Scott Larkin (Banchory) and Laura Murray (Alford), leading scorers at Murcar Links today (new images by Cal Carson Golf Agency).

Late Larkin 65 pips Laura for a place in

North-east Alliance winners' history

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Former US college circuit player Scott Larkin came in late in a field of 83 to deny Scottish amateur international Laura Murray an historic win in today’s North-east Golfers’ Alliance competition at Murcar Links.
The 23-year-old Banchory hotel worker, who spent four years at the College of Charleston, recovered from a four-putt double bogey 6 at the second to shoot seven birdies in a four-under-par 65 (33-32) over the shorter winter course with temporary greens.
Driving the ball particularly soundly, it was Larkin's third win of the NE Alliance 2009-2010 season, having already won at Peterhead and finished joint first at Inverallochy.
Until then, Laura Murray’s score of 66 (34-32), in which she three times holed from off the green, had looked like making the Alford player the first female to win the top scratch prize in the long history of the organisation.
Laura’s five birdies came at the seventh, eighth, 11th, 13th and 16th in halves of 34 (one under par) and 32 (two under par). She had a three-putt bogey at the second and a second bogey at the par-4 15th where she had to take a penalty drop out of a gorse bush at but single-putted to escape with a 5.
"I hit the ball well off the tee and my short game was very tidy which was very important on winter greens like these," said Laura who changed her mind about turning pro this year to have one more go at the amateur circuit. She sets off on Sunday for next week's Spanish women's amateur championship, having made the cut in the Portguese version two or three weeks ago.
Laura has an LGU handicap of +1 but she plays off the men's tees in Alliance competitions so secretary Ron Menzie, using a mathematical equation of his own, gives her an Alliance handicap of 4 so that she can compete on a level playing surface in the handicap prizelists.
Ron will probably have to cut her Alliance handicap because her net 62 won her first place in Class 1 by four strokes today!
Joint third scratch on 67 were former British boys champion Jordan Findlay (Fraserburgh), a full-time amateur since his US college days, Newburgh-on-Ythan pro Ian Bratton and Hazlehead amateur Chris Law, whose brother David won the Scottish boys’ and men’s championships last year.
Findlay, who felt it was "hit or a miss" winter conditions, particularly on the the temporary greens, had four birdies in an outward half of 31 while Bratton drove the green at the par-4 18th for a fifth birdie.

It was the first time the Newburgh pro had used his driver all day.

"I drove with a three-iron all the way before that. Why? Because I was hitting it well and it was all that was required on the shorter winter course. That's what course management is all about but some of the younger guys find it difficult to adjust to different courses, different conditions."
Law covered the last five holes in two under par, thanks to birdies at the 14th and 15th in an inward 33.
Former Walker Cup player Sandy Pirie finished joint seventh on one-over-par 70 after being out in two-under 33 and still being two under the card with four holes to play. But the Hazlehead veteran ran up a double bogey 6 at the 15th and dropped another shot at the last for 37 home.

You can say what you like but golf is still just about the most honest of sports. Secretary Ron Menzies received a call on his mobile phone late on in today's competition from a player who had been playing his round over in his mind on the way home by car - now is that an offence? - and realised that he had put down an 8 at one hole when it should have been a 9.

"The player shall remain nameless but he had a score in the mid-70s," said Ron. "I had to tell him he was disqualified for signing for a lower figure but he knew that. He just wanted to keep the record straight."
Leading scores (par 69)
SCRATCH
65 Scott Larkin (Banchory).
66 Laura Murray (Alford).
67 Jordan Findlay (Fraserburgh), Ian Bratton (Newburgh), Chris Law (Hazlehead).
69 Anthony Bews (Murcar Links).
70 Chris Lamb (Newmachar), Sandy Pirie (Hazlehead).
71 Steven Sharp (Newburgh), Stewart Finnie (Caledonian), Adam Lindsay (Banchory).
72 Billy Main (Murcar Links), Brian Nicolson (Auchmill), Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon), Fergus Bisset (Banchory), Kyle Nelson (Murcar Links).
73 David Naylor (Banchory), Scott Mackie (Kemnay), Fraser Milne (Fraserburgh), Les Fowler (Royal Aberdeen), Mark Lawrie (Kemnay), Steven Chalmers (Banchory).
74 Brian Harper (Newburgh), Paul McIntosh (Newburgh), Jim Murray (Banchory).
75 George Paterson (Northern), Mike Jenkins (Duff House Royal), Richard Hyland (Craibstone), Clark Alexander (Murcar Links).
76 Charles Cassie (Nigg Bay), Jim Scott (Peterculter), Robert Lamb (Newmachar), Joe Hopwood (Carnegie).
77 Andrew Campbell (Deeside), Craig Carnegie (Kemnay).
78 Albert Smith (Turriff), John Hamilton (Murcar Links), Hamish McNaughton (Cruden Bay), Norman Stewart (Northern), David McKay (Caledonian).
79 Steven Kennedy (Craibstone), Martin Forster (Cruden Bay), John Mitchell (Fraserburgh), Jackie Forrest (Northern), Willie Skene (Deeside).
80 Philip Morrison (Oldmeldrum), Chris Brindley (Banchory), Alistair Petrie (Oldmeldrum).

HANDICAP
Class 1 – Laura Murray (Alford) (4) 62; C Law (Hazlehead) (1) 66; S Sharp (Newburgh) (4), L Fowler (Royal Aberdeen) (6), S Larkin (Banchory) (+2), J Murray (Banchory) (7) 67; B Harper (Newburgh) (6), A K Pirie (Hazlehead) (2), M Lawrie (Kemnay) (5) 68; J Findlay (Fraserburgh) (+2), S Mackie (Kemnay) (4) 69; B Nicolson (Auchmill) (2), F Bisset (Banchory) (2), K Nelson (Murcar Links) (2), P McIntosh (Newburgh) (4), C Alexander (Murcar Links) (5) 70.

Class 2 – J Scott (Peterculter) (10), N Stewart (Northern) (12) 66; H McNaughton (Cruden Bay) (11) 67; S Kennedy (Craibstone) (11), J Kelly (Peterculter) (14) 68; M Rendall (Stonehaven) (13), B Lumsden (Northern) (14), M Rogers (Kemnay) (13) 69; C Brindley (Banchory) (10), A Petrie (Oldmeldrum) (10) 70; J Penny (Huntly) (13), J Jessiman (Oldmeldrum) (14), R Alison (Deeside) (15), M Brown (Craibstone) (18) 71.

SCORECARD FOR MURCAR LINKS WINTER COURSE: Par 69
OUT: 4-4-4-4-3-4-4-4-4--35. IN: 4-4-3-4-5-4-3-4-5--34

SCOTT LARKIN 65
OUT: 3-6-3-4-3-5-4-3-3--33. IN: 3-3-3-4-4-5-3-4-3--32.

LAURA MURRAY 66
OUT: 4-5-4-4-3-4-3-3-4--34. IN: 4-3-3-3-4-5-2-4-4--32.

JORDAN FINDLAY 67
OUT: 3-4-4-3-3-4-4-3-3--31. IN: 5-3-3-4-4-5-4-4-4--36.

IAN BRATTON 67
OUT: 4-4-4-4-3-5-4-3-3--34. IN: 5-4-2-3-4-4-4-4-3--33.

CHRIS LAW 67
OUT: 4-4-4-4-3-4-4-4-3--34. IN: 5-3-3-5-3-3-3-4-4--33.

Remember, next Wednesday's NE Alliance fixture has been transferred from Turriff to Buckpool.