Tiger five off the pace on New York waterfront course

Tiger Woods shot a one-under-par 70 in the first round of the Barclays Classic at Liberty National.
Americans Paul Goydos and Steve Marino shared the early lead with 65s.
Goydos, who started at the 10th, made five birdies in six holes from the 16th on his way to a six-under-par round, while Marino posted four birdies on each side and reached seven-under before a bogey at the last after a wayward drive.
Woods dropped a stroke at the seventh after driving into a fairway bunker at the 484yd par-4 hole on the scenic course laid out on the New York waterfront across from the Statue of Liberty.
The tournament is the opening leg of the U.S. Tour's four-event FedExCup series that will pay a $10 million (£6.1 million) prize to the overall points leader following the Tour Championship finale next month in Atlanta.
"It's a long, hard golf course with difficult greens," Goydos said, adding that he took advantage of relatively calm conditions. "I don't think it's meant to be easy."
One stroke behind the co-leaders on five-under 66 were American Webb Simpson and Fredrik Jacobson of Sweden.
In the clubhouse on three-under 68 were Australians Rod Pampling and Robert Allenby, Sweden's Richard Johnson and Americans Justin Leonard, Nick Watney and Kevin Streelman.

Meet Michael Sim, a man who loves fast cars,

barbecues - and winning golf tournaments!

By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
He's one of the hottest players in golf. Period.
Three wins this year. A play-off loss, a third and three other top-10s. A tie for 18th at the U.S. Open -- just two shots short of an invitation to Pebble Beach next June.
He's also a man who currently finds himself with a bit of unexpected time on his hands. Five weeks to be exact.
Meet Michael Sim, the latest addition to the US PGA Tour roster. The 24-year-old Aberdeen-born Aussie earned his way onto the tourlast weekend when he won the Christmas in October Classic on the Nationwide Tour. It was his third Nationwide win this year, and that meant an automatic promotion to the US PGA Tour.

Unfortunately, the timing was a little rough on momentum. With the PGA Tour Play-offs for the FedExCup in full swing, Sim will have to wait until the Turning Stone Resort Championship in late September to make his official US Tour debut in 2009 (He has already played a season on the US Tour three years ago).
"It is disappointing I can't play right now,'' he said, "because I feel like my game is in a good spot.''
But a mini-holiday isn't a bad thing, either.
After a brief stop in Scottsdale following his Sunday win, Sim jumped in his car and headed to California for a little R&R. He even hit the beach in Del Mar and gave surfing a bit of a go Tuesday.
"It didn't go very well,'' he laughed. "I had another go (Wednesday) morning, and I got kind of frustrated with it . So, I bought a body board ... I wouldn't say I'm a surfer.''
He'll leave that to fellow Aussie Adam Scott, one of the players he looked up to when he was growing up Down Under. Others? Greg Norman, of course, and Scottsdale resident Geoff Ogilvy, who has become a friend, mentor and practice-round buddy.
"I feel like he's a good guy to talk to,'' Sim said. "You can ask him any question you want to about the Tour and how he developed himself. He's always willing to help.''
Sim isn't shy about asking for help, period. He credits his team -- swing coach David Milne, trainer Ramsay McMaster and brain coach Angela Pampling -- for his success this season.
"I've played well in just about every start I've had this year,'' he said. "I'm not sure what the reason is for that. Obviously, my preparation and the people around me are top level.''
Milne and McMaster have been with him since he came to the States as a rising star, and Pampling, who is married to Tour player Rod, joined the team in December.
"That's definitely helped me this year,'' he said. "I've had three wins working with her. It's nice to talk to somebody in America about the mental side of the game."
Pampling has worked with him on breathing and thought techniques, and it paid off coming down the stretch last Sunday when he beat Josh Teater. It was a big change from the Cox Classic Presented by Lexus of Omaha in July when Sim had a chance to win No. 3, but nothing really felt right.
"I never got focused,'' he said. "I never got into the final round and saw the shots.''
Sunday, he did. In fact, he said he had a "great tussle with Josh.''
The win vaulted him to 57th in the world rankings and had some people wondering if he was thinking at all about a chance to be one of Norman's picks for the Presidents Cup. A reach, considering Norman has seven other more experienced players to chose from ahead of Sim in the rankings.
Sim admitted the thought was intriguing, but no one had contacted him. And he's never even met Norman.
"I think it would be a big step to play on that team,'' he said. "I obviously haven't been playing the PGA Tour this year, so I haven't been playing against the best players in the world every event, where obviously the Nationwide Tour is a developmental tour. But winning is winning, and doing that and my form this year has been good, and I've played a couple of majors, and I got to play with Tiger (Woods).
"It's been a great year, but it's up to Greg and what he wants to do with the Presidents Cup. It would be great to play. I feel like I haven't been playing the right tour to get selected on that team. If it happens great but if not, it's not going to affect me too much.''
Sim plans to visit Australia for a visit with McMaster, then he'll come back for the Fall Series. After that, he'll head back Down Under to play in the Australian Masters and several other events. He plans to kick off his 2010 season in Hawaii.
It will be Sim's second try at the US Tour. He earned his card for the 2007 season but was slowed by a stress fracture in his spine, which was diagnosed in December 2006. In 2008, he split time between the PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour.
The fracture healed, but Sim now spends at least an hour a day stretching in the fitness trailer to keep his back in shape.
The No. 1 amateur in the world in 2005, Sim made news quickly when he came to the U.S. He lost a play-off in his first Nationwide Tour event -- the 2006 Jacobs Creek Open Championship, then won the PalmettoPride Classic later that season. Two tough seasons and three more Nationwide Tour wins later, Sim can't say enough about the Nationwide Tour.
"It's a great development tour,'' Sim said. "There are a lot of great players out there. Past PGA Tour winners, PGA Tour players, a lot of college players coming through
"... It feels like each week you're out there, the fields are really strong and on form. It's a great place to play. It's a tour where you have to win to get on the PGA Tour, pretty much. It's hard to go through that tour without winning. I think it's a great tour for your game and to see where you're at.''
For Sim, that means streaking up the ranking list. Even with his enforced five-week break. And there are more points up for grabs the rest of the year.
His goals? Another win would be nice. But the top thing on his mind? Cracking the top 50 in the world so he will be exempt for all of 2010's majors.
Sim was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, but moved to Australia with his family as a seven-year-old, having been introduced to golf by his father at the age of five, before he left Scotland.

Of course, he wasn't just a one-sport kid. In fact, he played basketball until he was 14. His idol? Michael Jordan.
And now, he's a car guy -- loves the fast ones -- and he barbeques every chance he gets. It doesn't hurt that he's got a great network of Aussies in Scottsdale -- Ogilvy, Matt Goggin, Nick Flanagan (who earned a three-win promotion to the tour back in 2007) and Steve Allen, among others -- to grill with.
And don't tempt him with American brownies. He might eat the entire pan.
But do look for him -- in five weeks -- to carry over his momentum in the Fall Series and into 2010. He'll be ready this time around.
"I'll be a lot more experienced,'' he said. "I've obviously played in two majors this year and made both cuts and finished top 25 at US Open, and I feel like I'm ready to fly on the PGA Tour.

JOHNNIE WALKER CHAMPIONSHIP

Paul Lawrie is swinging and singing

in the rain to lead at Gleneagles

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Aberdeen's Paul Lawrie warmed the hearts of his countrymen in testing, wet conditions to lead the field after the opening day of the Johnnie Walker Championship over the PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles Hotel, Perthshire.
The 1999 Open Champion mastered the afternoon deluge to card a superb five under par 67 - the perfect start to his latest bid for a first victory since The Celtic Manor Wales Open in 2002.
The 40 year old, pictured, broke clear of a group of four players on four under par to head into the second round one stroke ahead of fellow Scot Steven O'Hara, Australian Wade Ormsby, Sweden’s Âke Nilsson and defending champion Grégory Havret.
Ironically, at a time when Scotland's recent lack of European Tour success has been highlighted in the media, Lawrie and O'Hara showed that the host nation do not lack talent. Lawrie did not drop a stroke all day and the highlight was a 40ft putt for an eagle on the long ninth.
At the Open Championship last month he sought help from Padraig Harrington's coach Bob Torrance and since then has made the journey from Aberdeen to Largs - three hours each way - five or six times.
"And I hate driving," he said. "I looked into hiring a helicopter, but it was £2,000 for the trip and I thought that was too much.
"I get up at 4.30am to avoid the Glasgow traffic and be there for 7.30 and then we have four and a half hours hitting balls before I go home. The first time I saw him Bob said he didn't see it as a major overhaul, but David Leadbetter once said that swing changes take 10,000 balls or 10,000 hours - I can't remember which.
"I didn't do what we worked on the first time I played (in a tournament). He (Bob) didn't give me a talking to, but said we are a team and we have to work this out together. I'm hitting more balls and swinging in my room to get the feeling and it feels fantastic.
"It's been too long since I won. I've always wanted to work with Bob Torrance, but it's not been the right time. I think it's the right time now."
Havret got to five under then had bogeys at the fifth and seventh, but finished by picking up another shot.
One of his earlier birdies came on the 12th, which because of Wednesday's heavy and prolonged rain had been reduced from a 445yd par four to a driveable 280yd hole.
Last year the 12th hole on the PGA Centenary Course was a par-5 , but it was decided to change it with The 2014 Ryder Cup in mind.
“My driving was really, really consistent and that was definitely the key,” said Havret. “It's obviously a very good test as a driving course, and if you don't miss any fairways, you have a good chance to go low, and that's what happened.”
Former Walker Cup player O'Hara, who became a father three weeks ago, birdied five of the last eight holes for his 68, while in stark contrast Ormsby reached seven under and then double bogeyed the short 17th and dropped another shot on the par-5 last.
“I slept in the spare room last night,” said O’Hara, who at 181st on The Race to Dubai needs a strong finish to the season in order to secure his card for next season. “The wee one is only three weeks old, so he needs to be fed and winded every three to four hours - it's quite tiring trying to feed him and all that. So I had a decent sleep last night for the first time in a while.”

European Tour Scoreboard
JOHNNIE WALKER CHAMPIONSHIPS
Gleneagles Hotel PGA Centenary Course
FIRST ROUND
Par 72
67 Paul Lawrie.
68 Ake Nilsson (Rsa), Wade Ormsby (Aus), Steven O'Hara, Gregory Havret (Fra)
69 Christian Cevaer (Fra), Shiv Kapur (Ind), Soren Hansen (Den), Alan McLean, Gareth Maybin, Danny Willett, Graeme Storm, Daniel Vancsik (Arg), Anthony Wall, Alexander Noren (Swe), Jamie Donaldson
70 Patrik Sjoland (Swe), Simon Khan, Chinnarat Phadungsil (Tha), Pablo Larrazabal (Spa), Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg), John E Morgan, Michael Jonzon (Swe), Gregory Bourdy (Fra), Santiago Luna (Spa), Marcus Fraser (Aus)
71 Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra), Richie Ramsay, Mikko Ilonen (Fin), David Howell, Scott Arnold (Aus), Klas Eriksson (Swe), Stephen Leaney (Aus), Maarten Lafeber (Ned), Jose Manuel Lara (Spa), Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa), Danny Lee (Nzl), Callum Macaulay, Phillip Archer, Chapchai Nirat (Tha), Bernd Wiesberger (Aut), Mark Foster, Jyoti Randhawa (Ind)
72 Jonathan Caldwell, Joakim Haeggman (Swe), Damien McGrane, Birgir Hafthorsson (Ice), Pelle Edberg (Swe), Peter Hedblom (Swe), Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor), Michael Curtain (Aus), Pablo Martin (Spa), Richard Bland, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra), Gary Lockerbie, Alexandre Rocha (Bra), Taco Remkes (Ned), Fabrizio Zanotti (Par), Paul McGinley, Chris Doak
73 Gary Orr, Oliver Wilson, David Orr, Wil Besseling (Ned), Stephen Dodd, Sam Little, Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra), Francois Delamontagne (Fra), Terry Pilkadaris (Aus), Mark Brown (Nzl), Paul Broadhurst, Lee Slattery, Gary Murphy, Richard Finch, Inder Van Weerelt (Ned), Ignacio Garrido (Spa)
74 David Carter, Zane Scotland, Martin Erlandsson (Swe), Michael Campbell (Nzl), James Kingston (Rsa), Mads Vibe-Hastrup (Den), Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia (Ind), John Bickerton, Andrew Marshall, Shane Lowry, Alastair Forsyth, Richard Green (Aus), Tano Goya (Arg), Ross McGowan
75 Robert Jan Derksen (Ned), Craig Lee, Thomas Aiken (Rsa), Phillip Price, Marcel Siem (Ger), Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Spa), Rafael Echenique (Arg), Seve Benson, Paul McKechnie, Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Marco Ruiz (Par), David Drysdale, Sam Walker, Niclas Fasth (Swe), Bradley Dredge
76 Robert Dinwiddie, Sion Bebb, Peter Lawrie, Simon Dyson, Simon Wakefield, Stephen Gray, Marc Warren, Alejandro Canizares (Spa), Stuart Davis, Colin Montgomerie, David Horsey, Stuart Manley, David Lynn, Kane Webber (Aus), Brett Rumford (Aus), David Dixon, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra), Emanuele Canonica (Ita), Barry Lane, Peter O'Malley (Aus)
77 Carlos Del Moral (Spa), Alvaro Velasco (Spa), Marcus Higley, Greig Hutcheon, Chris Kelly, Miles Tunnicliff, Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa)
78 Roope Kakko (Fin), John Mellor, Oliver Fisher
79 Mikael Lundberg (Swe)
80 Chris Russell
81 Scott Barr (Aus), Jason McCreadie
82 Ulrich Van Den Berg (Rsa), Thomas Bjorn (Den)

PGA EuroPro Tour in Essex

Paul Reed clickety-clicks to lead by one at Five Lakes

By ANTHONY LEAVER
Paul Reed holds a one stroke lead at five under par going into the final round of The Brooks Brothers 2009 Classic at Five Lakes Golf, Country Club & Spa in Essex.
Reed (Bristol & Clifton GC) shot a level par opening round of 71 but made short work of improving on that with a fast start to his second round. He picked up five birdies and one bogey on the front nine to go out at four under and a sixth birdie of the day at the last saw him take sole possession of the lead with a round of 66.
Reed currently sits back in 88th spot on the Order of Merit, so he may have timed his form to perfection as the 2009 PGA EuroPro Tour draws to a close.
McElhinney (Team Ireland) matched Reed’s round of 66 to sit one stroke behind him going into Friday’s final round after starting the second round at one over. The Irishman roared down the front nine and picked up four birdies to move to three under for the tournament at the turn.
A fifth birdie of the day at the tenth saw him move to four under and he managed to stay there after dropping a shot at the 12th – picking up his sixth birdie of the day at the last to shoot 66.
Nicky Harris and Sean Whiffin began the day tied in fourth spot and sit in a three-way tie for third after both carding one under rounds of 70.
Harris (Whitefield GC) sits just outside the top ten in 12th spot on the Order of Merit and could make significant strides with a high finish in Essex, picking up three birdies and two bogeys in his second round effort.
Whiffin dropped to one under through 13 holes with three bogeys and two birdies before stringing three birdies together from the 14th to move briefly to four under before dropping a shot at the 17th.
Matthew Ford is the third player in third spot – aiming to win back-to-back Brooks Brothers Classic titles after winning at Five Lakes in 2008. Ford (Marriott Tudor Park) began the day at one under par and picked up two birdies with a bogey on both nines to shoot 69 and join Harris and Whiffin.
Sandeep Grewal (Heswall) joined Reed and McElhinney in shooting 66 to move to two under for the tournament, where he is joined by Lee Harper (Archerfield Links), Gary Carter and overnight co-leader Matthew Evans (Rotherham GC).
Round of the day belonged to Adam Frayne who set a new course record with his eight under 63 to move to one under for the tournament.
Frayne (St Mellion) picked up five birdies in his front nine with a sixth at the tenth to move to six under. He dropped a shot at the 12th but three birdies in his last four holes saw him home in a remarkable score which puts him in contention on the final day. He is joined by another overnight co-leader Andrew Shakespear (Five Lakes), Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel), Ian Keenan (Royal Liverpool) and Jason Kelly (Wentworth) in a tie for tenth place.
Daniel Brooks (Mill Hill) turned his tournament around with a fine second round 65 to move to level par for the tournament.
Brooks looked in danger of missing out on the chance to improve on his third place in the Order of Merit after shooting a 77 on Wednesday and fared little better at the start of his second round, picking up two birdies after starting on the back nine but dropping those shots at 16 and 17 to be level for the day through the front nine. But the 22 year-old eagled the third and grabbed three birdies from the fourth and another birdie at the last to record a six under second round.
Fourth placed man Jack Doherty (North Gailes) joins Brooks at level par (=15th), while second placed man Tom Haylock (Ground Construction Ltd) is two over for the tournament (=25th), but Elliot Saltman (Aegon) will not be in action after finishing on seven over.
Fifty-six players made the cut at five over and the final round of The Brooks Brothers 2009 Classic at Five Lakes Golf, Country Club & Spa in Essex gets underway at 8am with the final pairing of Reed and McElhinney teeing-off at 12.13pm.
The full Leaderboard is available at http://www.europrotour.com/ via the Score Updates link, where live scoring of the conclusion to the 11th event on the 2009 PGA EuroPro Tour will be available.
SCOTS' SCORES
Par 142 (2x71)
Lee Harper 70, 70 -2
Paul Doherty 74, 67 -1
Jack Doherty 71, 71 Lvl
Barry Hume 73, 71 +2
Steven Mackie 68, 78 +4
Mark Kerr 76, 71 +5
MISSED THE CUT
Elliot Saltman 74, 75 +7
Steven Hume 75, 75 +8
Zack Saltman 77, 75 +10
Shaun McAllister 80, 72 +10
Chris McCalman 79, 74 +11
John Gallagher 78, 76 +12
Lorne Kelly 81, 73 +12
Ross Cameron 75, 80 +13

Niven and Finlay tie on 70 at Ballumbie Castle Alliance

By LEE SUTHERLAND
This week Midland Golfer’s A. Herd Team competition at Ballumbie Castle Golf Club, Dundee produced joint winners in the scratch section.
Mike Niven (Alloa), a six-handicapper, and +1 home-course player George Finlay both scored one over par 70.
Leading handicap prize went to Scott Brough, who plays off six at Alyth. He had a net 69. The leading team prize went to Ian Butchart (Strathmore) (6), David Vicary (Cragiehill) (10) and Alistair Gray (St Andrews) (10)
LEADING SCRATCH
70 M Niven (Alloa), G Finlay (Ballumbie Castle).
71 J Stevenson (Braehead) p.
72 S O’Donnell (Balbirnie Park) ap.
74 L Vannet (Carnoustie Links) p.
75 S Brough (Alyth).
76 S Cargill (Arbroath), E Rae (Arbroath), D Adams (Carnoustie).
77 L Sutherland (Ballumbie Castle).
78 L Kinnear (Carnoustie), J Crawford (Dunblane New).
LEADING HANDICAP
64 M Niven (Alloa) (6).
69 S Brough (Alyth) (6).
70 D Adams (Carnoustie) (6).
71 I Mitchell (Downfield) (8), R Lamont (Bathgate) (8), J Crawford (Dunblane New) (7).
72 E Rae (Arbroath) (4), D Sievwright (Drumoig) (12), J Rankin (Scotscraig) (9).

A.Herd Team Competition
60 I Butchart (Strathmore) (6), D Vicary (Craigiehill) (10), A Gray (St Andrews) (10).
61 (better inward half) L Kinnear (Carnoustie), S Brough (Alyth) (6), S O'Donnell (Balbirnie Park) ap.
61 (better inward half) J Rankin (Scotscraig) (9), J Black (Scotscraig) (4), S Andrews (Ladybank) (9).

Qualifiers for the JTC Kitchens Midland Golfer’s Alliance Championship in April
M Niven (Alloa)
G Finlay (Ballumbie Castle)
S. O’Donnell (Balbirnie Park) ap.
S Brough (Alyth)

Next week's meeting
Tuesday, September `
Blairgowrie (Lansdowne)
Tee reserved: 8.30am - 12.30

Miller has his senior moments as he reaches semi-finals Kilmarnock Barassie member David J Miller had a superb day in the Scottish senior men's amateur match-play golf championship over Newmachar Golf Club's Hawkshill course today. The 55-year-old fourth best qualifier was two under par in his morning second-round 5 and 4 win over Brian Christie (Wilton) and then four under par in beating the winner of the inaugural championship last year, Ronnie Maclean (Hamilton) by 4 and 2. Miller now meets 61-year-old Stephen Ellis (Heritage GS), conqueror of top seed Bob Stewart (Tulliallan) by one hole before he despatched Robert Jack (Liberton) by 2 and 1 to reach the last four. In the lower half of the draw, No 2 seed and captain of the Scottish Seniors Golfing Society, Gordon MacDonald (Callander) was beaten 2 and 1 by 58-year-old Ian Taylor (Royal Burgess) who went on to beat Anglo-Scot Donald McCart (Sherwood Forest) by 4 and 3 to reach the semi-finals. Taylor now plays the last surviving North-east hope, George Paterson from the Aberdeen Northern club. George, 57, beat John Broadfoot (Turnberry) by one hole and then scored a 2 and 1 win over Robert Gill (Gerrards Cross). The semi-finals start at 9.30 and 9.45 with the final teeing off at 2.30pm. RESULTS SECOND ROUND Stephen Ellis (Heritage GS) bt Bob Stewart (Tulliallan) 1 hole. Robert Jack (Liberton) bt Andrew Laird (Deeside) 2 and 1. David J Miller (Kilmarnock Barassie) bt Brian Christie (Wilton) 5 and 4. Ronnie Maclean (Hamilton) bt Sandy Pirie (Hazlehead) 2 and 1. == Ian Taylor (Royal Burgess) bt Gordon MacDonald (Callander) 2 and 1. Donald McCart (Sherwood Forest) bt Derek Murphy (Kinross) at 21st George Paterson (Northern) bt John Broadfoot (Turnberry) 1 hole. Robert Gill (Gerrards Cross) bt David Downie (Kirriemuir) 2 and 1. QUARTER-FINALS Ellis bt Jack 2 and 1. Miller bt Maclean 4 and 2. Taylor bt McCart 4 and 3. Paterson bt Gill 2 and 1.

Challenge Tour fireworks from Scot in Poland

Record-breaking Eric Ramsay's

11 birdies in stunning 61

FROM PAUL SYMES, Challenge Tour Press Officer
Carnoustie's Eric Ramsay equalled the lowest opening round in the history of the Challenge Tour with a stunning 61 on the first day of the DHL Wroclaw Open.
The Scot, who missed the inaugural event last year to watch his beloved Manchester United beat Chelsea in the Champions League final, experienced similar feelings of joy after posting an astonishing 11 birdies at the par 70 course at Toya Golf and Country Club in Wroclaw, Poland.
Ramsay thereby joined a select group which includes Spain’s Rafael Cabrera-Bello, England’s David Geall and Frenchman Michael Lorenzo-Vera, each of whom also managed opening rounds of 61.
Had Ramsay not bogeyed the seventh and eighth holes, he would have become only the second Challenge Tour player after Frenchman Adrien Mörk to record a round of 59.
Ramsay, whose previous best round on the Challenge Tour was a 65 in last year’s Oceânico Group Pro-Am Challenge, currently leads by three shots from Argentina’s Sebastian Saavedra, who is in second place on six under par.
Sweden’s Rikard Karlberg is a further shot back after posting six birdies and a solitary bogey in his round of 65.
Ramsay, currently 70th in the Challenge Tour Rankings after just one top ten finish all season, feels he is peaking at just the right time, ahead of next month’s money-spinning Kazakhstan Open.
He said: “I got off to a great start, and just carried it on from there. I tried to attack every pin today, and for once it came off. When I made birdie at the 14th, it suddenly clicked that if I birdied three of the next four holes, I’d shoot 59. I lipped out with my birdie putt from about 14 feet at the next, then birdied the par three, but left my birdie putt short on the 17th. So if a couple more putts had dropped I might have shot 59, but I can hardly complain after a 61! I hit a lot of good iron shots, which was pleasing – most of my birdie putts were from inside 12 feet.
“I’m not really sure where the round came from, to be honest – I certainly didn’t expect it. My game felt a bit better in Scotland and Finland, and then I had a couple of weeks off. The first week I didn’t even pick up a club, and then last week I put in a lot of work on the practice ground, and it seems to have paid off pretty well.

"My season’s been fairly disappointing, but if I can follow up a good week here with another one in Kazakhstan, I should at least get into the top 45 for the Grand Final at the end of the season, when anything can happen. So hopefully I’m peaking just at the time. But I can’t get ahead of myself, because tomorrow’s going to be a tougher day – it can be hard to follow up a really low round.

"So I’ll probably be happy with anything under par – I certainly won’t expect to shoot 61 again!”

The current Challenge Tour No 2, Andrew Butterfield of England, is in a group of players one shot behind Karlberg on four under par, along with last year’s runner-up Gary Boyd and his compatriot Richard McEvoy, currently fifth in the Rankings.
Meanwhile, Switzerland’s Damian Ulrich also had reasons to be cheerful after his ace at the 11th hole.
FIRST ROUND SCORES

Par 70

61 E Ramsay (Sco)
64 S Saavedra (Arg)
65 R Karlberg (Swe), A Mellor (Eng)
66 R McEvoy (Eng), P Del Grosso (Arg), G Boyd (Eng), K Sullivan (Wal), M Reale (Ita), J Guerrier (Fra), C Aguilar (Esp), S Surry (Eng), J Arruti (Esp), A Butterfield (Eng) , S Tiley (Eng), R Santos (Por), M Haastrup (Den)
67 B Taylor (Eng), C Gane (Eng), J Quesne (Fra) , M Mills (Eng) , V Riu (Fra) , D Nouailhac (Fra), J Larsen (Nor), N Meitinger (Ger) , S Jamieson (Sco) , L Gagli (Ita) , G Davies (Eng) , J Parry (Eng)
68 A McArthur (Sco), C Günther (Ger), C Suneson (Esp) , N Vanhootegem (Bel) , J Little (Eng) , P Bronson (USA), C Russo (Fra), L Tintera (Cze) , A Snobeck (Fra) , M Wiegele (Aut) , F Fritsch (Ger) , R Harris (Eng) , N Colsaerts (Bel) , G Shaw (Nir) , M Korhonen (Fin) , A Grenier (Fra) , S Juul (Den), N Smith (USA), P Purhonen (Fin)
69 L Bond (Wal) , S Robinson (Eng) , R Davies (Wal) , A Ahokas (Fin) , C Moriarty (Irl) , S Henry (Sco) , K Jorgensen (Den), A Willey (Eng) , R Treis (Ger) , M Bothma (RSA) , R Steele (Eng) , D Ulrich (Sui) , J Olesen (Den) , A Högberg (Swe) , L De Jager (RSA) , P Gustafsson (Swe) , A Bernadet (Fra) , A Bossert (Sui) , D Wardrop (Eng) , C Smith (Wal)
70 D Küpper (Ger) , A Kaleka (Fra) , B Mason (Eng) , S Thornton (Irl) , M Quiros (Esp) , T Whitehouse (Eng) , B Evans (Eng) , J Theunis (Bel) , G Houston (Wal) , D Denison (Eng) , P Kaensche (Nor) , A Hansen (Den) , N Fox (Irl) , B Miarka (Ger) ,
71 J Elson (Eng) , R Steiner (Aut) , R De Sousa (Sui) , A Bruschi (Ita) , G Murray (Sco) , M Laskey (Wal) , M Bednarczyk (Pol) , J Wahlqvist (Swe) , O Suhr (Den) , J Grillon (Fra) , D Griffiths (Eng) , M Kramer (Ger) , G Molteni (Ita) , R Saxton (Ned) , M Saluda (Pol) , B Hebert (Fra) , L Moolman (RSA) , C Brazillier (Fra) , O Floren (Swe) , J Heath (Eng) , A Gee (Eng) , R Kokocinski (am) (Swe) ,
72 T Cruz (Por) , N Stivala (Aus) , P Whiteford (Sco) , F Praegant (Aut) , D Froreich (Ger) , T Weiss (Sui) , B Parker (Eng) , D Marmion (Eng) , T Dykes (Wal) , P O'Keeffe (Irl) , A Meronk (am) (Pol) ,
73 J Zapata (Arg) , S Jeppesen (Swe) , P Richardson (Eng) , L Westerberg (Swe) , A Mörk (Fra) , N Lemke (Swe) , M Zions (Aus) , T Pulsakowski (am) (Pol) , M Kasprowicz (am) (Pol) ,
74 M Stelmasiak (Pol) , I Giner (Esp) , G Woodman (Eng) , L James (Eng) , M Monguzzi (Arg) , E Ravn (Den) , F Calmels (Fra) , F Colombo (Ita) , G Zielinski (am) (Pol) , M Gradecki (am) (Pol) , A Kleszcz (am) (Pol)
75 M Flindt (Den), J Sköld (Swe)
76 L Saltman (Sco), M Pilkington (Wal), T Laitto (Fin), J Person (Pol), C Carranza (Arg), P Ragankiewicz (am) (Pol)
78 J Ruth (Eng), B Wuttke (Ger), P Pusset (Fra)
79 R Hughes (Wal)
82 P McLoughlin (Irl)
88 J Lubieniecki (Pol)
90 D Heith (Pol)

Day 2 of Men's Home Internationals at Hillside

Scotland crush Wales 12 1/2-2 1/2 but

England beat Ireland 9 1/2-5 1/2

FROM THE ENGLISH GOLF UNION WEBSITE

England bounced back from a disappointing morning to beat Ireland 9.5 – 5.5 to move within a win of regaining the Home Internationals title, while Scotland crushed Wales 12.5 – 2.5 to keep their hopes alive.

For the second successive day, England were not firing on all cylinders in the foursomes and they went into lunch two points down on the Irish. But the singles was a different story as they claimed seven of the ten singles, halved two and lost just one.

"That was another unbelievable win,” said England captain Colin Edwards. “We played poorly in the foursomes but to come back and win eight of the singles against a strong Irish side was incredible.

“We don’t seem to have it right in the foursomes but hopefully it will be better tomorrow against Wales. We have a great chance of the title but Wales will be disappointed at their result today so I’m expecting another hard match.”
At one stage in the afternoon England seemed to be on the ropes with the Irish getting off to a solid start. But the tide gradually turned and the England wins flowed.
Matt Haines found himself 3-down to the unbeaten Pat Murray but got back to all-square through 11. The Kent man eased ahead on the 13th and stayed there to win 2 and 1.
The second match saw England’s only setback and strangely it was Dale Whitnell, who lost his unbeaten tag to Alan Dunbar. The match turned on Dunbar winning three holes in a row from the seventh.
Although Whitnell got it back to one he eventually lost on the final green.
Sam Hutsby was another who fell behind early on to Paul Cutler but he was ahead by the turn, got to 3-up after 12 and chalked up a second singles win 2 and 1.
Chris Paisley, who sat out the foursomes, lost the opening hole but was another to turn it around against Connor Doran and went on to win comfortably 5 and 3, while Tommy Fleetwood, with a good local gallery following his progress, was always in front against Kelan McDonagh, winning 5 and 4.
Jamie Abbott secured his first victory with a final green win over Cian Curley but he was also down in the early stages, but Luke Goddard always seemed in control against Dara Lernihan, winning 3 and 2.
The final green was also the scene for James Robinson and Stiggy Hodgson to claim halves against Niall Kearney and Robert Cannon respectively, while Farren Keenan won on the 16th against Simon Ward.
Scotland are still in with a chance of adding the title to their World and European crowns after overwhelmed Wales 12.5 - 2.5, having taken all five morning foursomes. Their captain Scott Knowles was delighted with his side.
“That must go down as one of our biggest ever wins,” he said. “You always like to come away with a clean sheet in the foursomes but it is never easy. But our boys played to a high standard We are still in with a chance of the title but it isn’t completely in our hands. All we can do is win as many matches as possible and hope that England slip up.”
There was little joy for the Welsh apart from a 4 and 3 win for Oliver Farr over Ross Kellett. Otherwise it was total Tartan supremacy. Gavin Dear and David Law both gave Scotland wins on the 18th green against Luke Thomas and Rhys Enoch respectively, while Wallace Booth beat Adam Runcie 2 and 1.
That sealed the Scots overall victory but there were still wins to come for Steven McEwan, who only lost one hole in beating Rhys Pugh 4 and 3, for James Byrne, who overcame Nigel Edwards 3 and 2, and for Paul O’Hara, who lost the opening hole to Alistair Jones but took the second, fourth and sixth on his way to a 3 and 2 triumph.
However, the Welsh kept battling and Joe Vickery won the 18th to grab a half against James White, while Ben Westgate also had to settle for a half after losing the final hole against Michael Stewart.
In the final match, James Frazer secured another half for Wales after winning the 12th hole against Glenn Campbell to go all-square and battling through the final six holes for a share of the spoils.
In tomorrow’s final matches, England play Wales and Scotland meet Ireland.
For those unable to attend, scoring, championship commentary and news updates are available on the Home Internationals website, http://www.homeinternationals.org/.

RECAP ON THE MORNING FOURSOMES
After their first-day victories, Wales and England were brought back to earth with a bump at Hillside this morning. Scotland claimed all five foursomes against Wales, while England struggled to trail 1-3 with one match halved.
Wales, who beat Ireland on the final green of the final match yesterday, gained some early success, otherwise the Scots were generally in control. In a match that contained nine birdies, Adam Runcie and Ben Westgate were two up for Wales early on against Ross Kellett and James Bryne. But they were pegged back and with three to play the match was all-square.
The Scots got their noses in front for the first time on the 16th and they also won the last to win by two holes.
Scotland bossed Game 2 through Wallace Booth and Michael Stewart who opened with two birdies against Rhys Enoch and Oliver Farr. The Scots remained two up at the turn to be out in 34 to 38.
An eagle 3 at the 11th saw the Scots go further in front and although they lost the 12th to a birdie, Booth and Stewart took the match 4 and 3 with winning pars at the 14th and 15th, the Scots being four under at the finish.
Nigel Edwards and Rhys Pugh for Wales and Scotland’s Gavin Dear and Keir McNicoll were nip-and-tuck over the front nine which concluded with the Scots one ahead. But Wales conceded the 11th then lost the 13th to a bogey-5 to be three down, a margin they failed to close.
Richard Hooper and Alistair Jones for Wales and David Law and James White were separated by only one hole through 13 but the Scots won four holes in a row from the 14th, only one with a birdie, to get home 3 and 2.
In the bottom match, Glenn Campbell and Steven McEwan for Scotland went in front on the fourth hole and gradually increased their advantage over Joe Vickery and James Frazer to complete another 3 and 2 victory, leaving Scotland 5-0 ahead at lunch.
England’s early showing promised a continuation of their day one performance but it was short-lived. Most pairings were below form and the Irish grabbed the nettle to build a useful lead. Matt Haines and Tommy Fleetwood were all-square with Paul Cutler and Alan Dunbar through 16 holes but the Irish took the 17th with a birdie-4 and held on for a narrow win.
In Game 2, Sam Hutsby and Stiggy Hodgson fell behind to Dara Lernihan and Pat Murray on the second hole and were six down at the turn. The English won the next three holes but the Irish won the 14th and the match 4 and 3.
Dale Whitnell and Luke Goddard were never behind against Simon Ward and Niall Kearney and ran out 3 and 2 winners to give England hope. But that was England’s only success as the other two games ‘got away’.
There was little to choose between Ireland’s Connor Doran and Robert Cannon and England’s Jamie Abbott and Farren Keenan but the Irish edged in front with a par at the 13th and held that lead to win by the narrowest of margins.
The bottom match featuring Lancashire locals Matt Nixon and James Robinson for England and Ireland’s Cian Curley and Paul O’Kane, was full of errant play from both pairs but England came to the 17th one up and with a short putt to close out the contest. But it was missed and the Irish took full advantage on the last to snatch a win with a par 4 to grab an unexpected half.

THURSDAY MATCH DETAILS

WALES 2 1/2, SCOTLAND 12 1/2
Foursomes (0-5)
Wales names first
Adam Runice & Ben Westgate lost to Ross Kellett & James Byrne 2 holes.
Rhys Enoch & Oliver Farr lost to Wallace Booth & Michael Stewart 4 and 3.
Nigel Edwards & Rhys Pugh lost to Gavin Dear & Keir McNicoll 3 and 1.
Richard Hoper & Alistair Jones lost to David Law & James White 3 and 1.
Joe Vickery & James Frazer lost to Glenn Campbell & Steven McEwan 3 and 2.
Singles (2 1/2-7 1/2)
Luke Thomas lost to Gavin Dear 1 hole.
Oliver Farr bt Ross Kellett 4 and 3.
Rhys Enoch lost to David Law 1 hole.
Adam Runcie lost to Wallace Booth 2 and 1.
Nigel Edwards lost to James Byrne 3 and 2.
Ben Westgate halved with Michael Stewart.
Joe Vickery halved with James White.
Rhys Pugh lost to Steven McEwan 4 and 3.
Alistair Jones lost to Paul O'Hara 3 and 2.
James Frazer halved with Glenn Campbell.

ENGLAND 9 1/2, IRELAND 5 1/2
Foursomes (1 1/2-3 1/2)
England names first
Matt Haines & Tommy Fleetwood lost to Paul Cutler & Alan Dunbar 1 hole.
Sam Hutsby & Stiggy Hodgson lost to Dara Lernihan & Pat Murray 4 and 3.
Dale Whitnell & Luke Goddard bt Simon Ward & Niall Kearney 3 and 2.
Jamie Abbott & Farren Keenan lost to Connor Doran & Robert Cannon 1 hole.
Matthew Nixon & James Robinson halved with Cian Curley & Paul O'Kane.
Singles (8-2)
Matt Haines bt Pat Murray 2 and 1.
Dale Whitnell lost to Alan Dunbar 1 hole.
Sam Hutsby bt Paul Cutler 2 and 1.
James Robinson halved with Niall Kearney.
Chris Paisley bt Connor Doran 5 and 3.
Jamie Abbott bt Cian Curley 1 hole.
Tommy Fleetwood bt Kelan McDonagh 5 and 4.
Luke Goddard bt Dara Lernihan 3 and 2.
Stiggy Hodgson halved with Robert Cannon.
Farren Keenan bt Simon Ward 3 and 2.

Montgomerie receives Ryder

Cup Captain’s buggy for 2010

Colin Montgomerie’s preparations for The 2010 Ryder Cup continued this week when he was presented with his Captain’s golf car ahead of the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
Montgomerie, who will lead Europe against the United States at The Celtic Manor Resort next year, was delighted to accept the Club Car Precendent which has been customised with the blue and gold of the European Union, has ‘Captain’s Car’ emblazoned across the front and has seats embroidered with the European flag.
“Over the years as a player I have seen how important it is for the Captain to be in the right place at the right time as the drama of each day unfolds at The Ryder Cup,” said the Scot. “The Captain’s golf car has been greenside for some of the greatest Ryder Cup moments and I am looking forward my time behind that steering wheel assisting my team.”
The car was presented by Kevin Hart, National Account Manager for Club Car, who said: “It is an honour for Club Car to be able to participate in some small way to the overall success of The Ryder Cup, and it is with great pleasure that we award the Precedent Captain’s car to Colin.
“We wish him the best of luck with his Ryder Cup preparations and of course the actual match next year.”
Club Car has provided the official cars for The Ryder Cup for the past 14 years and images of the Captains sitting in them at the back of the greens have become synonymous with the competition.

St Andrews Links hold visitor green

fees at same level for 2010

St Andrews Links Trust has announced there will be no increase in the cost of playing a round of golf at any of its seven courses next year.
The high season visitor's green fee for the Old Course will remain at £130 with £65 the charge for playing the New and Jubilee courses.
The Eden charge will be £40, the Strathtyrum £25 and the Balgove £12. The Castle Course will be £120, the same level as it was before the Government changed the VAT rate last year.
Trustees carefully considered the difficult economic decision before deciding to maintain green fees at their current levels.
The Links courses are enjoying busy seasons with only a slight drop overall in the number of rounds being played compared to this point last year. In its first full season, The Castle Course has again exceeded expectations with more than 3000 rounds being played in June alone.
Alan McGregor, chief executive of the Links Trust, said, “Last year Trustees acted proactively to freeze green fees with the aim of sending out a message that we recognise times are difficult and we want to encourage visiting golfers to come here. Having carefully considered the current situation, the Trustees saw no reason to change this decision and so green fees will be kept at the same level for 2010.
“We are already seeing signs of a high level of interest in advance bookings for our courses for next year and, given that the spotlight of world golf will once again be on the Links with the return of The Open, we hope that many golfers will make the trip to the Home of Golf in 2010.”

Advanced Reservations for play on the Old Course and The Castle Course in 2010 can be made from 10am on September 2, 2009.

Philippines' friends continue to lead

in World Cup Asian Qualifier

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR.
Petaling Jaya , Malaysia , August 27: Mars Pucay and Angelo Que of the Philippines stayed in command at the Omega Mission Hills World Cup Asian Qualifier after a one-over-par 72 in the foursomes today.
The leading duo, who credited their strong friendship for their successful combination, saw their overnight four-shot lead trimmed to three strokes after Singaporean’s Lam Chih Bing and Mardan Mamat battled to the day’s best of 71 in the alternate shot format.
David Freeman and Wong Woon Man of Hong Kong continued their impressive run to remain in contention for one of the three tickets to the Omega Mission Hills World Cup in China later in November after posting a battling 72 to lie in third position, six off the pace.
Malaysia ’s Iain Steel and Danny Chia and the Myanmar partnership of Zaw Moe and Soe Kyaw Naing share fourth position after rounds of 74 and 73 respectively at the par-71 course.
Pucay and Que, playing together for the second consecutive year, said their relaxed attitude has been the key to their strong combination. “I don’t know what makes us good partners, probably because we are good players,” Que joked.
“It is our relationship on the golf course because every time we are on the course, it is not always about golf, we talk about other things. It really goes down to the two players as you have to be comfortable with each other,” added Que, a two-time Asian Tour winner.
They combined for two birdies against three bogeys, which included two dropped shots in their last three holes, but Pucay was delighted to remain on course with their two-day score of 10-under-par 132.
“The foursomes format is tough because you might miss a shot but we have a good relationship and we talk about movies and games which my son and Angelo play on their PSP (playstation portable),” said Pucay, who finished in the top-10 at the World Cup with Que last year.
Mardan and Lam, who are chasing their fourth appearance in the World Cup, started their round strongly with four birdies on their outward nine but stumbled coming home with two bogeys and one double bogey on the final hole.
“If you’ve given us 71 at the start of the day, we would have been happy to take it. On this course, you have to get the birdies early and try to hang on at the end. We have to figure out how to play the last six holes,” said Lam the winner of the 2008 Volvo Masters of Asia in Thailand .
Mardan added: “In foursomes, you don’t want to hit a shot that lets your partner suffer in the next shot. But everyone make mistakes and you don’t have to feel sorry for each other. If we can get a low score tomorrow, it’ll make things easier for the final day.”
Freeman, who now focuses on his teaching professional job in Hong Kong , and Wong continued their dream run and are confident of maintaining their form.
“I told Wong earlier that each time I come here, I have a strong first day but the second day always lets us down. Wong played well again and my game picked up so we worked it quite well. There are a few tricky holes out there but if we play like today we should be fine and will be looking forward to qualify,” said Freeman.
Veteran Moe has not played in the World Cup before and he will be aiming to be third time lucky this week. He and Soe were going strongly before dropping four shots in their last five holes to lie on 140.
“I haven’t played in the World Cup before but my partner has more experience! I really want to get through but we have to minimize on some silly mistakes,” said the 42-year-old.
“We were two-under after 13 holes and dropped a few shots at the end. Each of us made mistakes but other than that we were alright. We will try to shoot five or six-under in tomorrow’s four-ball,” added Moe.
The Omega Mission Hills World Cup Asian Qualifier is supported by One World Hotel, Srixon and 100Plus.

Round two results
132 – Philippines (Mars PUCAY, Angelo QUE) 60-72
135 – Singapore (LAM Chih Bing, Mardan MAMAT) 64-71
138 – Hong Kong (David FREEMAN, WONG Woon Man) 66-72
140 – Malaysia (Danny CHIA, Iain STEEL) 66-74
140 – Myanmar (Zaw MOE, Soe Kyaw NAING) 67-73
141 – Pakistan (Muhammad SHABBIR, Muhammad MUNIR) 68-73
143 – Bangladesh (Milon AHMED, Siddikur RAHMAN) 69-74
146 – Indonesia (Maan NASIM, SARMILIH) 69-77
147 – Sri Lanka (Lalith KUMARA, Anura ROHANA) 70-77
150 – Nigeria Christian UTUBOR, Edet UMOH) 70-80
151 – Brunei Faiz DAMIT, Pengiran HASSANAL) 74-77
155 – Ghana (Theophilus KODJO, Emos KORBLAH) 74-81
166 – Mauritius (Rajesh MOHUN, Jocelyn SAVRIMOOTOO) 77-89
166 – Nepal (Ramesh NAGARKOTI, Pashupati SHARMA) 82-84

Note: The first and third rounds will use the four-ball format while the second and final rounds will use the foursomes format.

Bad day for US Walker Cup team in

first round of US Amateur championship

Leading qualifier 50-year-old Tim Jackson is still there but top 10 R&A WAGR men Rickie Fowler and Morgan Hoffman have gone from the line-up at the United States men's amateur championship at Tulsa, Oklahoma.
In fact it was a bad day for the US Walker Cup team. Four of the five team members competing at Southern Hills GC when the match-play began on Wednesday were beaten.
Alabama University sophomore Bud Cauley is the only one of American captain Buddy Marucci's charges that will be playing again Thursday.
He knocked off fellow Walker Cupper Rickie Fowler, 3 and 1.
"It came as a little bit of a shock," Cauley said about learning that he was going to face, Fowler, the top-ranked amateur in America, after finishing tied for fifth in stroke-play qualifying. "You don't expect to [do that well in stroke play] and face a guy like Rickie Fowler. Obviously, I had to change my game plan. I wasn't going to be able to go out there and just make pars and play conservatively, like I planned to do."
Cauley sank a 30ft birdie putt to seal a 3 and 1 victory over Fowler.
Fowler, who played two seasons at nearby Oklahoma State before declaring his intention to turn professional after the Walker Cup, was one of the day's big draws along with former Cowboys teammates Morgan Hoffmann and Kevin Tway.
Unfortunately for the home crowds, Hoffmann was eliminated in 19 holes by Charlie Holland while Tway, with US PGA Tour father Bob as his caddie, bogeyed the final hole, to finish one down to Brett Kanda.
"All the cheers were for the other guy, and that's okay," Kanda said. "All the OK State guys are popular here. It's nice to be able to take one of them down."
Fifty-year old No 1 seed Tim Jackson beat John Kostis 5 and 4. Jackson will face Holland in the second round, while Cauley plays David Lingmerth of Sweden, who defeated Scott Strohmeyer of Auburn, Ala., 3 and 2.
"I'm hitting the ball well and I'm confident," said Jackson, who led the U.S. Senior Open after two rounds before finishing 11th. "I've been putting well for the last two months as well. I think I can do well on a course like this when I'm clicking."
Two Oklahoma State players did manage to advance. Peter Uihlein edged James Sacheck of The Woodlands, Texas, in 19 holes, while Trent Whitekiller also went one extra hole to defeat Welsey Bryan of Chapin, S.C.
The second and third rounds will be held Thursday. The 36-hole final is Sunday.

Forsyth defends efforts of Scottish pros

FROM THE SCOTSMAN WEBSITE
By Martin Dempster
Alastair Forsyth believes Scotland's top professionals are being criticised unfairly due to the fact it is harder than ever for them to make their presence felt at the top of leaderboards on the European Tour.
"As usual, there's a lot getting said about how we are not performing and should be doing better," said Forsyth, a two-time Tour winner, ahead of his opening round in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
"I suppose that's a fair point because we do have a lot of good players who are maybe not performing as they can – and my form has certainly not been good of late. But I think there is too much being said about it as it boils down to two things in my opinion.
"One is the fact we haven't replaced Monty, Europe's No1 for a long time, or even Sandy Lyle or Sam Torrance for that matter. And the other is that it was a hell of a lot easier to win on Tour back then – and that's not taking anything from those players."
According to Forsyth, the standard is so good at the top level these days that, in every event, almost three-quarters of the players in the field have a chance of walking away with the title.
"In a field of 156, I would say that 120 of those could win the tournament," he added. "There are even guys I have never heard of before – the likes of Jeppe Huldahl, who won in Wales earlier this year, for example – winning tournaments now."
Forsyth is among 23 Scots in this week's field at Gleneagles, the European Tour regulars being joined by the likes of Tartan Tour players Craig Lee, Jason McCreadie and David Orr, the latter having won the Scottish PGA Championship over the same course this year.
Jamie McLeary, who won the Scottish Challenge at Spey Valley this month, has also secured a rare start on the main Tour.
*The full article above appears in The Scotsman newspaper today.