RAYMOND RUSSELL RETURNS TO ITALY TO LEAD CHALLENGE TOUR EVENT

EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR REPORT

FROM SARAH GWYNN

sgwynn@europeantour.com

Three weeks after securing his first Challenge Tour title, Raymond Russell returned to Italy to lead the Doubletree by Hilton Acaya Open thanks to a five under par 65 in the first round.

The Scot, who turns 40 next week, won the Challenge Provincia di Varese in northern Italy last month, and the south of the country proved as productive a hunting ground as he notched six birdies and one bogey at the stunning Acaya Golf Resort near Lecce.

That gave him a one shot lead over Denmark’s Joachim B Hansen, while Spaniard Raul Quiros and Englishmen Chris Lloyd and Matthew Southgate all had two under par rounds of 68.

Only eight players were under par in the first round as strong winds and thick rough proved a stern test, but Russell capitalised with some straight hitting.

“I played well today,” said Russell, who played on The European Tour between 1996, the year he won the Air Frances Cannes Open, and 2006. “It’s the sort of course where you have to keep it on the fairway, otherwise you are in huge trouble. That’s what I did – it’s simple when you can do that.

“It’s similar to the course in Varese in that you have to keep out of the rough, but it’s even tougher here. I had a great four at the seventh after hitting it in the water off the tee. I hit my second shot to the front of the green and chipped in.

“Winning has helped me see things more clearly and it gives me confidence. The week after the victory I played in Local Final Qualifying for The Open and missed out by a couple of shots. That was disappointing. And last week I played terribly in the first round (of the Credit Suisse Challenge) and shot three under in the second to miss the cut by one.

“So it’s nice to open with a good score here, and hopefully I can keep this going.”

Hansen has been showing some promising form in recent weeks, making the cut in his last four events and not finishing worse than 28th.

He attributed his fine score to his approach play, saying: “I hit it close to the pin and holed out well all day. I started par, double-bogey, which wasn’t great, but I’m pleased with the way I bounced back and took my chances for birdies.

“I had four in a row from the 16th (having teed off from the tenth), which was a good run. It was disappointing to finish with two bogeys, but I definitely would have taken four under at the start of the day.”

Lloyd, 20, is playing his second season on the Challenge Tour and is relieved to return to form after a wrist injury kept him out of action for several weeks earlier in the season.

“It’s a course where you really have to stay patient and there are a few holes where par is a really good score,” said the Bristol man. “The first hole is really the only one playing into the wind, and the par fives are all reachable, so there are chances out there if you hit it straight. It’s more of a mental challenge.

“I played nicely and my bad shots were not too bad. I hit it in the water on the 14th, but then hit a three iron from the drop and holed the putt for a four. So I was potentially looking at a six but made par. I scrambled really well today.

“My wrist is fine now and I’m back to playing well again. I was a bit rusty for a while and had a shocker in Saint-Omer. Then I shot a 62 in Scottish Hydro Challenge but missed the cut the following week, so it has been up and down but I’m feeling good now.

“I had last week off and just spent time in the gym and preparing. I’m feeling really refreshed and ready for the second half of the season.”

END

SAVAGE RETAINS WEST BOYS TITLE

GOLF COPY CREDIT CAL CARSON GOLF AGENCY SAVAGE RETAINS WEST BOYS GOLF TITLE Jamie Savage of Cawder retained the West of Scotland boys' stroke play golf championship  over his home course this week, beating a field of 79 with a two-round total of two-under par 138. The cut for the West of Scotland boys match-play championship fell at 155. LEADING FINAL TOTALS 138 Jamie Savage (Cawder) 70 68 143 Craig Chalmers (Lenzie) 69 74. 146 Craig Anderson (Sandyhills) 73 73. 146 Robert Johnson (Helensburgh) 71 75. MatchPlay Draw J Savage (Cawder) v S Irvine (Falkirk). C MacLean ( Clydebank & Dist) v P Delaney (Balmore). R Johnson  (Helensburgh)  v J McKenna (Balmore) J Fyfe (Cawder) v C Aitken (Kilmacolm). C Chalmers ( Lenzie)  v   C Black (Cardross). G Burrett (Haggs Castle) v R Robertson (Old Ranfurly). C Anderson ( Sandyhills) v E Henderson (Kilmarnock Barassie). P Reilly (Lochwinnoch) v G Rodger (Clober).  ends

OPTICAL EXPRESS PGA TOUR EVENT REDUCED TO ONE ROUND

The Rowallan Castle course in Ayrshire was too wet for play today in the scheduled Optical Express PGA Tour 36-hole Order of Merit event.
Said Tournament Director Glenn McPhee "The tees and greens are fine but the fairways are soaking wet and there's water in the bunkers. So we've reduced the tournament to 18 holes and we hope that play will be possible tomorrow (Thursday)."

ENGLISH WINNER OF OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP IS OVERDUE

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE

By Colin Montgomerie

I have two wishes for Royal Lytham and St Annes. One: Lee Westwood starts off like I did here in 2001. Two: Westwood finishes off like I didn’t in 2001. If he manages to achieve those tasks, England will celebrate its first winner of an Open in England in 42 years
"I don’t believe in the word ‘deserve’ in golf, but let’s just say nobody is due a major in the game as much as Lee. He is approaching 40, though, and time is running out, no matter how fit he is, which Lee is – very.
"But I think he must be in the lead or at least have a share of the lead by the halfway stage. He is a great front-runner; it suits his game. I don’t want to be getting excited in the third round by the fact that ‘Lee’s only three behind’. Shots are hard to pick up in these majors and I want him up there.
TREMENDOUS FIGHT
"I was impressed with the manner in which Lee took his latest disappointment at the US Open. For a start he showed tremendous fight to recover from an opening double-bogey at a merciless course to drag his way into contention.
"And after the final round, when he was left to consider that unlucky break which saw his ball stay up in a tree on the fifth, he was very pragmatic.
"The danger would have been to have adopted a “why me?” mindset. But I caught the same plane home with Lee and he was very philosophical. I just said to him: ‘Keep knocking on the door.’ It is ajar, not open but one day it will open, as long as you keep trying, and when it does it will mean even more than winning when he was 25 years old’.
“OK I’ll just have to try again next time,” he told me. He was merely carrying over his mindset from the week – “I’m going to treat this as I would a normal tournament”.
"He has to do the same at Lytham and, unlike me in 2001, not get too involved in everything. Yes, draw the energy from the crowd, but don’t get caught up in the urgency and expectancy. Just play golf. Find those fairways, make those greens. That is all Lytham is about.
"Tee-to-green, there’s nobody better in the game at the moment, as he continually proves with top threes in the majors despite the short-game being his nemesis. The latter might not matter so much at Lytham as at other venues.
GREENS FLAT, SLOW
"The greens are slow, the greens are flat and I think it takes away the difficulty of putting that we have seen at the Masters and the US Open.
"It’s bound, at the very least, to be breezy and the pins will be located on the edges of the greens so the players will have to cut them in, draw them in. Lee is very good at that. And his focus is excellent, unlike mine was in 2001.
"It was a strange experience for me the last time The Open visited Lytham. It was just at the start of the collapse of my marriage and the general public got hold of it and I received great backing. In fact, apart from Ryder Cups, I have never been so well supported outside Scotland.
"My home life had affected my golf. I’d fallen outside the top 10 and didn’t expect a lot. But with the crowd cheering me on, I set off with a 65.
"At the end of the day I couldn’t believe I was three ahead. Three! Not only is that sort of deficit very rare after the first day of the Open but I was sure the scores would be lower.
"Back then, there was talk that, at under 7,000 yards, Lytham was becoming too short for the modern professional, with their go-further balls and turbocharged drivers. Well, that first day was calm enough and apart from little old me nobody managed better than 68.
"I thought to myself: “Hang about, this could turn out rather well. I’ve obviously underrated this place. Yet that night, I really began to feel the pressure. I don’t know why. Maybe it was all the emotion I was feeling, but it spelt doom for my challenge.
"Even during the second round I was thinking about winning the Open rather than just doing the old thing and concentrating on one shot at a time, staying in the moment blah, blah, blah.
HALFWAY LEADER
"I struggled through on Friday with a one-under 70 and kept the halfway lead. Yet the weekend wasn’t good and as the frustration dug in I inevitably fell away to finish a tie for 13th.
"The stage was left for David Duval to validate his standing. The American was the third successive winner who either was or had been world No 1. There’s something about the place which picks out the very best.
"And talking of the very best, imagine if Tiger Woods wins his first major in four years, there will be a palpable feeling that the window has closed a few notches. Woods in his prime used to knock off two majors a year and I know all about how difficult it was to win one when it felt like only half were up for grabs.

I rate him as joint-favourite with Lee but Woods is a curious one. You have to say he’s back, having won three of his last eight events.
But then he misses the cut at the Greenbrier and you are reminded of his weekend form at both the Masters and the US Open.
Goodness knows what happened at the Olympic Club, when he played dreadfully on the Saturday and Sunday. Maybe the pressure of chasing down Jack Nicklaus’s record major haul of 18 is getting to him. All I do know for certain is that if there are any weaknesses in his psyche then Lytham will expose them.
If it is benign conditions, Woods could easily ‘iron’ his way around, like he did at Hoylake in 2006. Actually I would be very surprised if he didn’t play a conservative game-plan and ensure that he stays out of those bunkers. The traps define Lytham.
SEA HIDDEN FROM VIEW
To be honest, it’s not my favourite venue simply because I like to be able to see the sea from the links, like you can, say, at Turnberry. Because of the railway track and being surrounded by all those houses there isn’t too much of a linksy feel to the place. But in terms of the golf course, hole-for-hole it’s up there with the very best on the roster.
Someone once said that Lytham is not two nines, but a 13 and a five. How right they were. You have to make your score on the first 13 and then hang on for dear life. The last five are so demanding. They are all par fours and require total concentration to negotiate.
"Believe it, the lead could change hands many times in the last hour on Sunday.
"Yet wouldn’t it be great to watch Lee take it all in his stride and stroll to victory? One of this week’s certainties is that the galleries will be huge.
"Lytham’s in the perfect spot to host an Open. And if they get a British winner the place will go barmy. And if it’s an English winner, the roof will come off. It’s not due, it’s overdue!"

WOODS AND ROSE PAIRED TOGETHER AGAIN AT THE OPEN

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE

For the fourth time at the Open Championship Tiger Woods and Justin Rose have been paired together in the first two rounds

The duo, who will be joined by Spain's Sergio Garcia, were also partners at Muirfield in 2002, Carnoustie in 2007 and St Andrews two years ago.

They tee off at 9.42am in the first round on Thursday and then 2.43pm on Friday.

Just ahead of them each day will be defending champion Darren Clarke and Lee Westwood - but not together.

Clarke begins his bid to retain the Claret Jug at 9.09am in the company of 2002 winner Ernie Els and American Zach Johnson, winner of the John Deere Classic in Illinois this weekend.

Westwood, making his 58th attempt to lift a major title, is alongside Masters champion Bubba Watson and Japan's comparatively little-known Yoshinori Fujimoto.

Those arriving really early will have the chance to see three former winners playing together.
Sandy Lyle and Americans Todd Hamilton and Mark Calcavecchia will be on the first tee at just after 7am - yet the championship will be well under way by then.
Because the field is 157, one more than usual because of all the different exempt players, the action kicks off at 6.19am with a two-ball of 52-year-old former Ryder Cup player Barry Lane, who came through qualifying, and American James Driscoll.
World No 1 Luke Donald has been paired with Phil Mickelson, but they have to wait until 2.43pm on Thursday to hit their first shots - and both Rory McIlroy and Padraig Harrington are afternoon starters as well.
Second-ranked McIlroy is with 2010 champion Louis Oosthuizen and reigning USPGA champion Keegan Bradley at 2.21pm, followed by 2007 and 2008 winner Harrington alongside young American Rickie Fowler and European amateur champion Manuel Trappel.
The Austrian is one of only two amateurs in the field. Northern Ireland's Alan Dunbar, who won the British title last month at Royal Troon, is the other and he partners Australian Adam Scott and American Matt Kuchar at 8.42am.
Five-time champion Tom Watson, the 62-year-old who last year saw England's Tom Lewis shoot an opening 65 that was the lowest round ever by an amateur in the championship, is this time playing with Germany's Martin Kaymer and Japanese star Ryo Ishikawa.
It is only three years ago that Watson nearly rewrote the record books. He lost in a play-off to Stewart Cink at Turnberry - scene of his 1977 victory - when winning would have made him the oldest major champion by an amazing 11 years.

RENFREWSHIRE GOLF UNION PRESS RELEASE

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GOUROCK TEAM HEAD FOR ARBROATH THEN EUROPE

The Renfrewshire Golf Union Club Team Championship is the first step on the road to representing Scotland in the European Club Championship and Lochwinnoch was the venue as the clubs in the RGU battled it out for that honour.

The early target was set by Paisley Golf Club with an aggregate total for the team of three of 227.  However, the teams from Renfrew Golf Club and Gourock Golf Club soon showed Paisley a clean pair of heels.  For Renfrew, Michael Campbell recorded an excellent best score of the day of 67 and this was followed by 76 from Stephen McNamara and 77 from Austin Reid.  The aggregate was 220.

While Gourock could not match Campbell’s great score, all three team members were steady with Chris Mooney, the current County Match Play Champion, recording an impressive 72, Ross Campbell shooting 73 and Steven Higgins not letting the side down with a very acceptable 75.  Their aggregate was also 220 which meant that the officials had to calculate the better aggregate back nine. This went to Gourock by 105 to 107.

The Gourock team now head to Arbroath for the Scottish final and, hopefully, a trip to represent Scotland in Europe.

ABERDEEN AND DISTRICT MEN'S PENNANT LEAGUE SCOREBOARD

SPONSORED BY THE CULTS HOTEL

BON ACCORD 2 1/2, AUCHMILL 2 1/2
At Kings Links

B Edmond and Mark Greig bt I Watt and C Forbes 5 and 3.

Mat Greig and G Somers bt G McLaggan and C McQueen 4 and 3.

A Shand and W Smith lost to S Scott and G Geddes 1 hole

D Grieve and P Coutts halved with M Lynch and J Newcombe

M Dunn and R Allerton lost to J Nicolson and D Mackie 4 and 3.

STONEHAVEN 1 1/2, DEESIDE 3 1/2

At Stonehaven

Steve Shand and Neil Robertson lost to A Ross and M Vass 2 and 1.

Bob Leggate and Chris Taylor lost to A Jarvie and G Rennie 1 hole.

Ross McAllan and Graeme Adamson halved with R Evett and C Lawrie

Steve Guzik and Scott Murray lost to S Cruickshank and T Rennie 3 and 2.

Neil Irvine and Gordon Adamson bt A Powell and K Ingram 4 and 2.

ROYAL ABERDEEN 5, NORTHERN

At Balgownie

Steve Buchan and Allan Reith bt George Paterson and Cameron Johnstone 1 hole

Bill Barclay and Donald Macandrew senior bt Cameron McBain and David Mair 4 and 3

Iain Middleton and Roger Laird bt David Leslie and David Leighton 4 and 3

Graeme Webster and Willie Park bt Liam Minty and Jon Inglis 1 hole

Austen Buchan and John Johnston bt Craig Ross and Derek Johnstone 4 and 3