Senior Northern Counties Cup tees off at Cruden Bay today

The Senior Northern Counties Cup teed off at Cruden Bay today with a line-up of 34 teams, probably the biggest entry since the event was started in 2002 at Duff House Royal.
Biggest number of teams comes from the North-east, all within easy travelling distance of Cruden Bay.
There have been six different winners in the first eight years of the popular competition for over-55s.
Only Brora (2003 and 2006), who were unable to field a team this week because of a knee injury to Jimmy Miller and Robin Wilson heading off to Wentworth for the BMW PGA Championship, and holders Nairn Dunbar (2005 & 2009) have won the trophy twice.
Nairn Dunbar (Hugh Clunas & Derek Lamb, Ian Duncan & David Bunker) beat Moray in last year's final at Inverness. Clunas and Bunker were also in the winning team of 2005 at Elgin.
Moray have now lost in two finals - to Brora and Nairn Dunbar.
Other past winners:
2002 Duff House Royal at Banff.
2004 Inverness at Cruden Bay.
2007 Elgin at Nairn Dunbar.
2008 Murcar Links at Banff.
Only six courses used - Duff House Royal, Inverness, Cruden Bay, Elgin, Brora and Nairn Dunbar.
The B D Fraser Trophy was donated by Brian Fraser of Inverness. Brian, a four-time winner of the original Northern Counties Cup - with Inverness in 1971, 1976 and 1978, and with Nairn in 1973.