SCOTT LARKIN WINS NE ALLIANCE AT MONTROSE WITH PAR 68

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfivew.com

With a little bit of luck Scott Larkin, leading amateur and runner-up to pro winner Greig Hutcheon in last year's Northern Open, would be in South Africa at the moment with the SGU Elite Squad.

But the +3 Royal Aberdeen player, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, took advantage of the absence of other leading North-east amateurs who were selected for that eight-week trip to win today's North-east Alliance competition over the Montrose Links' winter course.

In quite windy but dry and latterly sunny conditions, Larkin was the only player in the field of 91 to match the testing par of 68 for the 5,508yd lay-out.

He birdied the first, fourth and 15^th but bogeyed the eighth, ninth and 14^th in par-matching halves of 33 and 35, with the straight hitting necessary to stay out of the punishing whins that line the Montrose fairways.

Larkin has a handicap of +3 while scratch runner-up, whom he pipped by a shot, was a Newburgh two-handicap member, Paul McIntosh who had halves of 35 and 34.

"The amazing thing was that I three-putted five times and still had a 69," said Paul who started bogey-bogey and then holed a 30ft putt for an eagle 2 at the fourth. At the previous hole missed from 2ft for a 2! He also birdied the 10th and the 15th.

Paul Lawrie's nephew Sean had another good finish. A one-handicapper at Portlethen, the teenager came home in 32 to share third place with professional Colin Nelson (Mackenzie Club) and Newmachar +2 amateur John Duff.
Sean's father Steve, older brother of Paul, was runner-up in Class 1 handicap with a net 67 off six. Winner of this section was Philip Morrison (Oldmeldrum) with a 66, also off six.

CLUBHOUSE SNIPPETS
Mike Booth (Kemnay), who shared the Class 2 handicap top prize with Mike Brown (Inverurie) (18) with a net 67, had an amazing outward half for an 11-handicapper ... out in 33, back in 45. And he had more than one three-putt! Time for a review of his handicap perhaps? (only jokking, Mike!).
Cruden Bay's John Roberts finished joint third in the Class 1 handicap prizelist with a net 68 off six.
"With all due respect to Buckpool, Montrose's winter condition beats anywhere we go. I would quite happily come down and play Montrose every Wednesday!" says John.
John Nicolson finished joint seventh in the scratch list and joint fifth in the Class 1 handicap with a gross 72 but he was not a happy man, even after coming home in 33.
"I hit the 17th green in two shots - and then four-putted for a double-bogey 6," moaned the Auchmill three-handicapper.

ALL THE SCRATCH SCORES
Par 68 (33-35). SSS 68. Yardage: 5,508

68 S Larkin (Royal Aberdeen).
69 P McIntosh (Newburgh).
70 C Nelson (Mackenzie Club), J Duff (Newmchar), Sean Lawrie (Portlethen).
71 F Bisset (Banchory).
72 P Morrison (Oldmeldrum), C Stewart (Kippie Lodge), D Brown (Kemnay), J Nicolson (Auchmill)..
73 C Carnegie (Kemnay), L Prouse (Hazlehead), B Nicolson (Auchmill), Steve Lawrie (Portlethen).
74 J Roberts (Cruden Bay).
75 A Campbell (Deeside), R Fitzpatrick (Inchmarlo), I Bratton (Newburgh).
77 B Harper (Newburgh), A J Smith (Turriff), S Scott (Auchmill), C Law (Kings Links), L Fowler (Royal Aberdeen), M Merchant (Newmachar), D McKay (Caledonian).
78 J Duncan (Newburgh), D Leslie (Westhill), M Forster (Cruden Bay), J Hopwood (Carnegie Club), R Lamb (Newmachar), M Booth (Kemnay).
79 D Nelson (Aboyne), S Chalmers (Banchory).
81 D Wilson (Duff House Royal), M Jenkins (Duff House Royal), K Lumsden (Craibstone)
82 J M Hamilton (Murcar Links), T Slater (Auchmill), J Borthwick (Craibstone), D Bisset (Banchory).
83 P Anderson (Deeside), G Homer (Northern), D A Fleming (Portlethen), H McNaughton (Cruden Bay).
84 S Kennedy (Craibstone), D Bingham (Newburgh), S Elrick (Kemnay), K Beveridge (Inchmarlo).
85 J Dalgarno (Hazlehead), C Ord (Auchmill), M Rendall (Stonehaven), M Ord (Royal Aberdeen), M Brown (Inverurie), J Forrest (Northern), N Stewart (Northern), A Graham (Aboyne), G Stevely (Murcar Links).
86 I Strachan (Royal Aberdeen), M F R Rogers (Kemnay).
87 R Brown (Inverurie).
88 D Phillip (Newburgh), D Randall (Banchory), A Petrie (Oldmeldrum) N Parker (Murcar Links).
89 P Farnan (Royal Aberdeen), I Grant (Insch), J Lumsden (Auchmill), J Gall (Caledonian).
90 G Leslie (Newburgh), T Collie (Kemnay).
91 J Mackintosh (Auchmill), J Murray (Banchory), R O’Donnell (Oldmeldrum).
92 C Buchanan (Newmachar), N Chisholm (Kemnay), J Jessiman (Oldmeldrum).
95 R Orr (Kemnay).
96 D Wood (Newburgh).
97 G Brown (Portlethen).

98 J McPherson (Auchmill), C Farquhar (Northern)..

100 B Lumsden jun (Northern).

HANDICAP PRIZEWINNERS
Class 1 (handicaps 0-9)
66 P Morrison (Oldmeldrum) (6).
67 Steve Lawrie (Portlethen) (6).
68 L Prouse (Hazlehead) (5), J Roberts (Cruden Bay) (6).

69 C Carnegie (Kemnay) (4), F Bisset (Banchory) (2), J Nicolson (Auchmill) (2).

Class 2 (handicaps 10-18)
67 M Brown (Inverurie) (18), M Booth (Kemnay) (11).
71 I Grant (Insch) (18), M F R Rogers (Kemnay) (15).
72 G Homer ( Northern) (11), M Ord (Royal Aberdeen) (13), D Bingham (Newburgh) (12), N Stewart (Northern) (13), H McNaughton (Cruden Bay) (11), M Rendall (Stonehaven) (13).

MONTROSE LINKS WINTER COURSE PAR 68
OUT: 4-4-3-4-4-4-3-3-4--33. IN: 4-4-3-4-4-5-3-4-4--35

SCOTT LARKIN 68
OUT: 3-4-3-3-4-4-3-4-5--33. IN: 4-4-3-4-5-4-3-4-4--35
PAUL McINTOSH 69
OUT: 5-5-3-2-4-5-4-3-4--35. IN: 3-4-3-4-4-4-3-5-4--34
COLIN NELSON 70
OUT: 4-4-4-6-4-4-3-3-5--37. IN: 4-4-2-4-3-4-3-5-4--33
SEAN LAWRIE 70
OUT: 5-4-3-6-3-6-4-3-4--38. IN: 3-4-3-3-3-4-3-5-4--32
JOHN DUFF 70
OUT: 4-3-3-4-3-4-3-4-4--32. IN: 5-4-3-4-4-5-3-5-5--38
FERGUS BISSET 71
OUT: 4-5-3-4-3-4-4-3-5--35. IN: 3-5-3-4-5-4-3-5-4--36