McKENNA SWOOPS TO CONQUER AT CRAIL

By COLIN FARQUHARSON Colin@scottishgolfview.com  Fraser McKenna is certainly the man in form over the opening weeks of the Scottish amateur circuit for 2012. Two Sundays ago he won the Scottish Champion of Champions' tournament at Leven (not an SGU Order of Merit event because it is invitational). Last Sunday he finished sixth in the Craigmillar Park Open. And today, at the Crail Golfing Society's Craighead Links, the Balmore man came with a last-round surge to win the second staging of the Battle Trophy. This is his second SGU Order of Merit success, following up last season's victory in the Sutherland Chalice four-rounder in Dumfries. Four different players led the field at the end of the four rounds. Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) continued the form that won him the British Student Finals Tour title at West Lancs on Thursday to lead with a four-under 68 at the end of the first round. But after the second round it was another Stirling University student, David Booth from Rotherham. who had taken over the pole position with scores of 69-65 for 10-under 134. Booth gave away to Kirkhill's Paul Shields who recaptured his South African form from earlier in the year to lead by two shots after 54 holes with scores of 70-68-69 for nine-under 207, Booth having subsided to a third-round 75. Over the final round, Shields slumped to a 75 for six-under 282 and McKenna swept past with a 69 for a four-stroke win on 10-under 278. McKenna, a former British boys championship beaten finalist, had scored 69, 68 and 72 in his earlier rounds. Fraser had a particularly good back nine on the last round: par, birdie, par, birdie, birdie. That really nailed it for him. Paul Shields started his last round with an eagle but went bogey, bogey, double bogey, at 5, 6 and 7 to be two over par for the front 9. Two birdies on the back 9 at 10 and 13 weren’t enough to make up for bogeys at 11, 15 and 18. David Booth's second-round 65 was the lowest 18 hole total ever recorded at Craighead but it won't be recognised as a course record before of preferrred lies. David also had the best 36-hole total of 134, but his putting left him from the back 9 of the third round. Booth, who closed with a 73, tied with Shields for third place. Craigmillar Park Open winner Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) did well to come back from an opening round of 76 to finish joint fourth on 285 with Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm). Robertson's later rounds were 67-70-72 while Clark shot 71-69-71-74. James Aitken (Alloa) was a surprise name at this level of golf in sixth place on one-under-par 287, thanks to 68s in his first and third rounds. Nice also to see Ewan Scott (St Andrews), beaten finalist in the Paul Lawrie Scottish boys championship recently, finishing seventh on level par 288. Defending champion Alexander Culverwell (Dunbar) found his form to late to repeat his title challenge. He had a final round of 68 for a total of 295 after earlier efforts of 74-77-76. Reinstated amateur Graham Gordon (Newmachar), a former Walker Cup player and Scottish amateur champion, missed the cut by one shot with scores of 79 and 73 for 152. +Douglas Hunter (Dalmahoy) had a hole in one with a rescue club today at the 197yd seventh hole. Our man on the spot did not tell us whether it was in his third or fourth round. But having a glance at Douglas's scores of 77-73-74-79, I would guess his ace came in the 74 and he was still recovering from the start of the celebrations when he scored 79. An open tournament with the best part of 60 or 70 people in the clubhouse is not the best time to have a hole in one but, I'm told, Douglas stepped up to the bar and told his fellow competitors "The drinks are on me!" FINAL TOTALS Par 288 (4x72) CSS 74 74 74 74 278 Fraser McKenna (Balmore) 69 68 72 69. 282 David Booth (Rotherham) 69 65 75 73, Paul Shields (Kirkhill) 70 68 69 75 285 Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) 76 67 70 72, Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) 71 69 71 74. 287 James Aitken (Alloa) 68 76 68 75. 288 Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) 75 72 70 71. 289 Ewan Scott (St Andrews) 71 76 69 73. 291 Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) 68 73 75 75, Ross Bell (Downfield) 75 71 75 70, Scott Brown (Turnberry) 79 71 71 70. 292 Lawrence Allan (Alva) 71 70 76 75, Oliver Roberts (Hong Kong) 72 71 71 78. 293 Scott Borrowman (Dollar) 73 75 72 73. 294 Conor O'Neil (Pollok) 74 75 71 74, Andrew Campbell (Dumbarton) 72 74 73 75. 295 Alexander Culverwell (Dunbar) 74 77 76 68, Scott Crichton (Aberdour) 76 73 71 75. 296 Fraser Moore (Blenbervie) 78 72 75 71, Scott Larkin (Royal Aberdeen) 75 71 74 76. 297 Calum Hill (Tantallon) 78 72 76 71. 298 Michael Bacigalupo (Longniddry) 74 77 73 74, Michael Daily (Erskine) 74 76 73 75. 299 Kit Holmes (Hunstanton) 74 76 75 74, Conor Scott (Duddingston) 75 72 77 75, Colin Thomson (East Renfrewshire) 77 73 74 75. 300 David Mitchell (Leven thistle) 76 75 76 73, Jordan Milne (Elgin) 69 79 76 76, Ben Renfrew (The Wynyard) 77 70 73 80. 301 Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) 77 74 75 75, John Duff (Newmachar) 74 76 75 76, Danny Kay (Dunbar) 76 73 76 76, James Hendrick (Pollok) 74 72 75 80. 302 Kyle McClung (Wigtownshire Co) 72 76 73 81. 303 Douglas Hunter (Dalmahoy) 77 73 74 79. 304 Eamon Bradley (Mt Ellen) 79 70 81 74, Keith Anderson (Charleton) 77 73 77 77 306 Stephen Neilson (Dunbar) 75 76 77 78. 310 Thomas White (Kinross) 78 71 77 84. NR Alistair Hain (Ladybank) 76 74 79 NR Withdrew: Kevin Duncan (McDonald Ellon) 69 67 75 wd