Aberdeen & District Pennant League
SPONSORED BY THE CULTS HOTEL

CRAIBSTONE 5 1/2, HAZLEHEAD 1/2

Played at Craibstone Golf Centre.
Craibstone players named first

Paul Reid & B Hardie bt K Duthie & S Priers 4 and 3.

S Rennie & A Carle bt G Kennedy & A K Macgregor 1 hole.

Craig Smith & M Carle bt L Prouse & A Robertson 1 hole.

B Cooper & D Andrew halved with D Elrick & W Rennie.

C Smith & J Tanser bt K Allan & J Spiers 2 holes.

J Thomas & D Low bt R Ross & S Macintosh 4 and 3.

PETERCULTER 3 1/2, NORTHERN 2 1/2

Venue: Peterculter Golf Club
Peterculter players named first

Fraser Donnie & Kenny Alston lost to Andy Cooper & Ian Watt 1 hole.

Murray Bowman & Scott Paterson bt Tony Robertson & Cameron McBain 1 hole.

Donald Macdonald & Gary Watson bt William West & John Inglis 3 & 2.

Brian Taylor & Donald Munro lost to Brian Rae & Cameron Johnstone 1 hole.

Gary Lappin & Graeme Meade halved with David Leighton & Alex Sherriffs.

George McAndrew & Alan Brown bt Gary Geddes & M Burnett 2 and 1.

Other result from last night (no details sent by home match secretary):

CALEDONIAN 5, BON ACCORD 1

+Results with details of Aberdeen & Pennant League matches should be E-mailed either on the night of the tie or, at the latest, next day to Colin@scottishgolfview.com

Flawless Mark Loftus

leads 25 qualifiers

at West Kilbride

Former Scottish PGA champion Mark Loftus (Cowglen) turned in a flawless round of seven-under-par 64 to head the qualifiers at West Kilbride Golf Club today (Thursday) for the Volvo/Ayrshire Hospice 36-hole pro-am on August 10 and 11.
Loftus, pictured right by Andy Forman, birdied the short fourth, sixth, eighth, short ninth, 11th, 16th and 18th in halves of 32 (four under par) and 32 (three under) to win the £100 prize as leading qualifier by four shots.
Runner-up on 68 was Scott Herald (Mearns Castle) had a bogey either side - at the first and 17th - of a run of five birdies, at the third, seventh, 10th, 11th and 16th in halves of 35 and 33.
With only the leading 25 to qualify for the main event, there was a card countback featuring the nine players on the 73 mark. Only five qualified - Jamie Stevenson (Braehead), Kevin Phillips (Winterfield), Sean O'Donnell (Balbirnie Park), Scott Garrett (Irvine) and Derek Watters (Gourock).
The unlucky ones on 73 who were eliminated were: Graham Fox (East Kilbride), who will be the first reserve in the event of withdrawls, Neil Fenwick (Dunbar), James Clive (Carrick) and Neil Colquhoun (Merchants of Edinburgh).

QUALIFIERS
Par 71
64 Mark Loftus (Cowglen).
68 Scott Herald (Mearns Castle).
69 James McKinnon (Irvine), Paul Wytrazek (Burnti9sland), James Erskine (Portpatrick Dunskey), Hamish Kemp (Bishopbriggs), Gareth Wright (Swanston Golf), Stewart Whiteford (Wellsgreen).
70 Greg Paxton (Ralston), Andrew Oldcorn (Kings Acre), Mark Kerr (unatt).
71 James McGhee (Turnhouse), Alastair Forrow (Whitecraigs), Alan E Reid (West Lothian), Campbell Elliott (Haggs Castle).
72 Paul Brookes (Pitreavie), David Fleming (Prestwick).
73 Jamie Stevenson (Braehead), Kevin Phillips (Winterfield), Sean O'Donnell (Balbirnie Park), Scott Garrett, Derek Watters (Gourock).

NON-QUALIFIERS INCLUDED
73 Graham Fox (East Kilbride), Neil Fenwick (Dunbar), James Clive (Carrick), Neil Colquhoun (Merchants of Edinburgh).
74 Ross Cameron (McDonald Ellon), Stuart Williamson (Kirkhill), Gareth Hardy (Belleisle), David Ross Nicol (Dundonald Links), Chris McCalman (unatt), Scott Gillespie (Burntisland).
75 Euan Cameron (Hamilton), Greig Hutcheon (Peterculter), Alistair Bown (Whitecraigs), Ross Neill (Drumpellier), Duncan Williamson (Kirkhill).
76 Ken Campbell (Machrihanish), Peter Kerr (Hayston), David Broadfoot (Dumfries & Co), Ian Graham (Crow Wood), Henry Wong (Wellsgreen), Paul Jamieson (Dunblane New), Terry Mathieson (Kings Acre), Gary McFarlane (Clober).
77 Ewan Davie (Dunblane New), Alan McCloskey (Bothwell Castle), Stewart Savage (Dalmuir), Anthony Mackrell (East Kilbride), Stephen Forbes (Deaconsbank).
78 Andrew Gibson (North Gailes), James Mooney (Kingscliff Golf Solutions), Steven Duncan (Balbirnie Park), Chris Campbell (Grantown on Spey), Alan Fleming (North Highland College).
79 Graeme Stewart (Gleddoch), Stephen McNally (unatt), Alastair MacKenzie (Duddingston), Paul Wilson (World of Golf), David Snodgrass (Hilton Park).
80 David MacMullen (Aberdour), Iain Donaldson (Meldrum House), Mark Finlayson (Edzell), Murray Urquhart (Spey Valley).]
81 John Ruth (Sandyhills), Gordon Stewart (Cawder), Stuart Morrison (Tain), Kenneth Monaghan (Bothwell Castle).

St Andrews student Gordon

Stevenson wins Boyd

Quaich by four strokes

The 61st Boyd Quaich Memorial students’ international golf tournament at St Andrews was won today by local student Gordon Stevenson, the first home win for a year or two.
Stevenson managed to banish the memory of a potentially-disastrous 79 in his third round to finish on two-under par 286 and win by four strokes from Matthew Williams (Aston University). Stevenson, pictured right by Cal Carson Golf Agency, began the tournament with an amateur course record of 64 on the New course on Tuesday before finishing the event with a solid 69 on the Old course today.
The international field of 71 golfers each completed 18 holes on the New course and 18 holes on the Old before the top 30 played a further 36 holes; 18 on each course.
Stevenson’s total score of 284 was just one stroke higher than the tournament record of 283 strokes, set in 1994 by South African C. Sanderson (Stellenbosch) and equalled by G. Duncan (Heriot Watt) in 2002.
The record score looked certain to be smashed until the 9th hole of the third round when Stevenson ran up a quadruple-bogey 7 en route to a round of 79 (+8) over the New Course. As he struggled, several players moved into contention and the joint best score of 70 was recorded by Marco Ciofresse (St Gallen) and Aaron O’Callaghan (Southeastern Louisiana) while Joe Campbell and Will Bowman (both North Carolina), and Daniel Sommerville (Dundee) made similar strides with their 71s.
By the end of the third round the field had become bunched with only five shots separating 15 players.
In a blustery final round it was Will Bowman (North Carolina) who made the first move with a birdie 3 at the opening hole but Stevenson soon took control as he reached the turn in 2 under par 34 with Bowman and Matthew Williams faltering.
Williams eventually claimed second place with a battling 73 and Bowman was one shot further back after his 74.
Stevenson managed the only bogey-free final round and was the deserved winner after a superb 69.
Daragh Coghlan (North Carolina) also finished strongly for 69. Three of the top five finishers were representing universities located in North Carolina.
*The Boyd Quaich is run by the Athletic Union of the University of St Andrews, and receives significant grant aid from the Royal and Ancient Golf Club with support from the St Andrews Links Trust. Without this financial help it would not be possible for many of these young golfers, especially from overseas, to be able to play in this prestigious event.
FINAL TOTALS
Par 286 (2x71, 2x72)
284 Gordon Stevenson (St Andrews) 64 72 79 69.
288 Matthew Williams (Aston) 71 71 73 73.
289 Joe Campbell (North Carolina) 76 72 71 70, Will Bowman (North Carolina) 70 74 71 74.
290 Darragh Coghlan (UNCG Greensboro) 73 73 75 69.
291 Aaron O’Callaghan (Southeastern Louisiana) 77 72 70 72, Joshua Clarke (Abertay)
71 73 73 74, Daniel Sommerville (Dundee) 70 75 72 74.
292 Scott Samuel (Canada) 71 75 76 70, Frazer McKenna (Southeastern Louisiana) 75 73 72 72.
294 Wilson Bowen (Stanford) 72 73 76 73, Christo Harms (Pretoria) 75 70 73 76.
296 Gerard Kelly (University College, Dublin) 73 70 78 75, Philipp Dirkx (ESL Grenoble)
73 74 72 77.
297 Neil McBride (Clayton State, Atlanta) 76 73 75 73, Marco Cioffrese (St Gallen HSG) 76 73 70 78.
298 John Wybar (Aberdeen) 75 72 73 78.
299 John Greene (University College, Dublin) 72 73 77 77, Kevin Duncan (Clayton State, Atlanta) 67 75 77 80, Patrick Brimmer (Loughborough) 73 73 73 80, Kevin Stack (University College, Cork) 73 70 75 81.
300 Stephen Pointon (St Andrews) 74 72 78 76
301 Jack Owens (Ulster) 72 76 80 73
302 Ben Wescoe (Yale) 76 73 74 79
304 Nicholas Powell (Guelph) 74 75 81 74
307 Aaron Taylor (Ulster) 75 74 81 77
309 Christopher Robinson (Cambridge) 75 75 77 82
313 Matthew Fowler (Leeds Metro) 76 74 77 86
314 Nick Clark (Toronto) 78 72 84 80
316 Adam Kyle (Brighton) 71 79 75 91

Mark Bookless lying joint third with

a 66 in Chiberta Grand Prix

Scottish boys stroke-play champion Mark Bookless from the Sandyhills club, Glasgow turned in a great performance in sunny southwest France - Biarritz, to be precise - to be lying joint third in a field of 114 at the end of the first round of the Chiberta Grand Prix tournament.
Bookless, 19, pictured right by Rob Eyton-Jones, returned a four-under-par 66 to be one of four players on that mark, trailing the French leader Lionel Weber by two and the second-placed Jonann Lopez-Lazaro, another Frenchman, by one.
The two other Scottish Golf Union representatives, Greg Paterson (St Andrews New) and Kris Nicol (Fraserburgh) didn't do too badly either in an event won by one of their compatriots Duncan Stewart (Grantown on Spey) three or four years ago before he turned pro.
Paterson had a par-matching 70 to be sharing 30th place while Nicol is tied for 51st place with a 72.
LEADING FIRST ROUND SCORES
Par 70. Players from France unless stated
64 Lionel Weber.
65 Johann Lopez-Lazaro.
66 Daniel Lokke (Norway), Ambroise Fourquet, Mark Bookless (Scotland), Antoine Schwartz.
Selected scores:
68 Billy Hemstock (England) (jt 14th).
69 Liam O'Neil (England) (jt 20th).
70 Greg Paterson (Scotland), Adam Keogh (England) (jt 30th).
72 Kris Nicol (Scotland) (jt 51st)
Field of 114.

David Law is Scots boys' hero with

win at 22nd to beat Italians

Scotland, having failed to qualify for the Championship Flight, cannot win the title but their target is to top Flight B and be officially ranked No 9 at the conclusion of the European boys' team championship at GC de Pan, Utrecht in the Netherlands.

And the Scots boys took a step nearer that goal by beating Italy 3-2 in their opening match-play tie.

Jack McDonald and Daniel Young won the only foursomes time to give Scotland a 1-0 lead before the four singles.

Sandy Bolton lost 5 and 4 in the lead-off singles but Paul Shields won his tie 5 and 3 and with Chris Robb losing 3 and 2 it was up to Scottish boys champion David Law from Hazlehead, Aberdeen to get the match-winning point.

David, pictured above by Cal Carson Golf Agency, had to go to the 22nd to get the personal and team victory but he's just the young man to cope with that kind of pressure.

In the Championship Flight, England's title hopes went out the window when they were beaten 4 1/2-2 1/2 by Germany.

Results:

CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT

Denmark 5, Czech Republic 2.

Netherlands 4, Sweden 3.

Belgium 2, Spain 5.

Germany 4 1/2, England 2 1/2

FLIGHT B

SCOTLAND 3, ITALY 2

Foursome: Jack McDonald & Daniel Young bt Luca Saccerello & Emanuele Sesia 2 and 1 (1-0).

Singles: Sandy Bolton lost to Mattia Miloro 5 and 4, Paul Shields bt Claudio Vigano 5 and 3, David Law bt Andrea Bolognesi at the 22nd, Chris Robb lost to Filippo Bergamaschi 3 and 2 (2-2).

Switzerland 1/2, Portugal 4 1/2.

Ireland 3, Norway 2.

Finland 1 1/2, France 3 1/2.

FLIGHT C

Poland 3, Hungary 2.

Slovenia 4, Wales 1.

BARCLAYS SCOTTISH OPEN

The Wizards of Oz in spotlight but

Laird stars on pro home debut

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE

It was a good day for Australia in the golf as well as Test match cricket today.
Left-hander Richard Green leads the Barclays Scottish Open at Loch Lomond after a seven under par 64 - and Adam Scott, currently dating tennis star Ana Ivanovic and trying to fight his way out of a slump, is only two behind.
Not so happy, though, was Lee Westwood. His build-up to next week's Open was hit by a chest infection and after struggling to a 73 the former European No 1 said he had been "stupid" to tee off.
Colin Montgomerie could do no better than the same score, but there was still a Scot as well as a Scott on the leaderboard.
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European Tour's official website

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That player was Glasgow-born, but Arizona-based Martin Laird, pictured above, over from the US Tour for his first-ever professional tournament in Europe. Martin stayed on and turned pro in the states after playing the US college circuit for four years as a Colorado State University student.
Laird, watched by proud parents and grandparents, twice chipped in en route to a 65 which put him in joint second place with 42-year-old Irishman Paul McGinley, England's Graeme Storm and Spaniard Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.
Green first came to global attention back in 1997 when he beat Greg Norman and Ian Woosnam in a play-off in Dubai, but his only European Tour victory since then came in Austria two years ago.
A curling 35-foot putt for eagle on the 13th, his fourth, settled him after he had bogeyed the one before and six birdies followed.
Playing with Westwood were Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter, both wearing tartan trousers. They scored 68 and 69 respectively, while Ernie Els, Darren Clarke and Masters champion Angel Cabrera matched Poulter's round and defending champion Graeme McDowell shot 70.
Sir Nick Faldo, playing his first tournament of the year and also in the coming Open, was two under after seven, but slipped back to a level par 71.
FIRST ROUND SCOREBOARD

Par 71

64 Richard Green (Aus)
65 Martin Laird, Paul McGinley, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa), Graeme Storm
66 Adam Scott (Aus)
67 Nick Watney (USA), Francesco Molinari (Ita), Soren Kjeldsen (Den), Jarmo Sandelin (Swe), Soren Hansen (Den), Kenneth Ferrie, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra), David Drysdale, Ross McGowan, Gregory Havret (Fra)
68 Rodney Pampling (Aus), Retief Goosen (Rsa), Robert Dinwiddie, Paul Waring, Andrew McLardy (Rsa), Brett Rumford (Aus), Rory McIlroy, Prayad Marksaeng (Tha), Paul Lawrie, Mark Foster, Marcus Fraser (Aus)
69 Thomas Aiken (Rsa), Anders Hansen (Den), James Kingston (Rsa), Ross Fisher, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus), Martin Kaymer (Ger), Mads Vibe-Hastrup (Den), Thongchai Jaidee (Tha), John Daly (USA), Ernie Els (Rsa), Shane Lowry, Wen-chong Liang (Chn), Markus Brier (Aut), Pablo Martin (Spa), Michael Campbell (Nzl), Marcel Siem (Ger), Maarten Lafeber (Ned), Angel Cabrera (Arg), Darren Clarke, Gary Lockerbie, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Jamie Donaldson, Ian Poulter, Camilo Villegas (Col)
70 Robert Jan Derksen (Ned), Gary Orr, Brian Gay (USA), Danny Willett, Anthony Wall, Robert Rock, Alexander Noren (Swe), Niclas Fasth (Swe), Alejandro Canizares (Spa), Alastair Forsyth, Miles Tunnicliff, Sam Little, Stuart Appleby (Aus), Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra), Magnus A Carlsson (Swe), Graeme McDowell, Jason McCreadie, Gareth Maybin, Scott Strange (Aus), Scott Drummond, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa), David Lynn, Mark Brown (Nzl), Seve Benson, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra), Richard Sterne (Rsa), Thomas Levet (Fra)
71 Nick Faldo, Alvaro Velasco (Spa), Damien McGrane, Martin Erlandsson (Swe), Simon Dyson, Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa), Lee Slattery, Boo Weekley (USA), Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind), Steve Webster, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa), Nick Dougherty, Paul Broadhurst, Simon Khan, Phillip Archer, Ignacio Garrido (Spa), Tano Goya (Arg)
72 Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra), David Horsey, Phillip Price, John Bickerton, Simon Wakefield, Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Gary Murphy, Stephen Gallacher, Robert Allenby (Aus), Andres Romero (Arg), David Dixon, Michael Jonzon (Swe), Gregory Bourdy (Fra), Tim Clark (Rsa), Sandy Lyle, Chris Doak
73 Mikael Lundberg (Swe), Christian Nilsson (Swe), Rory Sabbatini (Rsa), David Howell, Colin Montgomerie, Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia (Ind), Peter Lawrie, Oliver Fisher, Alvaro Quiros (Spa), Peter Hanson (Swe), Callum Macaulay, Stephen Dodd, Michael Hoey, Lee Westwood
74 Hennie Otto (Rsa), Benn Barham, Francois Delamontagne (Fra), Oliver Wilson, Metteo Manassero (Ita), Pablo Larrazabal (Spa), Jose Manuel Lara (Spa), Anthony Kang (USA), Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg), Peter O'Malley (Aus)
75 Shiv Kapur (Ind), Mikko Ilonen (Fin), Richard Finch, Pelle Edberg (Swe), Bradley Dredge, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind)
76 Anton Haig (Rsa), Marc Warren, Chapchai Nirat (Tha), Terry Pilkadaris (Aus), Nick Ludwell, Johan Edfors (Swe), Barry Lane
77 Daniel Vancsik (Arg), Azuma Yano (Jpn), Jeppe Huldahl (Den)
78 Taco Remkes (Ned)
79 Per-Ulrik Johansson (Swe), Peter Hedblom (Swe)
82 Rafael Echenique (Arg)
83 Wallace Booth (am).

Ian Brotherston has his senior moment

over home course at Dumfries & Co

Local knowledge paid off for Ian Brotherston today as he led the field with a three-under-par round of 69 at the halfway stage of the South of Scotland Seniors Open at Dumfries & County Golf Club.
Brotherston goes into the final round with a one-shot advantage over James Kinloch (Cardross) and two shots over Graham Brown (Royal Liverpool).

FIRST ROUND LEADERS
Par 69. CSS 69
66 Ian Brotherston (Dumfries & Co).
67 James Kinloch (Cardross).
68 Graham Brown (Royal Liverpool).
69 Ian Taylor (Royal Burgess), David Fulton (Castle Douglas).
70 Arthur Clark (Dumfries & Co), Michael Currie (The Glen), Dave Gardner (Broomieknowe), Patrick Tomisson (Nairn), Gordon MacDonald (Callander0.
71 David J Miller (Barassie), John Fraser (Royoal Burgess)(, Bob Humble (Kilspindie), Alistair Harkness (Southness), John W Johnston (Royal Aberdeen), Bob Stewart (Tulliallan), Donald McCart (Sherwood Forest), Glen Ballantyne.

EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR

Andrew McArthur shoots an eight-under

63 to share the lead in France

FROM PRESS OFFICER RODDY WILLIAMS
Glasgow’s Andrew McArthur fired an eight under par 63 to share the first round lead with Frenchman Alexandre Kaleka in the Challenge Tour's ALLIANZ EurOpen de Lyon in France today.
McArthur, a former US college circuit player and past Scottish amateur champion from Windyhill, got his round going with an eagle three on the third at Golf du Gouverneur and thereafter didn’t put a foot wrong as he added a further six birdies to join rookie Kaleka at the top of the leaderboard.
“I just hit it lovely,” said McArthur. “I didn’t hole many long putts, just hit it close all day. The greens are soft so you can fire the ball at the pins. I hit it quite well today so it is a step in the right direction.”
McArthur has made two top tens this season to lie 29th on the Challenge Tour Rankings and is looking to force his way into the top 20 to earn a European Tour card. In summing up his season to date, he said: “I feel I have been playing well and not scoring. It’s hard as you keep coming off with 32 or 33 putts. And when I have got in a decent position I have thrown in a double and couldn’t get it going. But the course was there for the taking today. Conditions were perfect.”
Kaleka made a flying start to his professional career having only joined the paid ranks on Monday after representing France in the European Amateur Team Championships in Wales last week. He wasted no time in making his mark with a stunning 63 which established the course record before being equalled by McArthur.
The 22 year old, from Orleans on the outskirts of Paris, said: “That was quite a start. I hit a lot of fairways and only missed one green, hit all the par fives in two and holed seven or eight very good putts. I didn’t expect to shoot so low in my first round as a professional and I will try and keep it going.”
Kaleka hopes to play a number of events before the European Tour Qualifying School where he will attempt to win his card. Among his amateur highlights was finishing second in the European Team Championships at Western Gailes in Scotland three years ago when France were denied by an Irish team which included Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, both now European Tour Champions.
Denmark’s Anders Schmidt Hansen lies third after a round of 64 with Australian Tony Carolan, Ireland’s Michael McGeady and Frenchman Anthony Grenier a further shot back.

Round One scores
Par 71
63 A Kaleka (Fra) , A McArthur (Sco)
64 A Hansen (Den)
65 M McGeady (Irl) , T Carolan (Aus), A Grenier (Fra)
66 G Houston (Wal) , B Mason (Eng) , A Snobeck (Fra), G Paddison (Nzl)
67 J Little (Eng) , J Grillon (Fra) , R Muntz (Ned) , A Zanini (Ita) , A Gee (Eng) , F Praegant (Aut) , P Golding (Eng) , C Günther (Ger) , S Manley (Wal) , R Santos (Por) , V Dubuisson (am) (Fra)
68 J Moul (Eng) , M Kramer (Ger) , J Arruti (Esp) , E Molinari (Ita) , J Lima (Por) , B Lecuona (Fra) , B Hebert (Fra), F Calmels (Fra)
69 D Nouailhac (Fra) , R McEvoy (Eng) , J Parry (Eng) , Z Scotland (Eng) , C Russo (Fra) , C Brazillier (Fra) , S Davis (Eng) , R Hie (Ina) , N Meitinger (Ger) , R Harris (Eng) , J Heath (Eng) , A Bernadet (Fra)
70 C Suneson (Esp) , S Juul (Den) , T Cruz (Por) , B Evans (Eng) , M Quiros (Esp) , S Bebb (Wal) , L Saltman (Sco) , R Steele (Eng) , A Willey (Eng) , B Miarka (Ger) , M Villegas (Col) , D Griffiths (Eng) , M Curtain (Aus) , C Rodiles (Esp) , M Zions (Aus) , L Bond (Wal) , J McLeary (Sco) , M Cort (Eng) , L Gagli (Ita) , J Colomo (Esp) , G Rosier (Fra) ,
71 T Feyrsinger (Aut) , J Campillo (Esp) , R Thuillier (Fra) , P Rowe (Eng) , O David (Fra) , L Alexandre (Fra) , A Wagner (Arg) , N Pamard (Fra) , A Högberg (Swe) , A Bruschi (Ita) , J Garcia Pinto (Esp) , L James (Eng) , J Bjerhag (Swe) , L Westerberg (Swe) , R Karlberg (Swe) , M Higley (Eng) , G Molteni (Ita) , C Moriarty (Irl) , J Quesne (Fra) , P Whiteford (Sco) , J Lando-Casanova (am) (Fra) ,
72 J Morgan (Eng) , J Morrison (Eng) , S Saavedra (Arg) , M Mills (Eng) , G Boyd (Eng) , P Relecom (Bel) , R De Sousa (Sui) , R Coles (Eng) , A Butterfield (Eng) , E Ramsay (Sco) , R Swane (Ned) , J Sjöholm (Swe) , P Del Grosso (Arg) , D Denison (Eng) , F Cupillard (Fra) , R Guillard (Fra) , J Clément (Sui)
73 D Marmion (Eng) , J Billot (Fra) , M Mauret (Fra) , N Beaufils (Fra) , J Zapata (Arg) , F Fritsch (Ger) , J Garcia Fernandez (Esp) , J Burnier (Sui) , S Luna (Esp) , J Guerrier (Fra) , J Van Hauwe (Fra) , B Pettersson (Swe) , D Antonelli (am) (Fra)
74 J Boerdonk (Ned) , F Cabrera (Arg) , M Tullo (Chi) , R Zwahlen (Fra) , D Küpper (Ger) , D Froreich (Ger) , A Mörk (Fra) , A Summers (Aus) , V Riu (Fra) , G Murray (Sco) , S Delagrange (Fra) , N Vanhootegem (Bel) , L Kennedy (Eng) , R Treis (Ger) , M Crespi (Ita) , T Lopez (Fra) , A Malinvaud (am) (Fra)
75 O Suhr (Den) , T Schuster (Ger) , M Montgaillard (Fra) , P Niederdrenk (Ger) , J Ruth (Eng) , F Colombo (Ita) , J Sallat (Fra)
76 F Schoettel (Fra) , E Moreul (Fra) , M Reale (Ita) , N Colsaerts (Bel) , I Pyman (Eng) ,
77 M Hill (Fra) , R Eyraud (Fra) , N Fox (Irl)
78 G Plumet (Fra), Å Nilsson (Swe) , T Ferreira (RSA) , M Saluda (Pol)
79 D Perrier (Fra), A Haindl (RSA), M Stelmasiak (Pol)
80 S Henry (Sco)
83 M Pilkington (Wal), G Ruste (Fra)

Grant Forrest sits proudly with the Scottish Under-16 boys' championship trophy at Largs today (image by courtesy of Rob Eyton-Jones). Click to enlarge.

Lothians 1-2 and Scotland 1-2-3 in

FirstpointUSA U-16 championship

Lothians lads Grant Forrest (Craigielaw) and West Linton's Fraser Thain finished 1-2 in the FirstpointUSA.com Scottish Under-16 boys' championship at Largs Golf Club today.
Overnight leader Forrest held on to his advantage with a closing round of level par 70 for a one-under-par total of 209. He had enough in hand of the field to be able to afford to bogey the 15th and 18th and still win by two shots from Thain.
Earlier Forrest had birdies the second, third and sixth in reaching the turn in 33. His fourth and last birdie came at the 12th.
Thain ruined his chance with a double bogey at the 15th and a bogey at the 17th, with a birdie at the 16th sandwiched between, as he finished with a 71 for 211.
Nick Ward (Redbourn), one shot off the pace at the start of the day, faded with a 75 to 215.
Despite a strong English "invasion" and several Continental entries, Scotland provided the first three finishers. Eamon Bradley (Mount Ellen) came third on 212 with a final round of 71.
Best last-day effort was a three-under-par 67 by Ben Franklin (Rochford Hundred). He finished on 213 and tied with Ewan Scott (St Andrews) for fourth place.

NEWS RELEASE BY SCOTTISH GOLF UNION
Grant Forrest from Craigielaw claimed the First Point USA Scottish U16’s Stroke Play Championship hosted at Largs this afternoon.
After taking the narrowest of leads into the third and final round today on the Ayrshire course, the national U16 squad member held his nerve to win his first national title, and said afterwards that he was ‘absolutely delighted’.
The 16 year old Lothians player added a level par 70 to his earlier rounds of 70 and 69 for a three round total of 209 (1 under) to finish two shots ahead of fellow SGU Academy player Fraser Thain from West Linton.
Commencing his final outing with a one shot margin, Forrest got off to a good start with a brace of birdies at the 2nd and 3rd hole, “I was pretty nervous at the start after finishing yesterday’s round as the leader and I was certainly feeling the pressure today. My early birdies helped settle me down and I just tried to play my own game. “
Two further birdies, one at the 6th and his last at the par 5 12th helped to alleviate his four bogeys and secured the Stewart’s Melville College student his biggest ever individual win.
Forrest added, “I have had a really good season so far, being part of the winning U16 Quadrangular side earlier this year was great but this is definitely the highlight for me and I have waited a while for this.”
Selected to represent Scotland at the European Masters later this month, Forrest concluded, “Being in the SGU national squad and Academy has really helped my golf this last year and I have dropped 2 maybe 3 shots from my handicap, so the support has really helped me improve and I hope this continues.”
15 year old Fraser Thain carded a third round one over par 71 to make it a Lothians 1 – 2 finish. Thain, who is coached by Colin Brooks said, “I played steady golf and was pleased to recover from a bad double bogey at 15th with a birdie three at the next which helped my score today. However it wasn’t quite enough, but fair play to Grant he has played consistently throughout the year and really deserved this win.”
Eamon Bradley from Mount Ellen claimed the bronze medal with a three round aggregate of 212, one shot ahead of England’s Ben Franklin and 13 year old Ewan Scott from St Andrews who finished tied for 4th place.
Current U14 Stroke Play Champion Nick Ward from Redbourn who was just one shot off the lead last night slipped off the pace today to finish in 6th place, whilst former U14 Champion Harry Whittle (Woburn) took a share of 7th place tied with the lowest handicapper in the field, Tanapol Vattanapisit from Thailand.
Brendan Fraser, Sports Consultant with event sponsors First Point USA said after the presentations, “Grant Forrest was a very worthy winner today and there was great scoring from a number of contenders for the title on a course which was in fantastic condition. I would like to pay tribute to the players which demonstrated a great competitive spirit in this 54 hole tournament and as sponsors we are delighted to be associated with the SGU and this championship.”

FINAL TOTALS
Par 210 (3x70). CSS 71 71 71.
209 Grant Forrest (Craigielaw) 70 68 70.
211 Fraser Thain (West Linton) 70 70 71.
212 Eamon Bradley (Mount Ellen) 71 70 71.
213 Ben Franklin (Rochford Hundred) 73 73 67, Ewan Scott (St Andrews) 70 71 72.
215 Nick Ward (Redbourn) 71 69 75.
216 Tanapol Vattanapisit (Thailand) 76 73 67, Harry Whittle (Woburn) 73 73 70.
217 Lee Morgan (Newbattle) 76 73 68, Liam Johnston (Dumfries & Co) 76 70 71, Will Chambers (Mid Herts) 71 70 76.
218 Bertrand Mommaerts (Belgium) 76 73 69, Jamie Bower (Meltham) 71 72 75.
219 Thomas Rowland (Prudhoe) 76 72 71.
220 Jamie Savage (Cawder) 69 77 74.
221 Andrew Whyte (St Andrews New) 75 75 71, Lawrence Allan (Alva) 73 75 73, Tom Harris (Castletown) 75 72 74, Nicholas Smits (Australia) 70 75 76.
223 Moritz Hausweiler (Germany) 76 75 72, Craig Ross (Kirkhill) 73 75 75, Scott Wearing (Bishopbriggs) 74 73 76.
224 Tangi Merckx (Belgium) 76 73 75, Ewen Donaldson (Craigielaw0 70 76 78, Daniel McConnachie (Dumfries & Co) 73 73 78.
225 Greig Stewart (Crieff) 75 75 75, Gary Chalmers (Dollar 78 71 76, Danny Hawksworth (Hollins Hall) 76 72 77.
226 Ross Gillan (Torrance House) 73 78 75, Neil Beattie (St Andrews) 75 75 76, Shaun Connor (Ralston) 76 73 77, Alasdair McDougall (Elderslie) 77 72 77,
227 Blair Dodd (Greenburn) 77 71 79, Tom Bacon (Mellor & Townscliffe) 74 73 80, Thomas Goodair (Woodsome Hall) 70 73 84.
228 Connor Campblel (Inchmarlo) 75 76 77, Jordan Milne (Elg)n 76 74 78, Joshua Jamieson (St Andrews New) 72 75 81.
228 Luca Olivotto (Belgium) 74 76 79, Tom Heggarty (Royal Liverpool) 72 78 79, Gary Daoust (Belgium) 75 74 80.
230 Freddie Brown (Nairn Dunbar).

Dunbar's Montgomery has given lessons to

Gordon Brown and met Neil Armstrong

FROM THE EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS WEBSITE
By MARTIN DEMPSTER
He's given lessons to Gordon Brown and met Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon. But, for the time being, Jacky Montgomery is more interested in looking after the interests of some lesser-known individuals.
The club professional at Dunbar is the PGA Scottish Region's new captain, having earned that honour on the back of a career that was shaped in the company of some great golfers."I played in the Junior World Cup with the likes of Jose Maria Olazabal and Jesper Parnevik and maybe that exposure made me realise I wasn't as good a golfer as I thought I was," recalled Montgomery.
"I decided that I needed to have a qualification as a back-up, which is why I did my PGA training."
After starting off at Dunblane, Montgomery had spells at Ladybank, where he played as an amateur, Dunfermline and Burntisland before arriving at the East Links in Dunbar 10 years ago.
"It's been fantastic for me here," he admitted. "For starters, it's a local final qualifying venue for The Open and we are delighted that it's coming back to Muirfield in 2013. Potentially, we can also have people playing golf here 12 months per year, which is a nice situation for a club professional like myself."
So, what about those lessons for the PM and also meeting the first man on the moon?
"Gordon Brown was a member of the Shadow Cabinet when he came to me for some lessons at Burntisland," recalled Montgomery.
"He has the potential to be a decent player, to be honest, but is short on time as far as golf is concerned.
"As for Neil Armstrong, he came to Dunbar last year with one of our overseas members. It was a great thrill to meet one of the most famous men in the world and he was a real golf enthusiast."
In 2002, when we were a final qualifying course for The Open, Steve Elkington qualified at Dunbar before narrowly losing out in a play-off to Ernie Els.
"I joined him for one of his practice rounds at Dunbar and he was an absolute gentlemen, giving me a fascinating insight into a Major champion's approach, both mentally and physically. He also gave some of our lucky juniors an impromptu clinic."
Montgomery, who lives in Haddington with wife Pamela and their three children, Holly, Alice and Campbell, is proud to have seen former assistants like Alasdair Good (Gullane) and Russell Smith (Gleneagles) go on to become successful club pros themselves.
He is also pleased that the Northern Open, one of the top events on the Tartan Tour, will have a sponsor again next year after the prize fund for the 2009 version was vastly reduced.
"We have a nice sponsor – an oil company – coming on board which means that our two flagship events will be in good shape as Gleneagles has become a wonderful home for the Scottish Championship."

ASIAN AND EUROPEAN TOURS FORM NEW ALLIANCE

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY EUROPEAN TOUR
The Asian Tour and The European Tour are proud to announce today an alliance designed to invigorate the game internationally by fortifying existing co-sanctioned tournaments, generating new competition at all levels and reinforcing relationships with sponsors, tournament promoters, national associations and regional professional bodies.

This alliance will ensure unity and cohesion on the commercial and media fronts. The immediate strategic aim will be to further enhance and develop the media global platform available to all co-sanctioned tournaments by amalgamating the TV/Media production and distribution facilities and networks of both Tours.

Omega Mission Hills World Cup European

Qualifier to be played in Estonia

The Estonian Golf & Country Club will have the honour of hosting the 2009 Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier from September 24 – 27.
Two-man teams from around the globe are expected to battle it out for the three qualifying spots available and the chance to take part in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup at Mission Hills , China from November 26 – 29.
The PGA European Tour will have responsibility for overseeing the European qualifying tournament and will work closely with the both staff and members of the Estonian Golf & Country Club to deliver a memorable Estonian experience for competing players.
PGA European Tour director of international policy Keith Waters recognised the importance of bringing the Omega Mission Hills World Cup Qualifier to Estonia .
He said: “Staging the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European qualifier in Estonia is very much in keeping with the spirit upon which the World Cup was founded. Bringing a truly international event such as this to an emerging golf market such as Estonia can only serve to further accelerate the growth of the game in this country and also in this part of Europe .”
Estonian Golf & Country Club, which opened in 2005, is one of the finest golf courses in Eastern Europe and one of only eight European Tour courses in Europe .
The president of the Estonian Golf & Country Club, Mait Schmidt, added: “It is a great honour for Estonian Golf & Country Club to be the host venue of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European qualifier and to be able to showcase golf in Estonia .
“ Golf is growing rapidly in Estonia and we look forward to hosting the best players from Europe and around the globe as they attempt to qualify for a world-class event such as the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.”
Locals say that when God created the coastal land of the Estonian Golf & Country Club, he must have intended it to be a golf course, as it winds its way so harmoniously along the Baltic Coast and the Jägala River delta.
The club boasts not only the beautiful 18-hole Sea Course with its spectacular sea views and signature par four 13th, but also the historic nine-hole Stone Course, which meanders through impressive rock formations and gigantic stones from the ice age.
Situated just half-an-hour from the centre of Estonia’s capital city, Tallinn, and only a 15-minute drive from Tallinn International Airport, the club is ideally situated and can be accessed easily from all major cities in Europe.
The format for the first and third rounds of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European qualifier will be fourball (betterball), with foursomes (alternate shot) to be used in the second and final rounds.
The Official World Golf Rankings will determine the first 18 nations to qualify for the Omega Mission Hills World Cup itself and the European qualifier will join the Asian and South American qualifiers to determine the balance of the field.
The leading three teams from each qualifier will earn a place in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.
The Omega Mission Hills World Cup was first played in 1953 as the Canada Cup. The event is set to continue through to 2018, and most probably beyond, at Mission Hills, following the signing of an agreement in 2007 which brought the prestige watch manufacturer Omega together with the club which introduced the game of golf to China , by first hosting the World Cup in 1995.
John Jay Hopkins, the noted Canadian industrialist, brought to reality a dream that golf could promote goodwill between nations with the inaugural World Cup played in Montreal in 1953, then called the Canada Cup and re-titled the World Cup in 1967.

Trevor Immelman ruled out of Open field

South African Trevor Immelman, who has been out of action since withdrawing from the Memorial Tournament a month ago with a wrist injury, will be forced to miss the Open Championship, but hopes to return to play the following week at the RBC Canadian Open.
“The Open Championship has always been one of my two favourite tournaments and it has been a thrill for me to compete in the tournament since my first time there in 2002,” said Immelman. “My wrist injury has been responding well to treatment, but at this point, it just isn’t far enough along to allow me to be ready for the Open. As disappointing as it will be to not be there, I have to continue doing what’s right for my long-term health. I’m looking forward to continuing with the rehabilitation and getting back to doing what I love, playing golf.”
Immelman, a former Masters winner, withdrew from the Memorial after experiencing discomfort in his left wrist for a number of months. The injury was diagnosed as severe tendinitis with tears in the cartilage.

Aberdeen & District Pennant League Scoreboard

SPONSORED BY THE CULTS HOTEL


NIGG BAY 4.5, CALEDONIAN 1.5
Venue: Balnagask
Nigg Bay players first

D Yeats & R Young bt R Pirie & D Forbes 7 and 6.
L O'Connor & N Slater bt M Beattie & A Divers 6 and 5.
G Stewart & W Riley bt S Finnie & W Ross 1 hole.
R Bothwell & G Grimmer bt D Gardiner & K Smith 3 and 2.
K Daglish & R Forbes lost to S Allan & B Reid 3 and 2.
I. Welsh & A. Cadman halved with D Mullen & S Smith.