-1-1-4.5-5.5-1pt
Kemnay ..... 2-0-0-2-2-8-0pt
DIVISION 2
Insch........... 2-2-0-0-7.5-2.5-4pt
Alford ......... 1-1-0-2-4-1-2pt
Oldmeldrm. 1-1-0-1-3-2-2pt
Newmachar 2-1-0-1-4.5-5.5-2pt
Meldrum H 2-0-0-2-3-7-0pt

Richie Ramsay escapes one penalty ...

then gets another for 18th hole

lift-and-drop blunder

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Robert Rock moved to within two shots of the lead at The Celtic Manor Wales Open after completing his third round on this morning.
Rock, who is currently ninth in the Race to Dubai, returned to the course at 8:45am with playing partners Richie Ramsay and Oliver Fisher.
The trio had two holes of their third round to play after being forced off by bad light at around 9pm last night.
A birdie at the 18th ensured Rock carded a 74 and moved the Englishman to three under for the tournament, two behind leaders Nick Dougherty, Ignacio Garrido and Jeppe Huldahl.
Fisher responded to a bogey at 17 by also birdieing the last, leaving him a shot further back on two under overall.
Ramsay, pictured above, who led after two rounds, was alongside Fisher on two under after bogeying his final two holes for a 76.
The Aberdeen golfer three-putted for a 4 on the par-3 17th and was forced to incur a one-stroke penalty on the 18th for taking the wrong action after finding himself in casual water.
Under the watchful eye of European Tour chief referee John Paramor, Ramsay took relief and dropped the ball, but then picked it up without marking it first, meaning his par 5 became a bogey 6 for a round of 76.
That dropped him to joint 14th on 211, three shots behind the leaders.
Ramsay had earlier been boosted by news that he had escaped punishment for an incident on the eighth hole yesterday, where he was seen on television pressing down the ground behind from where he was going to play his next shot.
Placing of the ball was allowed because of the wet conditions and Ramsay told officials he was testing for casual water, but Paramor said last night after talks that went on until 10.40pm: "He now knows that's not the way to go about it. Obviously it's something Richie is concerned about. If he's absolutely positive he did not improve his area of swing then I can't impose a penalty on him based on what I've seen, but it's been left with Richie to come back to us in the morning.”
After completing his third round, Ramsay said: “I didn't sleep because I was concerned about what people might think and my head was in a bit of a spin. A lot of things go through your head, but all I can do is tell the truth.
“That's what golf is about - honesty and etiquette. I just need to sit down now and have a rest before going out again.”
COMPLETED THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 213 (3x71)

208 Jeppe Huldahl (Den) 69 71 68, Nick Dougherty 66 72 70, Ignacio Garrido (Spa) 68 69 71
209 Paul Waring 71 68 70, Simon Dyson 74 65 70
210 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 69 68 73, Robert Rock 68 68 74, Niclas Fasth (Swe) 71 68 71, Fabrizio Zanotti (Par) 67 71 72, Richard Green (Aus) 68 71 71, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 70 70 70, Mark Foster 69 69 72, Paul McGinley 68 71 71
211 Richie Ramsay 68 67 76, Chris Wood 72 69 70, Ross Fisher 70 66 75, Magnus A Carlsson (Swe) 70 69 72, Klas Eriksson (Swe) 70 72 69, Danny Willett 73 66 72, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 67 73 71
212 Richard Finch 71 68 73, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 70 72, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 70 67 75, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 69 70 73, Oliver Fisher 72 69 71
213 Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra) 69 68 76, Gary Lockerbie 69 70 74, Gary Orr 68 73 72, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 66 73 74, Rhys Davies 73 69 71, Santiago Luna (Spa) 73 69 71, Simon Khan 69 73 71
214 Shiv Kapur (Ind) 73 67 74, David Lynn 69 73 72, John Bickerton 69 70 75
215 Alan McLean 66 73 76, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 72 67 76, Peter Lawrie 69 72 74, Lee Slattery 68 73 74, Callum Macaulay 68 71 76, Stephen Dodd 72 67 76, Corey Pavin (USA) 72 72 71, Wade Ormsby (Aus) 69 72 74, Chris Doak 72 69 74, Bradley Dredge 74 70 71
216 Iain Pyman 72 72 72, Colin Montgomerie 69 69 78, Branden Grace (Rsa) 70 72 74, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 70 72 74, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut) 72 70 74, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 69 72 75, Marc Cayeux (Zim) 70 69 77
217 Marcus Higley 72 72 73, Andrew Oldcorn 76 68 73, Robert Dinwiddie 71 71 75, Michael Curtain (Aus) 71 72 74, Chapchai Nirat (Tha) 73 69 75, David Frost (Rsa) 66 76 75
218 Jonathan Caldwell 72 72 74, Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor) 75 69 74, Sion Bebb 75 69 74, Scott Drummond 74 70 74, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind) 72 72 74, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 74 70 74
219 Joakim Haeggman (Swe) 72 72 75, Christian Nilsson (Swe) 71 71 77, Benn Barham 69 72 78, Marcel Siem (Ger) 74 68 77
220 Taco Remkes (Ned) 67 75 78, Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 68 76 76
221 Scott Strange (Aus) 72 72 77, Tim Dykes 68 75 78, Birgir Hafthorsson (Ice) 69 73 79
224 Mark Brown (Nzl) 70 73 81
227 Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Spa) 72 71 84

Paul Moultrie joint 52nd as

Englishmen finish 1-2 in

European Mid-Amateur

Former winner of the Ayrshire champion of champions' tournament, Paul Moultrie (Troon Portland) finished joint 52nd in the European men's mid-amateur championship at Rio Real Golf Club, Marbella on Spain's Costa del Sol on Saturday.
Moultrie had scores of 77, 81 and 77 for a total of 235 over the par-72 course.
Yorkshiremen and Moortown clubmates Stephen East and Nigel Sweet pulled off a notable 1-2 finish.
East, picture with trophy from European Golf Association website, scored 72, 73 and 72 for a total of one-over-par 217, finishing one shot ahead of Sweet who had rounds of 72, 72 and 74.
Brazilian Rodrigo Lacerda Soares finished third on 219 with three rounds of 73.
Two more Englishmen finished in the top 10. John Kemp (John O'Gaunt) came joint fifth with scores of 72, 76 and 73 for 221, one ahead of Paul Griffiths (Sandwell Park) who had rounds of 75, 72 and 75.
Alan Condren was the leading Irishmnan on 223 with scores of 75, 78 and 70.

EUROPEAN MEN'S MID-AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Rio Real Golf Club, Marbella, Spain.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
217 Stephen East (Eng) 72 73 72.
218 Nigel Sweeet (Eng) 72 72 74.
219 Rodrigo Lacerda Soares (Bra) 73 73 73.
220 Marc Mazur (Ger) 76 73 71.
221 Marco Villa (Ita) 71 78 72, John Kemp (Eng) 72 76 734, Ulf Blixberg (Swe) 70 76 75.
222 Paul Griffiths (Eng) 72 72 75, Francois Illouz (Fra) 68 79 75.
223 Alan Condren (Ire) 75 78 70.
224 Thomas Anderssson (Swe) 73 76 75, Ulrich Schulte (Ger) 75 72 77.
225 Eamon Haugh (Ire) 75 78 72, Etienne Wehrli (Swi) 73 76 76.
226 Ian Clark (Eng) 72 82 72, Jean-Charles Gouvernaire (Fra) 73 77 76.
Selected score:
235 Paul Moultrie (Sco) 77 81 77 (jt 52nd).





ends

Bernhard Langer heading for third

win of season on US Seniors Tour

LAKEWAY, Texas -- Bernhard Langer is heading for a third win this year on the US Champions (Seniors Tour) after returning a three-under-par 69 in pleasant, warm conditions - just right for "old bones" - on Saturday to maintain a one-stroke lead after the second round of the Triton Financial Classic at Lakeway, Texas.
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Leaderboard: Round 2 scores
double click to bring up the tournament website
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The former Ryder Cup player and team captain from Germany, who now lives in Florida, has a 10-under 134 total on The Hills Country Club course.
"It's better to be ahead than behind," Langer said. "It was tough today, but leading the field always breeds confidence for me."
Gene Jones (66) was second, Jeff Sluman (69) and Mark O'Meara (69) were 7 under, and Jay Haas (68), Scott Hoch (69) and local star Tom Kite (70) were 6 under.
Langer, driving the ball on averge 298yd, had five birdies and two bogeys, reaching 10 under with a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-5 17th hole on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course.
"If we play decent, it will be hard for somebody to catch us," Langer said. "If we play garbage, then anything can happen."
Jones, seeking his first Champions Tour victory, had seven birdies and one bogey. He birdied the par-3 18th, hitting a 6-iron to 3 feet.
"He's the best we have out here, but if you going to win for the first time, you might as well beat the best," Jones said about Langer.
O'Meara also is winless on the 50-and-over tour.
"It will happen eventually," O'Meara said. "I have a lot of peace in my life now and I'm playing well so maybe I'll win this week to cap everything off."
Bobby Wadkins withdraw after the fourth hole because of back spasms. He began the round eight shots behind Langer.
Sandy Lyle is lying in joint 30th place on 144, made up of rounds of 71 and 73.
SECOND-ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 144 (2x72)
134 Bernhard Langer (Ger) 65 69
135 Gene Jones 69 66
137 Mark O'Meara 68 69, Jeff Sluman 68 69
138 Tom Kite 68 70, Scott Hoch 69 69, Jay Haas 70 68
139 Dana Quigley 68 71, John Morse 71 68, Mark James (Eng) 68 71
140 Mike McCullough 67 73, Dan Forsman 71 69, Larry Mize 68 72
141 Joey Sindelar 72 69, Lonnie Nielsen 74 67
142 John Cook 69 73, Tom Jenkins 69 73, Mark Wiebe 68 74, Chip Beck 71 71, Hal Sutton 71 71
143 Gary Hallberg 73 70, R.W. Eaks 70 73, Joe Ozaki (Jpn) 69 74, Morris Hatalsky 71 72, Fred Funk 72 71, Jerry Pate 70 73, Leonard Thompson 73 70, Loren Roberts 71 72, Dave Stockton 70 73
144 Fulton Allem (Rsa) 73 71, Craig Stadler 74 70, Ben Crenshaw 73 71, Wayne Grady (Aus) 71 73, Don Pooley 74 70, Olin Browne 71 73, Mark McNulty (Irl) 69 75, David Eger 66 78, Sandy Lyle (Sco) 71 73
145 Robert L Thompson 71 74, Tom Wargo 69 76, Bruce Vaughan 71 74, Fuzzy Zoeller 71 74, Mike Reid 74 71, Vicente Fernandez (Arg) 76 69, Tim Simpson 71 74
146 Ken Green 71 75, Jim Thorpe 74 72, Mike Hulbert 71 75, John Harris 73 73, Dave Eichelberger 74 72, Mike Goodes 72 74
147 Gil Morgan 71 76, Tom Purtzer 73 74, Jay Don Blake 71 76
148 Phil Blackmar 71 77, Graham Marsh (Aus) 79 69, Bob Gilder 71 77
149 James Mason 74 75, Peter Jacobsen 74 75, Bruce Summerhays 74 75, Dave Rummells 75 74
150 David Edwards 73 77, Brad Bryant 76 74, Keith Fergus 72 78
151 Jim Colbert 73 78, Hale Irwin 74 77, Ron Streck 77 74, Chris Starkjohann 77 74, Isao Aoki (Jpn) 80 71
152 Lanny Wadkins 74 78
153 Steve Thomas 81 72
154 Bruce Lietzke 77 77, D A Weibring 74 80
155 Bob Murphy 75 80
156 Denis Watson (Zim) 79 77, Lee Trevino 78 78, Blaine McCallister 78 78, Tom McKnight 78 78
WD: Bobby Wadkins 73

Michael Sim, chasing that third win, is five

shots off the lead in Nationwide Tour event

After a day and a half off due to inclement weather, the skies cleared on Saturday and play resumed at this weekend's US Nationwide Tour event, the Melwood Prince George's County Open at Mitchellville, Maryland.
Cameron Percy from Australia is the 36-hole leader by two strokes at 12 under for the tournament at The Country Club at Woodmore. Tom Scherrer is at 10 under and Oskar Bergman of Sweden is at 9 under.
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Leaderboard: Rd. 2 scores
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Play was suspended midway through the first round on Thursday and did not restart until Saturday morning. The day began at 7:30 a.m. with 75 players finishing their first rounds. The second round commenced at 9 a.m. and was completed at 8:50 p.m.
The field was cut after Saturday's second round to 68 players at 3 under par or better. The difference between the leader and the cut line was nine strokes. There were 19 players that made the cut on the number at 3-under-par 141.
The third and fourth rounds will be played on Sunday. To ensure completion of 36 holes, players will start on the first and 10th tees in threesomes at 7 a.m. Groupings will remain the same for both rounds.
Percy was among the golfers able to complete his first round on Thursday morning. He got off to a strong start in Saturday's second round with birdies on the first two holes.
"I came to practise this morning and felt like I lost all of my rhythm. I thought -- oh boy, here we go," he remarked about the long delay between rounds. "But I got off to a nice start which helped. I actually played well on the back too, but just didn't make any putts."
Percy finished with a 32-36 for a 4-under-par 68. He is anticipating the long day ahead of him on Sunday.
"You have to conserve energy. It's quite humid out here, so I'm going to try and rest tonight and get a good night's sleep," he said. "It's going to be a long day and you're inevitably going to hit some poor shots here and there. You just have to be patient and take advantage of your opportunities."
After a 6-under-par 66 in the first round, current Nationwide Tour money leader Aberdeen-born Australian Michael Sim recorded a 1-under 71. He is currently tied for seventh at 7 under, five shots off the lead.
Sim is looking for his third win of the season and an instant promotion to the US PGA Tour.
It was mostly cloudy Saturday morning with sunshine in the afternoon and temperatures into the high 70s. More sunny weather is expected on Sunday with light winds and temperatures in the mid 80s.