Sandy Pirie the Driving Force behind new Scottish
 Super Seniors Event at Stirling on July 29 and 30

Scottish Seniors Golfing Society has added a new 36 hole event exclusively for the over 65s. The inaugural championship will take place over Stirling Golf Club on Thursday and Friday 29th and 30th July and is not restricted to SSGS Members. Entries are invited from male amateurs who have reached the age of 65 by the competition date and who have a handicap of 12.4 or less.

Former Walker Cup and Scottish Internationalist Sandy Pirie is the inspiration for the new event, having recognised that there is a healthy number still keen for active competition within the peer age group. The main trophy bears Sandy's name and there is also a Cup to be awarded to the best score aged 70 and over.

Entry forms may be downloaded from the SSGS website www.scottishseniorsgolf.com or by email request to khnextlevel@aol.com Closing date for entries, Fee £25.00, is 8th July.

Lanarkshire team for boys' match at Mount Ellen on Sunday

Lanarkshire boys play Dunbartonshire boys on Sunday at Mount Ellen in the West of Scotland boys' inter- county league. The match will start at 1.30pm.
Lanarkshire Team;
Under 18's
1. Eamon Bradley Mt Ellen
2. Nicky Clenaghan Mt Ellen
3. Martin Scott Hamilton
4. Craig Ross Kirkhill

Under 16's
1. James Steven Kirkhill
2. Cameron Graham Hamilton
3. Calum Harrison Carluke
4. Liam Morrison Hamilton
Willie Sharpe

E-mail from Bob Stewart

Hello Colin,

I noted the article relating to Tommy Fleetwood making it into the French Open via one of the quailfying rounds.
This prompted me to advise you (you may already be aware) that Callum Macaulay also made it through another quualifier on Monday. I thought it would be nice to give Callum a mention as he has been having a tough time lately.
However, he is slowly getting some form back and it was quite an achievement to get one of only three spots for this large event next week.
All the very best Colin , I should also note how much I enjoy keeping in touch with all golfing matters via your website. Keep up the great work.

Bob Stewart

NOTE FROM EDITOR. Thanks to Bob for keeping Scottishgolfview.com. I have been down at Ganton, Yorkshire almost since the weekend at the British women's open amateur championship so our gathering of golf news from other sources has had to take second billing this week.

EUROPRO TOUR REPORT, SCORES

JOHN GALLAGHER, on the day he won the Scottish amateur championship, the highlight of his golfing career todate.

John Gallagher (67) leading Scot in N Ireland
James Hepworth leads the way on the opening day of the latest event on the PGA EuroPro Tour.
Day one of the Galgorm Castle Northern Ireland PGA EuroPro Tour Open saw a host of low scores, with Hepworth’s nine-under the best.
Hepworth (Ilkley GC) finished tied seventh in the opening event in Norfolk in April and an eagle here on the third helped him to a one-shot lead over Ireland ’s Barrie Trainor.
James Webber (Three Rivers Golf Club) is two shots off the lead on seven-under, while Jonathan Caldwell, is one of a number of players on six-under.
He dropped a shot at the fifth but birdies on holes three, four, eight, nine, ten, 16 and 17 saw him stay in contention for the £10,000 top prize.
Caldwell, a member of the Walker Cup team in 2007 alongside Rory McIlroy, normally plays on the Challenge Tour, where he is currently 61st on their Order of Merit.
This is the first EuroPro tour event Caldwell (Clandeyboye) has taken part in this season and he is well placed in the event, which concludes on Friday.
Ireland’s Michael Collins is also in the top ten, while Mark Campbell, Dale Marmion and Ian Keenan all went round in five-under, despite all claiming bogeys on the opening hole.
But Marmion hit five birdies in the last six holes, while Campbell (Team Ireland Golf) claimed three in the last five with Keenan ending with four birdies in the last five holes.
Keenan, who triumphed at Castle Dargan earlier this month, is currently third in the Order of Merit but could move top if he performs well in the rest of the tournament.
A host of players are on four-under, including Irish pair Shane Franklin and Paul O’Hanlon and England ’s Alex Belt and Paul Maddy.
Australian Daniel Gaunt is the tour leader at the moment but could not capitalise on a fine start with three successive birdies and he sits six shots behind Hepworth.
For full score updates, go to www.europrotour.com and click on 'Score Updates' on the right-hand side.
FIRST ROUND LEADERBOARD
Par 72
63 James Hepworth (Ilkley).
64 Barrie Trainor (Team Ireland Golf)
65 James Webber (Three Rivers), Michael Collins (http://www.foreireland.com/).
66 Jonathan Caldwell Clandeyboye), Sean Doherty (Bury).
Scottish scores:
67 John Gallagher (Swanston) (jt 7th).
69 Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel) (jt 19th).
70 Craig Lee (Aspire Golf Centre), Mark Kerr (Dalmahoy), Graham Rankin (Drumpellier).
71 Lee Harper (Archerfield Links) (jt 33rd).
72 Scott Herald (Mearns Castle), John Henry (Clydebank and District), Barry Hume (Haggs Castle) (jt 38th).
73 Scott Henry (The Carrick on Loch Lomond), Shaun McAllister (Craigielaw), Keir McNicoll (Carnoustie Golf Links) (jt 51st).
75 Ross Cameron (Saltire Energy) (jt 77th).
76 Euan McIntosh (Newmachar), Mark Rae (Aberdeen Door Systems) (jt 85th).
78 Martin Lawrence (Newmachar) (jt 95th).
80 Mark Lawrie (Royal Wimbledon) (jt 104th).
83 Kevin McAlpine (Alyth) (jt 110th)

Open entry spin-off for Gregory Havret's US 2nd place finish

Gregory Havret's second-place finish at the U.S. Open has earned him a spot in next month's Open at St Andrews -- two weeks after he finished almost last in the European qualifier at Sunningdale.
The Frenchman now looks certain to take one of two places on offer from a European Tour current form money list that ends this coming Sunday.
Stephen Gallacher is on course to take the other, but could be overtaken at the BMW International Open in Munich.
At Sunningdale, Havret was chasing one of 10 Open spots, but came in tied for 76th and missed out by 12 shots.
Meanwhile, Havret has withdrawn from the BMW International Open.
The 33-year-old, who qualified for Pebble Beach only in a sudden death shoot-out at Walton Heath a month ago, flew back to Europe from California on Monday night and decided that fatigue and jet lag called for rest rather than another event straightaway.
He and U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell, who had already scheduled a week off, will be back in action at next week's French Open in Paris.
Havret's withdrawal lets Scotland's former PGA champion Scott Drummond into a field that includes Ernie Els, Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia and Sir Nick Faldo.
Having entered the Open in three weeks, Faldo, now 52, is taking a break from his TV commentary work in America to get in some tournament practice. His last European Tour appearance was the Open last year and he missed the cut for the third time in a row.
Havret is the third Frenchman to finish runner-up in a major in recent years.
Jean Van de Velde famously triple bogeyed the last and then lost a play-off to Paul Lawrie at Carnoustie in 1999, and eight years ago Thomas Levet took Els to a fifth extra hole before losing at Muirfield.

Mike Weir wins $270,000 in Bear Mountain Skins Game

VICTORIA, British Columbia -- Canada's Mike Weir won $270,000 in the Telus Skins Game on Tuesday at the Bear Mountain Resort.
Left-hander Weir's win came down to a 125-yard pitch-off on the final hole after the five professional golfers went skinless over nine holes. The prize money grew to include 12 skins, nine Tuesday and three left over from Monday's nine holes.
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RELATED
Monday recap
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South African Retief Goosen won $75,000 on Monday with five skins, but was skinless Tuesday.
Englishman Ian Poulter won one skin and $15,000 Monday, but failed to win a skin Tuesday.
Colombian Camilo Villegas and crowd favorite Fred Couples of the United States were skinless over the two days.
"It was tough to make birdies out there," said Weir, noting the five golfers only made seven birdies Tuesday and 15 birdies Monday. "It was just that kind of a day. It was kind of tough to separate yourself. We had to go to extra holes."
He credited his win to hitting the right shot at the right time.
"That's what skins is," he said.
Weir narrowly missed winning a $245,000 skin on the par-4 17th, but his putt hit the edge of the hole and lipped out.
Weir said he didn't know he won the pitch-off until a tournament official said his shot was about 1.5 feet ahead of the next closest by Villegas.
Weir said he plans to take some time off before playing in the Open next month at St. Andrews.

Top golf clubs need to play bigger role in helping Scotland's

elite by opening up their top-class practice facilities

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.COM WEBSITE
By Martin Dempster
The excellent practice putting green at Muirfield was in constant use throughout last week's Amateur Championship, yet for most of the year it probably lies empty. It's the same, no doubt, at Royal Troon and some of the country's other championship links.
These venues boast the best putting surfaces in Scotland and it's about time they were put to better use to help our top golfers improve the part of the game which separates the men from the boys at every level.
In fact, why not take this a step further by getting the likes of the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers to encourage those players to use their practice facilities and course on a fairly regular basis over the course of a season?
This suggestion was made to me by the father of one of the Scots who qualified for the match-play phase last week and he's got a point. Practising and competing at a venue like Muirfield gives our players a taste of something that, frustratingly, is a world apart from what they are used to.
I'm not saying that we should have dozens of players turning up at these courses every day and queuing to get their chance to use the putting green before heading out for a round. That simply wouldn't be feasible and wouldn't be fair on the clubs I'm referring to.
However, what's to stop the Scottish Golf Union coming to an agreement with the likes of Carnoustie, Muirfield, Royal Troon or Royal Aberdeen whereby the members of its Elite Squad can make regular visits during the course of the year?
Some of these clubs, as well as Loch Lomond, have been providing tee times for the SGU in recent years, with the money raised from these being put towards the development of junior golf.
However, surely it would be more beneficial in the long run if the people getting access to these courses were the players who, one day, could be back there challenging in either an Open Championship or Scottish Open.
They'd benefit enormously if that was the case and the chance to work on their putting strokes on greens that, invariably, are like velvet really speaks for itself.
James Byrne, Scotland's highest-ranked amateur, is a wonderful putter. So, too, is Sally Watson, his equivalent in the women's game. The common thread is that they are based in America, where they are benefiting from world-class facilities and, what's more, are able to use them virtually all year around.
At Stanford University in California, Watson works every day on a short-game range which has six separate areas that re-create famous greens designed by Alister Mackenzie, Robert Trent Jones II, Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Robert Trent Jones Jr and A W Tillinghast so that players can prepare properly for particular events.
That type of facility costs money, of course, and the former alma mater of Tiger Woods perhaps isn't the best example. However, at a time when we constantly hear Scottish players groaning about how they struggle on the greens, it has always puzzled me that someone hasn't decided to try and establish a world-class short game academy in the heart of the country.
St Andrews Links Trust deserve credit for improving their facility that flanks the 16th hole on the Old Course, while the likes of Kings Acre on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Aspire outside Aberdeen, Kingsfield at Linlithgow and Gailes north of Troon are among the many golf courses and golf centres that are certainly doing their best to provide better practice facilities.
What I'd like to see, though, is a place where the greens are as good as they are at Muirfield just now and also at Carnoustie and St Andrews, as I can testify.
Somewhere that our players currently out on the European Tour and those aspiring to get there can hone putting strokes that are up their with the likes of Ben Crenshaw, Loren Roberts, Rhys Davies and, for that matter, newly-crowned Amateur champion Jin Jeong.
Davies revealed recently that he's raking in a bucketful of cash these days thanks to the hours of practice he put in as youngster and, in the wake of his win at Muirfield, it was interesting to hear Jeong reveal the secret behind his silk touch on the greens.
Every single day, the 20-year-old's practice routine includes the following: half an hour focusing solely on his putting stroke, without caring whether the ball goes in the hole or not; short putting drills and work on distance control.
He couldn't miss for a spell in his final against Byrne, who is pretty deadly with the flat stick himself but would surely jump at the chance to keep testing himself on the best greens in the country between now and his return to Arizona State University at the end of the summer.

+What do you think of Martin Dempster's idea. E-mail your view for publication to Colin@scottishgolfview.com

Wentworth turf used to fix greens at Loch Lomond

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.COM WEBSITE
By JIM BLACK
ANY lingering doubts about Loch Lomond's suitability to stage the Barclays Scottish Open next month were removed yesterday when officials laid the course bare to close scrutiny by the media.
It became clear during a detailed briefing on the current state of play that, as revealed by The Scotsman in May, the severe winter conditions had played havoc with the greens and there had been very real concerns on the part of the European Tour that they might be forced to seek an alternate venue for the event, to be held on 8-11 July.
Course superintendent David Cole described the situation that he and his team were confronted with as recently as six months ago as, "the worst I have faced" and Peter Adams, the championship director, confessed: "It was nerve-wracking for a while."
Four of the greens were so badly affected by ice that they had to be ripped up and replaced with turf from Wentworth in a desperate race against the clock.
"We experienced two to three inches of ice for up to 30 days over the Christmas period and when it melted we were left with very white, very distressed turf because no oxygen could get under the ice," recalled Cole.
"I contacted the club and a few experts from around the world, including seeking advice from Scandinavian clubs because they are used to that sort of thing.
"The problem was getting greens standard turf because you can't just go and buy it from a shop. But we got lucky as Wentworth had some soil left following the redevelopment of their greens."
Adams added: "I think the course measures up close to the excellent standard we had last year."

JAMES BYRNE HEADS SCOTLAND’S EURO DEFENCE

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION
Banchory’s James Byrne, the beaten finalist in last week’s Amateur Championship, will headline a strong Scotland line-up bidding to defend the European Amateur Team Championship in Sweden next month from July 6 to 10.
The Scots overcame England in the final at Conwy GC in Wales last July to become World and European champions and this year’s six-man team will be looking to become the first Scotland side to defend the title since 1977, with a team which included amateur legends Charlie Green and Ian Hutcheon.
Byrne, who is now in the top 20 of the world amateur rankings, missed out on a place in last year’s side, but made his full Scotland debut alongside Richie Ramsay in the European bronze-medal winning team of 2007 at Western Gailes.
Colville Park’s Ross Kellett and Troon Welbeck’s Michael Stewart are the only members of last year’s team still in the side, with Gavin Dear, Wallace Booth, Paul O’Hara all turning making the switch to the paid ranks.
Kellett’s confidence will be boosted by a four-shot win in last weekend’s Tennant Cup – his first SGU Order of Merit success – while Stewart has returned from the United States in positive fashion with a seventh place finish in the St Andrews Links Trophy before reaching the third round of the match play stages in the Amateur Championship.
Philip McLean, joint runner-up in the St Andrews Links Trophy, makes his European Team Championship debut, as does Fraserburgh’s Kris Nicol who achieved second place finishes in both the Lytham Trophy and Irish Stroke Play Championship earlier this season. Both players helped the North East team to victory in last month’s Moneygate Scottish Area Team Championship at Kinross.
Greg Paterson, third in the recent Welsh Stroke Play Championship and one of seven Scots to qualify for the match-play stages at Muirfield last week, has been rewarded with his first European team inclusion, while Paterson’s fellow Fifer James White has been named reserve.
The championship takes place at Osterakers Golf Club in Sweden, with two rounds of stroke play qualifying determining the top flight of eight for the match play stages. Scotland has won the Championship on six occasions, while England lead the way with nine wins.
The Scotland team is sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management and TaylorMade-adidas Golf.
Full Team:
1. James Byrne (Banchory)
2. Ross Kellett (Colville Park)
3. Philip McLean (Peterhead)
4. Kris Nicol (Fraserburgh)
5. Greg Paterson (The New Club, St Andrews)
6. Michael Stewart (Troon Welbeck)
Reserve : James White (Lundin)

Ross Duncan
Marketing and Sponsorship Manager
SCOTTISH GOLF UNION

JONES TAKES FOOTBALLERS’ TITLE AT LA MANGA CLUB

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE AZALEA GROUP
Former Wales goalkeeper Paul Jones won the 14th Footballers’ Golf Classic, narrowly edging out fellow Welsh international Steve Lovell by just one point at La Manga Club.
Jones led the three-day event from the start and held an 11-point advantage going into the final round, but a poor third round almost allowed former Millwall striker Lovell to snatch the title.
The ex-Wolves keeper scored just 23 points in a poor final round while both Lovell and former Norwich and England winger Mark Barham found enough form to threaten his tally.
However, Jones’ overall total of 99 points proved just enough to take him to victory with Lovell finishing on 98 and 2006-winner Barham a further point behind in third.
The event, sponsored by Addison Lee, Europe’s largest minicab fleet, included a team competition which was also won by a solitary point, as Ivan Millward, Michael Dick and Dave Harris emerged victorious with a total of 247 points from their three rounds.
Each competition round saw teams play with a different foOtball legend and a host of famous faces took part including Matt Le Tissier, Paul Jewell, Russell Osman and Pat Jennings.
This year the event featured an extra round of competitive golf with teams competing in the inaugural Alan Ball Trophy which saw Brighton legend Perry Digweed lead his team of Kevin Lawson, Martin Lovell and Mark Davies to victory.
Digweed’s side scored 103 points to finish one point ahead of teams captained by Wolves-stalwart Kenny Hibbitt and Scotland striker David Speedie.
The Footballers’ Golf Classic is just one of a host of prestigious events held on La Manga Club’s three championship golf courses. The five-star resort has previously hosted the Spanish Open and is a regular venue for celebrity and corporate competitions.
For more information on La Manga Club or to book a stay call 00 34 968 17 5577, email reserve@lamangaclub.com or go to www.lamangaclub.com.

Tommy Fleetwood wins place in French Open

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ENGLISH GOLF UNION
England international Tommy Fleetwood shot rounds of 67 and 70 to win the qualifying stage at Chantilly for next month’s French Open Championship.
A total of 193 players competed for nine spots in the European Tour event across three separate qualifiers on 21st June. Fleetwood (Formby Hall, Lancashire) finished a shot ahead of over 50 professionals in his qualifier and will now play in the Alstom Open de France at Golf National in Paris from July 1 to 4.
Fleetwood clearly cashed in on his knowledge of the Chantilly layout where he was England’s top scorer with three points from four in the recent international with the French over the same course. Over two rounds Fleetwood clocked up 10 birdies and one eagle, which was enough to secure his spot in his first European Tour event.
This year the Lancastrian finished runner-up in the New South Wales Amateur and the Spanish Amateur when he was beaten by England team-mate Matt Haines, who has since joined the professional ranks. Fleetwood was also a member of the 2009 Walker Cup team.
He received his first England cap in the 2008 Home Internationals following a runner-up spot in the Amateur Championship that year.
Lynne Fraser
EGU Marketing and PR Manager

TURKISH DELIGHT FOR BOYS' CHAMPION FORREST

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION
Scottish Boys Champion Grant Forrest has been rewarded for his sparkling form this season with a place in the Scotland side bidding for glory at next month’s European Amateur Boys Team Championship in Turkey from July 6 to 10.

Forrest, pictured by Andy Forman, who finished runner-up in the prestigious Sir Henry Cooper Junior Masters at the weekend, won the Scottish Boys Championship at West Kilbride in April, adding to the national U16s title he collected last summer. The 16-year-old from Craigielaw also helped Lothians to victory in the recent Scottish Boys Area Team Championship and made his Scotland debut in the Boys Home Internationals last August.

Reigning Scottish boys' stroke play champion Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) is the only player from last year’s line-up in the team travelling to Klassis Golf Club in Istanbul, aiming to become the first Scottish side in ten years to lift the European title.
Torwoodlee’s Simon Fairburn, who leads the SGU Boys Order of Merit race following two Junior Tour wins and a victory in the Junior Champion of Champions event, earns a well deserved call-up, while Liam Johnston (Dumfries & County), who fired a superb six-under par 66 to win the recent Junior Tour event at Barassie, also makes the team.
Scott Gibson (Southerness), who accumulated an impressive five wins out of six in last year’s Boys Home Internationals and recently won his second consecutive Scottish Schools Championship title, earns an inclusion, with Scottish Youths Championship joint runner-up Paul McPhee (King James VI) also selected on the back of his consistent form this season.
National junior coach Spencer Henderson looked forward to the championship:
“All the players in this year’s team have shown excellent form this season both domestically and in events further afield so we’ll go to Turkey with a lot of confidence and belief. The level of boys’ golf across Europe seems to improve year on year but we’ll look forward to the challenge.”
“It’s been ten years since Scotland last won the event with Martin Laird in the side back then but we’ve had some good performances over the last few years and we’ll take inspiration from how the men’s team have performed on the big stage.” he added.
The Scotland boys’ team is sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management and TaylorMade-adidas Golf.
Full Team:
Grant Forrest (Craigielaw)
Scott Gibson (Southerness)
Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock, Barassie)
Simon Fairburn (Galashiels)
Paul McPhee ( King James VI)
Liam Johnston (Dumfries and County)

Ross Duncan
Marketing and Sponsorship Manager
SCOTTISH GOLF UNION