MyGolfRanking.co.uk, FIFE GOLFING ASSOCIATION

 Week ending April 22, 2012

T1 N Jones (Scoonie) 750 pts

T1 D Waddell (Kirkcaldy) 750

3 A Hodge (Earlsferry Th) 741.67

4 P Taylor (Kirkcaldy) 737.5

5 G Walker (Earlsferry Th) 725

6 J Stenhouse junior (Scoonie) 704.17

7 I Fleming (Auchterderran) 683.3

8 M J Anthony (Aberdour) 612.5

9 R Stenhouse (Scoonie) 608.33

10 D Cummins (Scoonie) 604.17

11 R Thomson (St Andrews) 602.83

12 J Brister (Scoonie) 583.33

13 J Haddow (Scoonie) 570.83

T14 J Henderson (Ladybank) 566.67

T14 J Paisley (Earlsferry Th) 566.67

T14 H W Penman (Scoonie) 566.67

T14 B Ramsay (Drumoig) 566.67

18 G J Walker (Kirkcaldy) 558.33

T19 A Cannon (St Andrews)) 550

T19 S Johnston (Scoonie) 550

T19 H J Thomson (Royal and Ancient) 550

T19 D N Watson (Kirkcaldy) 550.

For ranking lists of participating clubs, the full Fife and Lothians ranking lists and How It Works, visit www.MyGolfRanking.co.uk

KRIS NICOL MISSES CUT IN SPAIN

Fraserburgh rookie professional Kris Nicol missed the cut by three shots after the second round of the Peugeot Alps de Barcelona at Golf Sant Cugat today. Nicol shot a pair of 71s for 142 after a double bogey at the 10th. Spaniard Pabla Larrazabal covered his last 14 holes in six-under-par for a six-under 64 to lead on 11-under-par 129 with a round to go. Seve Ballesteros's son Javier, a student in Madrid, made the cut with a shot to spare with a 73 for 138. SECOND-ROUND LEADERS Par 140 (2x70) 129 Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 64 65. 130 Jaime Camargo (Spa) 66 64. 131 Ivo Giner (Spa) 62 69. 132 Carlos Aguilar (Spa) 64 68. SELECTED SCORES 133 Jack Senior (Eng) 63 70 (T5) 134 Brendan McCarroll (Ire) 67 67, Stiggy Hodgson (Eng) 67 67 (T8) 136 Matthew Cryer (Eng) 67 69 (T15) 137 Gareth Shaw (N Ireland) 68 9, Ricki Neil-Jones (Eng) 65 72 (T21) 138 Javier Ballesteros (Spa) (am) 65 73. MISSED THE CUT (139 or better qualified) 142 Kris Nicol (Sco) 71 71.

STRONG FINISH EARNS KELLY TWO GRAND

Cawder's Chris Kelly birdied the 11th, 13th and 18th for a second-round 70 and a level-par total of 144 to win £2,100 for joint third place in the opening event of the PGA EuroPro Tour, the Motacaddy Masters at Wensum Valley, Norfolk. The fast-finishing Scot finished only one shot behind two Englishmen, Dan Seymour (71-72) and Liam Burns (73-70) who played off for the £10,000 first prize. Seymour triumphed in the play-off at the second extra hole. Burns pay slip amounted to £5,000. Duncan Stewart (Grantown on Spey), who has sold shares in himself for the season, earned £340 for a joint 22nd finished on 148 (74-74). His second round included double bogey 6s at the 10th and 11th but he went on to birdie the 12th, 14th and 17th. Elliot Saltman (Archerfield Links) and John Gallagher (Swanston) earned £247.50 each for joint 38th place on 150. Saltman shot 74-76, Gallagher a pair of 75s with a double bogey at the 10th in his second round. Wallace Booth (Comrie) finished joint 44th on 151 (75-76) for which he earned £217.50. The money won't be as important to the Perthshire man as staying fit through two rounds after a year out with a shoulder injury. Wales-based Paul Doherty finished joint 51st on 153 (75-78) and earned £190 while Shaun McAllister (Craigielaw) was last of the seven Scots who made it through to the end of the weather-truncated tournament. He shot 75-81 for 156 and a share of 55th place, earning £172.50. PGA EUROPRO TOUR - Motacaddy Masters Wensum Valley GC, Norfolk LEADING FINAL TOTALS Par 144 (2x72) 143 Dan Seymour (Eng) 71 72, Liam Burns (Eng) 73 70 (Seymour, £10,000, bt Burns, £5,000, at second hole of play-off). 144 Chris Kelly (Cawder) 74 70, Will Roebuck (Eng) 71 73 (£2,100 each). OTHER SCOTS' TOTALS 148 Duncan Stewart (Grantown on Spey) 74 74 (T22) (£340). 150 Elliot Saltman (Archerfield Links) 74 76k Johnb gallagher (Swanston) 75 75 (T38) (£247.50 each). 151 Wallace Booth (Comrie) 75 76 (T44) (£217.50 153 Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel) 75 78 (T51) (£190). 156 Shaun McAllister (Craigielaw) 75 81 (T55) (£172.50). ends Dan Seymour won the opening event of the 2012 PGA EuroPro Tour after a dramatic play-off against Liam Burns in the Motocaddy Masters at Wensum Valley. Seymour (Newbury Golf Centre) shot a final-round of 72 to tie for the lead with Burns (Sundridge Park) but could have avoided the play-off had he holed a short-distance putt on the 18th. With the top two tied on one under Seymour and Burns headed to the 18th tee for a sudden-death play-off but when both hit five they had to jump in a buggy to play the hole again. With the rain which had caused the tournament to be reduced to 36 holes earlier in the week making a return, Seymour birdied his second play-off attempt at the 18th after Burns had missed a tricky putt to match his competitor's score. It was a gripping finale to the opening event of the Tour season and speaking after collecting his cheque, Seymour explained his belief that a good attitude in bad weather had contributed to his victory. "When you play in bad weather it is more about your attitude than it is anything else," he said. "Everybody who entered here can play the game to a high standard - that is why they are here. "I don't mind playing in the bad weather because it is about how you deal with it when the rain does come down heavy. That said, I had a bad finish to my first round; I was five under with three to play when we had a rain delay. I went back out and ended one under for the round!" Seymour played the final round with the leading overnight group. But as they fell away from contention Seymour was able to remain focussed and claim his place in the play-off. "The two lads I was playing weren't doing as well as they would have hoped," he explained. "So as it happened I wasn't too worried about their score it was more about what the other groups were doing. "The leaderboard still showed there was people level par, people one under, and it wasn't the guys I was playing with. That was probably a good thing as I was able to focus more on my own game rather than what those in my group were doing. My coach said I need to focus on my own thing and if that is enough at the end then that is great; today it was. "I started to think about winning it about 14th and it was on that hole that I made a bogey. I was two under at that point and thought if I made birdie I would be up there. I hit a good shot into the green on 15 and I saw I was one behind as we walked down and that was a good thing as I thought 'I'm not defending, I've got to go after that score'."

RHYS ENOCH MAKES PERFECT FIVE FOR EUROPE

Europe beat Asia-Pacific by a resounding 20 1/2-11 1/2pt in the three-day men's amateur international match for the Sir Michael Bonallack Trophy at Monte Rei Golf and Country Club on Portugal's Algarve coastline today (Friday). This was the seven match in the biennial series and Asia-Pacific lead 4-3. MVP of the tournament was Welshman Rhys Enoch, pictured, a student at East Tennessee University. His long trip was America was certainly worthwhile because he won all five matches he figured in -- two foursomes and two four-balls in partnership with Irishman Alan Dunbar. Enoch sealed his five-star performance by winning by two holes against Cameron Smith (Australia) in the closing singles. Europe led 6-4 at the end of the first day and then took the second-day honours 71/2-2 1/2 before extending their winning margin to nine points with a 7-5 capture of the singles. Dunbar almost stayed up alongside his foursomes partner but was held to a square match in the singles by India's Seenappa Chikkarangappa and so finished with 4 1/2pt out of a possible five. RESULT EUROPE 20 1/2, ASIA-PACIFIC 11 1/2 THIRD-DAY SINGLES (7-5) European names first Manuel Trapell (Aut) bt Benjamin Campbell (NZ) 7 and 6. Alan Dunbar (Ire) halved with Seenappa Chikkarangappa (Ind). Rhys Enoch (Wal) bt Cameron Smith (Aus) 2 holes. Robin Kind (Net) lost to Khalin Hitesh Joshi (Ind) 4 and 3. Daan Huizing (Net) lost to Soo-Min Lee (S Korea) 1 hole. Robert Karlsson (Swe) bt Taihei Sato (Jap) 2 and 1. Jack Hiluta (Eng) lost to Hideki Matsuyama (Jap) 3 and 2. Marcel Sneider (Ger) lost to Jake Higginbottom (Aus) 3 and 2. Moritz Lampert (Ger) halved with Mathew Perry (NZ). Ben Taylor (Eng) bt Chien-Yao Hung (Taiwan) 5 and 4. Jon Rahm-Rodriguez (Spa) bt Natipong Srithong (Thai) 3 and 1. Thomas Detry (Bel) bt Chang-Woo Lee (S Korea) 3 and 2.

ENGLAND SHOULD HAVE MORE TOUR EVENTS - LUKE DONALD

FROM THE BBC SPORTS.COM WEBSITE

World number two Luke Donald says there should be more European Tour events taking place in his native England.

In May, Donald will try to defend his BMW PGA Championship title at Wentworth in one of two Tour events - along with the Open - held in England this year.

"It would be great to have more in England," Donald told BBC Radio 5 live.

=========================================

       ONLY TOUR EVENTS IN ENGLAND THIS YEAR

• PGA Championship - Wentworth (24-27 May)
• The Open - Royal Lytham & St Annes (19-22 July)

======================================

"With myself, Lee [Westwood], Ian Poulter, Justin Rose and others from Britain playing so well, it makes sense to me to push to get another event."

ALASTAIR FORSYTH JOINS STAR-STUDDED FIELD AT AVIEMORE FOR PGA OPTICAL EXPRESS 2

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE PGA

Former Scottish PGA Champion Alastair Forsyth plays his first PGA tournament for more than a decade next week.

The Scot is part of a strong field teeing up in the second PGA Optical Express event at Spey Valley Golf Course next Tuesday and Wednesday (My 1-2).

Also in action at Aviemore will be the top four from Dundonald led by winner Gareth Wright who is joined by runner-up Greig Hutcheon, Chris Doak and Andrew McArthur who tied for third in Ayrshire.

Spey Valley is a happy hunting ground for Doak who won the Northern Open there in 2008. Another former “course and distance” winner is Jamie McLeary, who took the 2009 Scottish Hydro Challenge title at the same venue.

David Law, who won the 2011 Northern Open as an amateur will be making his professional debut in Scotland, as will James Byrne after the former Walker Cup player finished in a respectable 43^rd position in the Indonesian Masters last weekend.

Byrne flew home to Banchory this week from the heat and humidity of Singapore where he is based for the Asian Tour ... and is feeling it quite chilly, according to his mum!

There will be a battle for domestic bragging rights in the Macaulay household where Callum, currently plying his trade on the Challenge Tour will face competition from his wife Claire-Marie, the only lady professional in the field.

Claire-Marie is undergoing her PGA training at Playsport Golf in East Kilbride. 

Also playing are Andrew Oldcorn and Stephen McAllister who are taking the opportunity of a final competitive warm-up before embarking on their European Seniors Tour campaigns.

Murray Urquhart, who has been concentrating on his duties as Director of Golf at the Aviemore resort for the past two seasons, will be making a rare competitive appearance.

Nathaniel Sylvester
Head of Media

Play gets underway at 8am on both days. Spectators are welcome and entry is free.

Full details and draw can be found on the PGA Tournament webpage

http://pgagbi.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/pgagbi12/event/pgagbi12545/index.htm

AUSTRIAN ACE WEISBERGER LEADS BY ONE AT HALFWAY STAGE IN BALLANTINE'S CHAMPIONSHIP

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY EUROPEAN TOUR
Bernd Wiesberger holds a one-stroke lead at the halfway mark of the Ballantine’s Championship after a flawless seven under par second round 65, but the Austrian will be pursued by a strong chasing pack over the weekend in South Korea.
Wiesberger (picture by courtesy of Getty Images (c) was one of several players who took full advantage of the benign morning conditions at Blackstone Golf Club, near Seoul, as he posted seven birdies with no blemishes on his card.
The 26 year old, who had two runner-up finishes on The European Tour last year, chipped in from just off the green on the 18th to move to seven under par 137, one shot clear of 2010 Ballantine’s Championship winner Marcus Fraser who signed for a 67.
Sweden’s Oscar Floren finished with back-to-back birdies on the 16^th and 17^th holes before an eagle on the last  for a 67 to sit a further shot back, with last year’s Ballantine’s Championship runner-up Miguel Angel Jiménez (68) three shots off the pace on four under par in a share of fourth place alongside Englishman Anthony Wall (67) and Felipe Aguilar of Chile (69).
Ryder Cup pair Paul Casey and Ian Poulter are also well positioned to make a move over the weekend after rounds of 72 and 67. They are both two under par for the championship, but Wiesberger is the man to catch after masterful second-round performance.
 “I was happy with my round yesterday, and today I really got to the stage where it kind of worked,” he said.  “A couple of long putts dropped, and the chip‑in on the last was nice, as well, to finish the round off.  Today couldn't really do anything wrong really.  It felt like everything was going in the right direction.”
 Wiesberger recently moved to Asia, relocating from Vienna to Indonesia, and he appeared very much at home on the challenging Blackstone course as he chases a maiden European Tour title.

But another man equally as comfortable in Korea is Fraser, who continued his affinity with the Ballantine’s Championship, as he looks to build on the form he showed in finishing tied sixth in last week’s Volvo China Open. 
Fraser, who won the title two years ago when the tournament was played on Jeju Island, began on the tenth tee and profited from a prolific patch around his turn, carding four consecutive birdies on the 17^th,18^th, first and second holes.
He dropped shots on the third and seventh holes, with another birdie sandwiched in-between on the fifth, but the 33 year old is poised for another title challenge over the weekend.
“I’m very happy with the first two days,” he said. “Obviously yesterday was very windy and it was pretty tricky for everybody.  I thought it was pretty fair over the course of the day.

“Today was completely different.  We basically had no wind for most of the day and then it sort of kicked up a little bit over the last maybe five, six holes.  But overall, I’m very happy and very pleased with the way it's going at the moment.
“The Ballantine’s Championship is obviously one of our premiere events now on The European Tour, and Ballantine's have been such a great sponsor and product.  We have a great venue this year, the same course as last year, and I think the brand, Ballantine's, sits very well with the exclusive club, and it's just a great week and somewhere I love coming back to.”
Fraser almost eagled the par five last hole, chipping to within a foot from a greenside bunker to make birdie, but Floren went one better with a superb three meaning he will go into the weekend just two strokes behind leader Wiesberger.
“On 18, I guess I got a bit lucky,” said Floren.  “My ball hit the path, and it was the perfect four‑iron. I hit a really great shot to about eight feet and knocked it in.  So it was a good way to finish.”

Jiménez, the 18-time European Tour winner, carded a bogey-free 68 and is confident he can put pressure on his rivals at the top of the leaderboard over the weekend.
“There are 36 holes more to go and I feel good and they don't because they feel my breath on their neck,” he joked.
“I'm feeling very good on the golf course,” he added.  “The only thing I need to improve is my sand wedge and my lob‑wedge, I didn't put them close enough.
“But the rest of the game is pretty good.  I had nice shots from the tee, nice shots to the greens.  And my putting is decent, too.  That's everything you need.”
English pair Casey and Poulter are also in contention, five shots off the pace, following rounds of 72 and 67 respectively, but first round leader Victor Dubuisson slipped back to one under par with a 75.
Australian Adam Scott, the World Number 12, also endured a frustrating day, carding five bogeys in a round of 76 to lie ten shots off the pace in a share of 57^th position. Scott claimed his only birdie of the day on the final hole and he will be hoping to produce a similar surging performance as Englishman Lee Westwood 12 months ago, who made the weekend on the cut-line before going on to win the title.

The South Korean challenge is led by Ji-ho Jung, who carded a  71 for a share of seventh place on three under par, while World Number 32  Bae Sang-moon fired a 68 to move to one under par and inside the top 20.

HALFWAY LEADERBOARD
Par 144 (2x72)
137 Bernd Weisberger (Austria) 72 65
138 Marcus Fraser (Australia) 71 67
139 Oscar Floren (Sweden) 72 67.
140 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 72 68, Anthony Wall (England) 73 67, Felippe Aguilar (Chile) 71 68.
SCOTS' SCORES
142 Richie Ramsay 70 72 (T11)
144 Scott Jamieson 76 78 (T29)
145 Peter Whiteford 71 74 (T38)
148 Marc Warren 76 72

MISSED THE CUT (149 or better qualified)
150 Ross Bain 77 73
153 David Drysdale 77 76
Retired: George Murray 80 -

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SANDY LYLE LOOKS BACK 25 YEARS TO HIS VICTORY IN US PLAYERS' CH/SHIP

FROM THE US CHAMPIONS TOUR WEBSITE
Sandy Lyle will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame during the week of the 2012 PLAYERS Championship, 25 years after his own triumph at the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course.
The Scot -- the first international winner of THE PLAYERS -- sat down with Phil Stambaugh of the Champions Tour recently in Savannah, Georgia, to reflect on the win, the Hall of Fame and who might win THE PLAYERS 25 years after he did.
(Picture of Sandy Lyle by courtesy of Getty Images(c)

STAMBAUGH: What do you remember most about your victory there at TPC Sawgrass in 1987? I think you made a long putt at 18 and then Jeff (Sluman) made a putt as well or you would have had a pretty large play-off, but as it turned out, it was just you two, right?

SANDY LYLE: It was just the two of us, yeah. There was a few little trigger points and I think I turned around on 15, towards the end. I'm lying probably about third or fourth at the time and it was important that I get up and down from the back of the green at 15, and I did that, holed the chip shot for a 3. "That really gave me a little bit of hope that maybe if I can birdie the next hole and perhaps finish par-birdie or something like that and it might get me in the top three, which I was more excited about. I wasn't even dreaming about winning the tournament, because I was already in the clubhouse probably for a good hour or more before the last group.
"As it turned out, everybody else sort of fell by the wayside and I ended up in a play-off with Sluman."

STAMBAUGH: What do you remember about the playoff in particular? There was a situation with a fan and it was a little bit odd the way it turned out. Correct?

SANDY LYLE: "Yes. It all happened on the 17th hole. It was starting to get dark and Jeff hit a nice shot to about six to eight feet with about a foot and a half of break to the putt. It wasn't a pushover. I had made a solid par and it was really up to Jeff to make the putt if he wanted to win the tournament right there.
"Just as he was getting prepared to hit the putt, a local jumped in the water which created a bit of a havoc and I think he was whisked off quite quickly. Sluman sort of withdrew from his putt and then went back down to it again, and then as we know, he missed the putt. He might have missed it anyway, we'll never now but it was a distraction. I'm not sure what spurred the fan to jump in the water right at that time.
"So we moved on to the 18th hole, and by this time, it was getting very, very dark. I can remember trying to hit my second shot into virtual darkness and I couldn't really see the green or even the flag. All I could do was line up on the lights in the background behind the green.
"That to me was probably more of a horrendous feeling of doubt in your mind, not knowing where the ball's going with a 5-iron in my hand. As it turned out, the ball ended up just off the back of the green, which was no harm done, and Slu was there, too. I got up and down and he didn't so it was game, set and match for Lyle."

STAMBAUGH: It was the first play-off in the tournament's history at the Stadium course. Had you been involved in many playoffs in tournaments before that?

SANDY LYLE: "I had probably been in six or seven play-offs prior to that and I had reasonable success. I remember losing a play-off at the Bob Hope to Steve Jones but I also won a play-off at the Nigerian Open and a play-off at the Phoenix Open against Fred Couples. Probably my biggest up to that point was winning the Lancome Trophy in a playoff with Seve Ballesteros."

STAMBAUGH: You were also the first international winner of THE PLAYERS, and since your victory, 11 more PLAYERS Championships have been won by 10 different international players, including the last four champions. Did you see something like that happening at the Stadium course after your win?

SANDY LYLE: "It was very hard to really see down the future. The Stadium course doesn't really favor a particular style of winners. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, two long hitters, have won there but so has Fred Funk and Tim Clark who are shorter hitters.
"I know Steve Elkington won it twice and Nick Price also won it and they are very good ballstrikers. Generally, I think what is important is controlling the ball flight. You know there's going to be wind and because the landing areas are very small, you must control the ball flight to get near the pins."

STAMBAUGH: THE PLAYERS is now one of the biggest tournaments in the world and has risen in stature since your victory in 1987. Did you ever envision when you won that it would become the important tournament that it has become in the world of golf?

SANDY LYLE: "Well, we knew really for many years that they were really pushing to make it a big tournament. You know, big prize money, big field, and they've achieved that. They've got a golf course that is well known throughout the world and it's just a wonderful setting there with the big clubhouse behind the 18th green.
"What was very important to me obviously was when I won THE PLAYERS, I got a 10-year exemption and that was huge for me. At the time, I was playing in Europe as well and that victory took a lot of pressure off me. I was able to relax, knowing that if I did manage to have a few down years, I didn't have to worry.
"I could still tee it up the following year and away we go. Having that 10-year exemption, you couldn't put a price on that in my career.


STAMBAUGH: This is obviously going to be a special PLAYERS week for you with your induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame on Monday night of tournament week. Talk about that?

SANDY LYLE: "I will finally rest easy when I'm signed in, as you would say. I would think it's like a marriage, you know, if anybody contests, you start voting against it or something. So I'll feel happy when I've signed the paper and I'm officially in the World Golf Hall of Fame.
"I'm looking forward to it. I'm going to see a lot of friends I haven't seen for quite a few years and I'll listen to the speeches from Peter Alliss and Phil Mickelson. I hope I'll also be able to make a good speech and I also want to be a good customer for the World Golf Hall of Fame."

STAMBAUGH: You live part of the year near the TPC Sawgrass and have played the Stadium course numerous times over the last 25 years. How has the course changed over the years and how do you think it was play for this year's PLAYERS?

SANDY LYLE: "Well, I think in 1987 when I won, the course was fairly similar to what it is now. I know they changed a few tees, but the grasses are virtually the same. I think there's probably more shotmaking now because if your ball does roll off the green, it's in a closely-mown area and many times you can use a putter to get the ball back on the green. That wasn't really available when the course was first built and when I won.
"The Stadium course is a little longer today and it's in great condition. I really think moving the event to May really helped with the course conditon. We've had a very good spring this year, so I would imagine that the greens will be very, very fast for this year's event."

STAMBAUGH: Do you have a prediction for me?

SANDY LYLE: I think Keegan Bradley would be one to watch out for. He got the taste of performing well under pressure last year at the PGA Championship. Luke Donald is still a very strong contender and of course, there's Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods. There's a lot of good ones now. It's quite fascinating really. It's not just one or two players these days."

ROBERT STREB LEADS NATIONWIDE TOUR'S SOUTH GEORGIA CLASSIC WITH A 66

FROM THE US NATIONWIDE TOUR WEBSITE
By Anne Szeker, PGATOUR.COM producer

The most recent stop on the Nationwide Tour was filled with rain and delays -- and for Luke List, a missed cut. It was a tough week at TPC Stonebrae, but List says he left with "momentum."
Momentum?
It might sound a little weird considering he missed the cut -- and no doubt he was disappointed -- but List was referring more to his final nine holes where he shot a bogey-free 30.
"Shooting 30 like that was great. Unfortunately I came up a few short, but I took all those positives into my practice last week," he said.
The practice paid off, and List finds himself one stroke off Robert Streb's lead after the first round at the South Georgia Classic Presented by First State Bank and Trust Company. He shot a 5-under 67, with just two bogeys. He also birdied on all four par-5s.
Brian Stuard and Sihwan Kim, who won the 2004 U.S. Junior Amateur at The Olympic Club, also shot 67s. Kim's only other Nationwide Tour start was in 2009 at the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational, where he finished tied for sixth. Robert Streb is the first-round leader at 6-under.
List is currently 16th on the Nationwide Tour money list, with his best finish a runner-up at the Panama Claro Championship. He's getting closer to his first win, but says he's struggled with Thursdays.
"It's like I wait for something good to happen. You have to put your head down and make it happen. Sometimes you force it too much, but on Thursdays I was only shooting even par," he said. "I knew how well I was playing and it was shooting me in the foot."
Not this week. List came out swinging.
"I got off to a really good start," said List, who birdied 10 and 11 to start his round. "I hit it close on the first two holes and was able to tap those in for birdies. It was a relief. That kind of made the round nice and easy."
List followed up with a bogey on 12 with a birdie on 13. He would have had a share of the lead were it not for a late bogey on the par-4 seventh, his 16th hole of the day.
The forecast for the week calls for more sunshine and not much wind, but Kinderlou Forest Golf Club won't be anything close to easy. At an intimidating 7781, it's the longest course players will face this year.
Advantage, List. He currently leads the Nationwide Tour in driving distance at 320.6.
"This course is really good for me because I can hit a lot of drivers. It's not the tightest, but it still forces you to hit some good shots and being able to use my driver out here as much as I do really helps."
Another advantage in List's favor? Experience. This is his third year playing this course.
"You get a lot of crosswinds, have to hit into the wind, it's tricky. It really swirls around in the pines," he said. "It's a great golf course. It's fair.
"I just have to attack a little bit and be patient out there."

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AYRSHIRE NAME SQUAD FOR SCOTTISH AREA TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

The six-man team to represent Ayrshire in the 2012 Area Team Championship, being held at Blairgowrie on May 19-20, has been announced.
Fourth in 2010 and third in 2011, Ayrshire have named a strong side in their bid to land the 2012 title, to add to their previous successes in 1986 & 2008.

2011 Ayrshire Matchplay Champion Michael Smyth (Royal Troon) and the recent winner of the British Universities title and 2009 Scottish Boys Strokeplay winner Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) are the only two players who were part of the bronze medal winning team at Prestwick in 2011.

2009 Doc Thom Order OF Merit winner and the runner up in the Ayrshire Strokeplay Championship last week, Keith Hamilton (Ayr Belleisle) is the lowest handicap player in the Ayrshire side, off + 4, whilst former internationalist Steven McEwan (Loudoun), a former Scottish Boys Strokeplay Champion and Scottish Amateur Championship finalist. brings vast experience of golf at the highest level to the side.

Former Ayrshire Strokeplay winner John Shanks (Irvine), a member of the last Area Team Championship winning Ayrshire side, returns to the team after an absence last year whilst the 2011 Scottish Boys Champion David Wilson (Troon Welbeck), who won the Ayrshire Strokeplay title for the first time last week, completes the six man Ayrshire team.

+North-east and Ayrshire are the first two areas to announce their six-man teams. We would be pleased to display the selections of other areas. Information should be E-mailed to Colin@scottishgolfview.com