ROBERTSON HOLDS OFF WATSON TO WIN CRAIGMILLAR PARK OPEN

Runner-up Craig Watson and Craigmillar Park Open winner Graeme Robertson. Image by Cal Carson Golf Agency. 

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfview.com

Stirling University student Graeme Robertson held off a strong finish from veteran Craig Watson to win the 52nd Craigmillar Park Open golf tournament over the Edinburgh parkland course today.
Which goes to prove that Robertson is a fast learner.

The previous weekend the 23 year Robertson from Larbert and Glenbervie Golf Club, clear of the field at Leven for most of the way, let the lead on Sunday's 36 hole finish to come joint second in the Scottish Champion of Champions.

This time round at Craigmlllar Park. Robertson forged out of a three-way tie for the lead at the end of Saturday's 36 holes with a 66 to lead by two shots after three rounds. Then he  held off a late great birdie run from one of his playing partners, the 45-year-old Watson, winner of the British amateur championship in 1993 and the Craigmillar Park Open in 1994.
Robertson had rounds of 64, 70, 66 and 67 for a 13-under-par total of 267 over the par-70 lay-out.
He birdied the third, eighth, 11th, 14th and 17th in his final round but bogeys at the short 13th and short 15th left the door open for Watson who closed the gap on the leader to one shot with birdies at the third and fifth, followed by a spectacular late run of sub-par figures at the 13th, 14th,15th and 17th.
Watson's superlative run of four-under-par for the five-hole stretch  saw him come home in 31 for a 64 and a total of 12-under-268. It put Robertson under pressure but he coped well this time.
Watson, who had earlier rounds of 68, 66 and 70, shared the halfway lead with Robertson and Allyn Dick at 10-under 134.
Robertson left his par putt five feet short on the 18th. But he bravely and confidently holed it for victory - his first in a 72-hole SGU Order of Merit event. He won the South East District Open last season but it was reduced to 36 holes by bad weather.
It was a case of third time lucky for Graeme - his third appearance in the Craigmillar Park Open, and maybe it takes that long to work out how to play this quirky course that saw some surprise non-qualifiers at the end of Saturday's play, namely defending champion Greg Paterson (St Andrews New), Paul Shields (Kirkhill), Alexander Culverwell (Dunbar) and Scott Crichton (Aberdour), all over the cut-off limit of two-over-par 142.
"I tried to motivate myself by thinking how I felt when I let victory slip out of my grasp at Leven last weekend. And I also focused a lot better at Craigmillar Park this Sunday than I did the previous Sunday when I had a big lead at one time and got ahead of myself," said Robertson who intends to be a full-time amateur golfer after he graduates from Stirling University in a month or two.
Watson had a go to get a birdie 3, the least he needed to force a play-off, at the last and charged his putt four feet past but holed the one back safely to finish a gallant second.
"These younger guys hit the ball a mile past me but, on my game, particularly on a course like this, I showed I can still hold my own with them," said Watson who does not travel so far out of his own neck of the woods to compete as he did his heyday.

Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe), who felt he did not have his best putting weekend, finished third with scores of 70, 64, 68 and 67 for 269. Bogeys at the first and 12th in his final round took the edge off a bag of five birdies (second, third, ninth, 11th and 14th).
With eight holes to go, playing partners Robertson, Dick and Watson, were all two under par for the round with Robertson leading at 12 under par from Dick and James White (Lundin)  at 10 under par, Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) at nine under and Watson, at that point, eight under the card overall.

White, who set the course record of 10-under-par 60 last year, reached the turn in five-under 30 with an eagle 2 at the third and birdies at the second, seventh, eighth and ninth, with only one shot dropped, at the fourth ,where he drove into rough.
But White lost his momentum on the inward half with only one more birdie (at the short 13th) but a bogey at the 16th. He had to settle for a closing 65. Clark, out in 32, also couldn't squeeze enough out of the inward half, coming home in 34 for a 66
So first, around 5pm, White posted the clubhouse target of 10-under 270, equalled shortly after by Clark.
But the halfway leading trio, playing together someway behind a field that otherwise went out in pairs, held the key to the outcome and it was perhaps justice that they finished 1-2-3.

 FINAL TOTALS
Par 280 (4x70) CSS 71 reduction only, 71 70 69
267 Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) 64 70 66 67
268 Craig Watson (East Renfrewshire) 68 66 70 64
269 Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) 70 64 68 67
270 James White (Lundin) 70 68 67 65, Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) 65 72  67 66
272 Fraser McKenna (Balmore) 70 68 69 65
273 Kit Holmes (Hunstanton) 69 70 68 66
274 Keith Hamilton (Ayr Belleisle) 69 68 69 68
275 Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) 69 70 65 71, Glen Campbell (Blairgowrie) 66 72 71 66, Mathias Eggenberger (Switzerland) 68 69 70 68, Steven Rennie (Drumpellier) 69 68 70 68
277 Brian Soutar (Leven GS) 74 68 64 71, Scott Stewart-Cation (The Dukes) 73 68 67 69, Graham J Gordon (Newmachar) 72 68 70 67, Ross Bell (Downfield) 71 68 69 69, Richard Bridges (Stackstown) 71 68 71 67, Alan Welsh (Cathkin Braes) 69 67 71 70
279 Graham J Robertson (Silverknowes) 69 71 69 70
280 James Bunch (Prestwick) 70 70 71 69, Andrew Campbell (Dumbarton) 67 73 66 74
281 Ross Noon (Craigielaw) 71 69 68 73
282 Callum Trahan (Meldrum House) 73 69 72 68, Fraser Moore (Glenbervie) 67 73 71 71.
283 Stephen Neilson (Dunbar) 72 70 74 67
284 Michael Daily (Erskine) 72 70 76 66, Patrick Spraggs (Stowmarket) 71 69 72 72, Paul Gault (Westerwood) 71 68 75 70
290 Colin Thomson (East Renfrewshire) 69 72 77 72.
291 Gordon Miller (Cawder) 74 68 70 79, Cameron Marr (Musselburgh) 74 67 68 82.

GRAEME ROBERTSON'S SUNDAY SCORECARDS
ROUND 3 - 66
OUT: 4-3-4-4-4-3-3-3-4: 32. IN: 5-2-4-3-5-2-4-5-4: 34
ROUND 4 - 67
OUT: 4-4-3-4-4-4-3-3-4: 33. IN: 4-2-4-4-4-4-4-4-4: 34

CRAIG WATSON'S LAST-ROUND 64
OUT: 4-4-3-4-3-4-3-4-4: 33. IN: 4-3-4-2-4-2-4-4-4: 31

CRAIGMILLAR PARK PAR FIGURES - 70
OUT: 4-4-4-4-4-4-3-4-4: 35. IN: 4-3-4-3-5-3-4-5-4 35

GRAEME ROBERTSON LEADS CRAIGMILLAR PARK OPEN BY TWO

Stirling University student Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) went to the top of the class after three rounds of the Craigmillar Park Open in a very chilly Edinburgh today.
Robertson shot a morning round of four-under-par 66 for a 54-hole tally of 10-under-par 200, breaking a three-way tie for the halfway lead with former British Amateur champion Craig Watson (East Renfrewshire) and Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) on six-under 134. Watson had a 70 for 204 to drop into a third-place tie with Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) (65) and former title-winner Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) (67).
Dick took up second place on his own on 202 - two behind Robertson - after a 68.
Robertson who tied for second place after making most of the running in last week's Scottish Champion of Champions at Leven had birdies at the second, sixth, eighth, 11th and 15th in halves od 32 (three under par) and 34 (one under). He had one bogey - at the 10th.
Dick's 68 included birdies at the fourth, seventh and 14th, offset by one bogey, the very last hole in halves of 33 and 35.
Defending champion Greg Paterson (St Andrews New) was among those who failed to make the cut-off point of two-over-par 142. He scored 74-70. Other big names on the sidelines are Paul Shields (Kirkhill) 75-68 for 143, Alexander Culverwell (Dunbar) 77-69 for 146 and Scott Crichton (Aberdour) on 151 (75-77).
THIRD-ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 210 (3x70)
200 Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) 64 70 66
202 Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) 70 64 68.
204 Craig Watson (East Renfrewshire) 68 66 70, Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) 65 72 67, Adam Dunton (McDonald Ellon) 69 70 65
205 James White (Lundin) 70 68 67
206 Bryan Souter (Leven GS) 74 68 64, Andrew Campbell (Dumbarton) 67 73 66, Keith Hamilton(Ayr Belleisle) 69 68 69
207 Alan Welsh (Kingsknowe) 69 67 71, Fraser McKenna (Balmore) 70 68 69, Mathias Eggenberger (Switzerland) 68 69 70, Kit Holmes (Hunstanton) 69 70 68.
208 Scott Stewart-Cation (The Dukes) 73 68 67, Ross Noon (Craigielaw) 71 68 68, Ross Bell (Downfield) 71 68 69
209 Cameron Marr (Musselburgh) 64 67 68, Graham J Robertson (Silverknowes) 69 71 69, Glenn Campbell (Blairgowrie) 68 72 71
210 Graham J Gordon (Newmachar) 72 68 70, Richard Bridges (Stackstown) 71 68 71
211 Fraser Moore (Glenbervie) 67 73 71, James Bunch (Prestwick) 70 70 71

Stephen Gallacher finishes second despite Round 3 scorecard blunder

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR
Kuala Lumpur, April 15: South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen atoned for his Masters Tournament heartbreak by cruising to a stylish three-stroke victory at the Maybank Malaysian Open on Sunday.
A week after losing in a play-off to American Bubba Watson at Augusta National, the 29-year-old underlined his star credentials by overcoming jetlag, searing heat and a stellar field assembled at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, closing with a solid four-under-par 68 for a 17-under-par 271 winning total.
Scot Stephen Gallacher carded a battling 70 for second place while American David Lipsky, winner of the HANDA FALDO Cambodian Classic last month, finished joint third and two shots back after a 70 alongside Danny Willett of England (71) and Spaniard Rafael Cabrera-Bello (71).
Gallacher earned $277,770.
Former Asian Tour number ones Jeev Milkha Singh and Jyoti Randhawa of India were the best placed Asians in tied 11th place in the US$2.5 million event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
Oosthuizen, who received the Seagram Trophy from Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak and also the champion’s navy blue jacket, said: “It would have been better if I had the green jacket (laughter) but I’m a little bit surprise because I thought I would be tired. I played well and the game was there so it made it a lot easier. I had a good week.”
The South African, the 2010 British Open champion, returned to the course this morning to complete his third round with a 69 for a one-shot lead into the final 18 holes. With his game in full flow, he was in total control before breaking away with a birdie on the 13th hole before putting the icing on the cake with another birdie on 16.
“I had a seven iron in my hand (on 13) and the wind changed a little bit so I went to an eight-iron which I can commit myself. I hit a beautiful shot and made that putt,” he said.
“Coming here and winning after what happened last week showed me that I can pull it off so it’s very important. I think my win at the British Open has helped me get my game to where it is at the moment. I have been working quite a bit with my coach and we have been trying to get my game to where we want it to be,” added Oosthuizen, who picked up US$416,660 for his fifth European Tour title and first win in Asia.
Gallacher, a one-time winner on the European Tour, rued signing for a higher score for his third round as he eventually settled for his second runner-up finish of the season.
“I went over the card, thought I signed it properly. Signed for a 69 when I shot a 68,” said the Scot. “I thought I was tied for the lead, and then I was one behind but luckily it didn’t affect me that much. It’s one of those things that you learn,” said the 37-year-old Gallacher, who got to within one shot of the champion on the back nine.
“Phenomenal performance (by Oosthuizen) considering coming off from last week. I thought he may get tired today and obviously he didn’t. He’s a fit guy. Fair play to him. He played great. He was on form.”
Lipsky’s career has been on the upswing since winning the Asian Tour Qualifying School in January which subsequently led him to his maiden professional victory in Cambodia last month. He was three shots off the pace entering the final round but failed to keep up with a surging Oosthuizen.
“It’s been great. I’ve been pretty consistent off the tee and my putter has been cooperating with me. Those two things combine really help. This is probably my 10th straight round under par. I can’t believe where I’m at right now. I’m so happy. The hard work has paid off,” said the 23-year-old Lipsky.
Randhawa, Asia’s number one in 2002, was in contention for most of the round before dropping five shots on holes 13 and 14. He was still delighted with his best result since the 2011 Panasonic Open India where he placed fifth.
“If you take those two (bad) shots away then I would have finished higher. At least I know why those bad shots came because the old swing came in. I birdied after those shots so that was a good comeback. All in all I think I’m feeling good. I just need to give it a little bit more time,” said Randhawa.
Singh, a two-time Order of Merit winner in 2006 and 2008, got off to a flying start with four straight birdies to move into contention but three bogeys in the middle of the round and a double bogey on 16 killed his hopes.
“I had a great start. I think I got ahead of myself and gave a few shots away. I thought I got really unlucky on 16, I hit a great shot in there but it rolled into the water. That set me back and I shot even par. Hopefully it gets better from here,” said Singh.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72) Yardage 6967
271 - Louis OOSTHUIZEN (RSA) 66-68-69-68.
274 - Stephen GALLACHER (SCO) 67-68-69-70 ($277,770)
276 - Rafael CABRERA-BELLO (ESP) 67-72-66-71, Danny WILLETT (ENG) 69-69-67-71, David LIPSKY (USA) 70-67-69-70.
277 - Charl SCHWARTZEL (RSA) 64-75-70-68.
279 - Matteo MANASSERO (ITA) 70-72-68-69, Martin KAYMER (GER) 70-67-71-71, Romain WATTEL (FRA) 68-68-72-71, Hennie OTTO (RSA) 71-64-72-72.
280 - Scott HEND (AUS) 70-71-73-66, Victor DUBUISSON (FRA) 72-68-69-71, Jeev Mil6kha SINGH (IND) 65-73-70-72, Jyoti RANDHAWA (IND) 66-72-68-74, Jbe KRUGER (RSA) 70-65-77-68.
281 - Soren KJELDSEN (DEN) 68-72-71-70, Rikard KARLBERG (SWE) 73-69-71-68, Ben FOX (USA) 70-68-70-73, MO Joong-kyung (KOR) 71-71-70-69.
282 - Joost LUITEN (NED) 72-69-73-68, Chapchai NIRAT (THA) 71-73-69-69, Antonio LASCUNA (PHI) 67-74-72-69, Julien QUESNE (FRA) 69-72-73-68.
OTHER SCOTS' TOTALS
286 David Drysdale 72 69 74 71 (T40) ($14,750)
292 Alastair Forsyth 71 72 70 79 (T63) ($6,000)

TO VIEW ALL THE FINAL TOTALS

CLICK HERE

CRAIGMILLAR PARK OPEN TEE TIMES FOR FINAL TWO ROUNDS

8.00 13.00 Callum Trahan Meldrum House 73 69 142
8.00 13.00 Michael Daily Erskine 72 70 142

8.08 13.08 Gordon Miller Cawder 74 68 142
8.08 13.08 Stephen Neilson Dunbar 72 70 142

8.16 13.16 Bryan Soutar Leven Golf Society 74 68 142
8.16 13.16 Scott Stewart-Cation Dukes 73 68 141

8.24 13.24 Colin Thomson East renfrewshire 69 72 141
8.24 13.24 Cameron Marr Musselburgh 74 67 141

8.32 13.32 Graham J Gordon Newmachar 72 68 140
8.32 13.32 James Bunch Prestwick 70 70 140

8.40 13.40 Patrick Spraggs Stowmarket 71 69 140
8.40 13.40 Andrew Campbell Dumbarton 67 73 140

8.48 13.48 Ross Noon Craigielaw 71 69 140
8.48 13.48 Fraser Moore Glenbervie 67 73 140

8.56 13.56 Graham J Robertson Silverknowes 69 71 140
8.56 13.56 Ross Bell Downfield 71 68 139

9.04 14.04 Richard Bridges Stackstown 71 68 139
9.04 14.04 Adam Dunton McDonald (Ellon) 69 70 139

9.12 14.12 Kit Holmes Hunstanton 69 70 139
9.12 14.12 Paul Gault Westerwood 71 68 139

9.20 14.20 Fraser Mckenna Balmore 70 68 138
9.20 14.20 Glenn Campbell Blairgowrie 66 72 138

9.28 14.28 James White (Lundin) 70 68 138
9.28 14.28 Mathias Eggenberger (Switzerland) 68 69 137

9.36 14.36 Steven Rennie (Drumpellier) 69 68 137
9.36 14.36 Matthew Clark (Kilmacolm) 65 72 137

9.44 14.44 Keith Hamilton (Ayr Belleisle) 69 68 137
9.44 14.44 Alan Welsh (Cathkin Braes) 69 67 136

9.52 14.52 Allyn Dick (Kingsknowe) 70 64 134
9.52 14.52 Graeme Robertson (Glenbervie) 64 70 134
9.52 14.52 Craig Watson (East Renfrew) 68 66 134

PETTERSSON LOOKING FOR SWEDE FINISH TO US TOUR EVENT

FROM THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE
By Staff and wire reports
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, South Carolina -- Carl Pettersson couldn't have had a better time with Colt Knost at the RBC Heritage. He hopes to have as much fun when the two play again on Sunday.
Pettersson had a run of five straight birdies on the front nine and finished with a birdie on the 18th hole for a 66 and a one-stroke lead over Knost heading into the final round of the RBC Heritage on Saturday.
Pettersson and Knost chatted and laughed throughout the round, looking more like a pair of duffers at the local muni out for a weekend round rather than pro golfers chasing a PGA TOUR title.
"Two fat guys played in three hours, 48 minutes," Pettersson said with a smile. "That was pretty good. But we had a good time."
Especially Pettersson who used his birdie streak to overtake a nervous Knost and build a three-shot lead through 10 holes. Knost tamed the butterflies enough to find the game that had him in the lead here after Thursday and Friday, tying for the top after Pettersson's bogey on the par-5 15th hole.
Pettersson moved in front at the end with a stunning approach that slid by the cup on No. 18 for a closing birdie. The two will match up once again in the final pairing Sunday.
"I'm going to try tomorrow to have fun," said Knost, seeking his first win on the US Tour.
Zach Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, shot a 66 to move to third at 8 under, three behind the leaders. Two-time RBC Heritage champion Boo Weekley had a 70 and was in fourth another shot behind. Defending champ Brandt Snedeker (69), Kevin Na (70) and Robert Garrigus (70) were next at 6 under.
World No. 1 Luke Donald failed to make a move toward keeping the top spot, his even-par 71 leaving him at 2 over and tied for 52nd. Donald needs to finish eighth or better to fend off No. 2 Rory McIlroy, who like Masters champion Bubba Watson and most other top golfers, was taking the week off.
Knost's roller coaster of a round included a 190-yard drive off No. 1 to take bogey followed by an eagle on No. 2. And there were plenty of missed fairways on the tight holes of Harbour Town Golf Links. Still, he kept close enough with a 69.
"I could have got rattled pretty easy after that start," Knost said. "But like I said, I'm really proud of the way I hung in."
Pettersson threatened to turn the tournament into a runaway with his early birdie streak. Knost would not let that happen, overcoming some unsteady play to keep close to his playing partner.
It sure wasn't easy for Knost.
He came to the first tee with a two-stroke lead, then knocked his opening tee shot into some pine straw right of the fairway and took bogey. He followed that by rolling in a 48-foot eagle putt from the left fringe on No. 2 and flashed a wide smile that even had Pettersson grinning.
Knost's up-and-down ride continued through the front nine. There was the lipout on No. 3 for bogey, the layup and chip to 10 feet on the par-5 fifth for birdie, and solid par saves from the bunker on No. 7 and from some more pine straw on No. 8.
Then on the ninth after another wayward drive, Knost punched it to 10 feet and made the birdie to stay one behind Pettersson.
Things swung Pettersson's way once more on the 10th, his lead growing to three shots after he made birdie and Knost was short on his approach and missed an 8-foot attempt at par.
Still, Knost kept grinding. A birdie on the 13th hole drew Knost with a stroke and the pair was tied at the top at 11 under when Pettersson took bogey on the par-5 15th hole.
The two matched pars until the windswept 18th when Pettersson struck a stunning approach that slid by the cup and settled 8 feet past. He rolled in the putt with a smile on his face.
"I managed to birdie the 18th, which was nice," Pettersson said.
Johnson put together his second straight sub-70 round to move into third. He has largely struggled at Harbour Town, his best showing a tie for sixth the week after he slipped on the green jacket five years ago. Johnson's round took flight with an eagle on No. 5. He closed with birdies on the 16th and 18th as he looks for his first victory since the Crown Plaza Invitational at Colonial in 2010.
"We've still got 18 holes," Johnson said. "The last four or five holes, if I'm near the lead, we can get after it a little bit."
Donald, starting almost five hours before the leaders, never got things going. Without an absolute miracle he will fall from No. 1 after he finishes Sunday, surrendering the top spot to McIlroy, who is off spending time with girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki as she competes in Denmark, according to the tennis star's tweets. Donald took the top spot from McIlroy last month.
Whose got the edge over Harbour Town?
Pettersson, 34, has won four times at this venue while Knost, an amateur star who's struggled at this level, acknowledged his nervousness getting ready. "I don't know," Pettersson said. "I've only won four times out here, so it's not like ... I'm not Phil or Tiger or anybody."
Knost planned to spend some time on the range after his round working on his tee shots. "I got a chance going into tomorrow and I'm excited," he said.

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