Report and scores from North-east Alliance competition

NO LARKIN ABOUT BY GREAT SCOTT

AS HE WINS AGAIN AT MONTROSE

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Banchory’s Scott Larkin achieved back-to-back wins on the North-east Golfers’ Alliance today with an excellent score of six-under-par 58 for the 16-hole winter course at Montrose Links.
Larkin, pictured right by Cal Carson Golf Agency, who has a +2 handicap, has come home from four years on the competitive American college golf circuit as a better player than when he left. He could make an impact on the domestic amateur scene once the season.
With the par-3 third and 12th not used because winter greens were not available at these holes, Larkin had an eagle 3 (at the 15th) and seven birdies in halves of 31 (one under par) and 27 (five under par). Most very good rounds still can be bettered and Larkin did have bogeys at the seventh, ninth and 16th.
Runner-up, beaten by seven shots, was Deeside’s Andrew Campbell who did very well to salvage a 65 after running up a triple-bogey 7 at the sixth, in the middle of a run of four successive birdies.
There was no snow on the course but the conditions were still very wintry with a bitterly cold wind and sleet showers, all of which reduced a “normal” field of around 80 to only 54 players, the second lowest turn-out of the season. There were more than 20 No Returns, and I don't blame any of them! It was a bad enough day down at Montrose to get a soaking and a chill just walking from the Montrose Mercantile clubhouse to the car park at the early finish.
Leading scores (par 64)
SCRATCH
58 Scott Larkin (Banchory).
65 Andrew Campbell (Deeside).
66 Sandy Pirie (Hazlehead), Steven Chalmers (Banchory).
67 Les Fowler (Royal Aberdeen), Stewart Finnie (Caledonian).
68 Bill Shaw (Banchory), Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon).
69 Craig Stewart (Kippie Lodge).
70 John Hamilton (Murcar Links), Stephen Cooper (Banchory), John Nicolson (Auchmill).
72 John Dalgarno (Hazlehead), Keil Beveridge (Aboyne), Fergus Bisset (Banchory).
73 Charles Cassie (Nigg Bay), Manson Merchant (Newmachar), Raymond Brown (Craibstone), Mike Booth (Kemnay).
74 Alistair Fiddes (Deeside), Kenny Minty (Turriff).
75 Craig Graham (Newmachar), David Philip (Newburgh), Alister Petrie (Oldmeldrum).
76 Roy Pirie (Caledonian).
77 Mike Brown (Craibstone).
78 Sandy Davidson (Northern).
79 Don Lawrie (Inchmarlo).
80 Jackie Forrest (Northern).
81 Robert Lamb (Newmachar), John Jessiman (Oldmeldrum), Ian Grant (Huntly).
82 Ron Alison (Deeside), Benny Lumsden (Northern).
83 Derek Townsley (Peterculter), Mike Smith (Turriff).

HANDICAP
Class 1 – S Larkin (Banchory) (+2) 60; L Fowler (Royal Aberdeen) (5) 62; B Shaw (Banchory) (5) 63; J M Hamilton (Murcar Links) (6), A K Pirie (Hazlehead) (2) 64; A Campbell (Deeside), S Cooper (Banchory) (5) 65; J Dalgarno (Hazlehead) (6), J Nicolson (Auchmill) (4) 66; K Minty (Turriff) (7) 67.
Class 2 – M Brown (Craibstone) (16) 61; R Brown (Craibstone) (11) 62; M Booth (Kemnay) (9) 64; I Grant (Huntly) (16) 65, S Davidson Northern) (12), A Petrie (Oldmeldrum) (9) 66; D Lawrie (Inchmarlo) (12), M K Smith (Turriff) (16) 67; R Alison (Deeside) (13), J Jessiman (Oldmeldrum) (12) 69; B Lumsden (Northern) (12) 70.

MONTROSE LINKS WINTER SCORECARD 64

(16 HOLES: no Par-3 3rd nor Par-3 12th)

OUT: 4-4-x-4-4-4-4-4-4--32. IN: 4-4-x-4-4-5-3-4-4--32.

SCOTT LARKIN 58

OUT: 4-3-x-3-4-4-5-3-5--31. IN: 3-3-x-3-3-3-4-4-4--27.

ANDREW CAMPBELL 65

OUT: 4-5-x-3-3-7-3-3-4--32. IN: 4-5-x-4-5-5-3-3-4--33.

SANDY PIRIE 66

OUT: 5-4-x-3-4-5-4-3-4--31. IN: 3-4-x-5-5-6-4-4-4--35.

STEVEN CHALMERS 66

OUT: 5-4-x-3-3-4-6-4-4--33. IN: 3-4-x- 5-5-5-4-4-3--33

+Next Wednesday's competition is at Newburgh-on-Ythan Golf Club.