MUNRO FERRIES RETAINS TAIN CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP

Tain photo line up (left to right) Raymond Lockie, Claire  Ross, Morag      Sutherland, Munro Ferries

 

By ROBIN WILSON

Twelve months ago Munro Ferries became the first captain in office to win the J and I Carpets Tain club championship and he retained the title last weekend with some ease, beating Graeme McIntosh in the final.

The women's section of the club has a new first time champion in Claire Ross who defeated the holder, Sammy Vass in the final.

The men's event was considered the strongest in recent years. The defending champion led the qualifiers with a gross of 149 and eight of the 16 qualifiers who went forward to the match play stages held handicaps of two and under. 

The four seeds were: Ferries 149, Lyle McAlpine 150, Davie Vass 150 and Shaun Hogg 153.

McAlpine, who had lost by 3 and 2 the previous weekend in the final of the Invergordon club championship to the experience campaigner , Alan Gilmour, went out by the same margin in the Tain semis to Graeme McIntosh.

Previous five time winner Ferries had a ding dong battle, sharing nine birdies with his elder brother Billy before booking his place in the final.

McIntosh was making his first appearance in the final and when it seemed he had made a nerve-free start of halving the first three holes, he was then hit by a barrage of pars and birdies from his experienced opponent to lose the next five holes.  

 Turning for home with a five-hole lead Ferries eased to his sixth title on the 15th green.

Claire Ross has enjoyed an excellent season at Tain and following on from qualifying for the match-play stages of the Scottish women's championship in May then being selected for the Northern Counties women's team alongside Sammy Vass, she met Vass, the defending champion, in the women's final.

It was a close game through the first 15 holes with Ross just one ahead but Vass levelled by winning the 16th hole. The holder might have taken a one hole lead to the final hole but a short miss with the putter allowed Ross a half.

A mishit approach by Ross to the final green again gave Vass the advantage but a three putt allowed Ross to win her first championship with a long putt for par four to win the hole and the game.  

The men's handicap final was a contest of two joiners, Raymond Lockie (handicap 8) and Alan Mackenzie (6) and with his first stroke hole on the outward half Lockie was one ahead after nine holes. Winning the Alps hole and then the 14^th with his second stroke Lockie was now three up  and he dove-tailed his first championship cup with a half on the 16^th green. The winner will look back at his semi final win as an escape route into the final when he was four down with five holes left to play but won them all to beat Davie MacLeod on the final green.

The women's handicap championship final was won by Morag Sutherland who met the club secretary Maggie Vass (8) in the final. It turned out another disappointing result for the Vass family, Sammy's mother from being dormie two, lost the 17^th and 18^th holes and then the 19^th where she had to concede a stroke to her 22 handicap opponent.