THREE SHARE HALFWAY LEAD

 IN NEWLANDS TROPHY

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
The Newlands Trophy – this weekend's Scottish Golf Union Order of Merit 72-hole tournament – is set for a pulsating finish with three strokes covering the leading seven players at the halfway stage of Lanark Golf Club’s premier open tournament.
Stephen Speirs, home on holiday from Australia and entered from Kyle of Bute Golf Club, Brian Soutar (Leven Golfing Society), pictured left by Cal Carson Golf Agency, and Grangemouth’s Bobby Rushford are the joint overnight leaders on two-over-par 142.
Speirs has had rounds of 73 and 69, Souter a pair of 71s and Rushford a 70 followed by a 72.
One-under-par 69 was the low mark of the first 36 holes, achieved by Speirs and the first-round joint leaders Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) and Anglo-Scott Ross Crowe (Westerhope), both of whom scored in the high 70s in the afternoon.
Breathing down the leaders’ necks are young Kyle McClung (Wigtownshire County), with scores of 70 and 73 for 143, plus a trio on 144: US college circuit player Grant Carnie (Newburgh on Ythan), and the experienced Gordon Yates (Hilton Park), with a pair of 72s, and Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) (70-74).
Last year’s Newlands Trophy winner Mark Bookiless is nine shots off the pace with scores of 75 and 76 for 151.
Stirling student James White (Lundin), the 2006 Scottish boys’ champion and winner of last weekend’s Sutherland Chalice at Dumfries and Galloway, made the cut with nothing to spare. He had rounds of 72 and 80 for 152, the limit mark for the leading 40 and ties who will contest Sunday’s final 36 holes.

SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 140 (2x70). CSS 72 for Round 1
142 Stephen Speirs (Kyle of Bute) 73 69, Brian Souter (Leven GS) 71 71, Bobby Rushford Grangemouth) 70 72.
143 Kyle McClung (Wigtownshire Co) 70 73.
144 Grant Carnie (Newburgh on Ythan) 74 70, Gordon Yates (Hilton Park) 72 72, Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm).
145 Craig Hamilton (NZ) 75 70, Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) 74 71, Mark Collin (Eyemouth) 73 72, Alexander Culverwall (Dunbar) 70 75.
146 Paul Shields (Kirkhill) 78 68, Graham Robertson (Silverknowes) 75 71, Steven Rennie (Drumpellier) 74 72, Thomas Sharkey (Helensburgh) 74 72, Aaron Sweeney (Carnoustie) 73 73, Jordan Findlay (Fraserburgh) 72 74, James Hendrick (Pollok) 72 74, Robert Carson (Dalmahoy) 72 74, Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) 69 77.
147 Simon Lockhart (Bathgate) 73 74.
148 Richard Docherty (Bearsden) 72 76, Steven McEwan (Caprington) 72 76, Ross Crowe (Westerhope) 69 79.
149 Joshua Seale (USA) 79 70, Michael Campbell (Renfrew) 77 72, Scott Gibson (Southerness) 74 75, Colin Thomson (East Renfrewshire) 74 75, Richard Graham (Hayston) 73 76.
150 Scott Larkin (Royal Aberdeen) 76 74, Ken Cameron (Lanark) 75 75.
151 Ed Wood (Crow Wood) 78 73, Andrew Wallace (Glenbervie) 76 75, Mark Bookless (Sandyhills) 75 76, Sean McGarvey (Glencorse) 75 76, Colin Baird (Bothwell) 75 76, John Shanks (Irvine) 74 77, Scott Borrowman (Dollar) 71 80, Chris Lawton (Stirling) 70 81.
152 Ben Renfrew (The Wynyard) 78 74, Alan Sutherland (Ladybank) 78 74, Michael Daily (Erskine) 76 76, James Johnston (Greenburn) 74 78, Ross Bell (Downfield) 72 80, James White (Lundin) 72 80.

MISSED THE CUT
153 Chris Orr (Lanark) 75 78.
154 Graeme Robertson(Glenbervie) 82 72, Matthew Allen (Falkirk Tryst) 80 74, Steven Maxwell (Windyhill) 80 74.
155 Craig Deerness (Harburn) 82 73, Fraser Campbell (Milngavie) 80 75, Scott Carmichael (Baberton) 79 76, Clark Riddock (Southerness) 75 80.
156 Steven Smith (Dalmahoy) 77 79.
157 Alan Welsh (Torrance House) 81 76, Angus Weir (Crieff) 80 77, Fraser Moore (Glenbervie) 79 78, Malcolm Campbell (Swanston) 76 81.
160 Stuart McKechnie (Greenburn) 80 80.
161 Malcolm Pennycott (Whiting Bay) 81 80.

164 Michael Grunwell (Powfoot) 80 84.