NORTH ALLIANCE REPORT AND PRIZEWINNERS

TAIN PLAYERS WIN TOP SCRATCH AND HANDICAP PRIZES

By ROBIN WILSON

Local +1 handicap lefty, Munro Ferries, three times a winner of the Alliance Quaich for aggregate scores, enjoyed his first individual Alliance success of the season at Tain.

The home champion has played in only three fixtures this winter and very little other golf and it showed over his first few holes. A double bogey opening hole six where he took four putts from the front of the green saw him struggle to the tenth tee with an outward five over par card of 40.

The cobwebs brushed down from his swing his inward half figures were back to his normal best. A birdie 4 on the long 13^th hole spurred him forward and he picked up two more birdies at the end of his round. 

A 2 at the 16^th hole and a closing birdie 3 brought his his inward half card down to 33 to lead the scratch returns with a 73. 

The elder Ferries sibling, Billy, shot 75 for a second scratch place after his senior club mate, Andrew Watt, with two stable halves of 35 and 38 matched the winner's scratch score. But, Watt, with his handicap of six, recorded a Tain double when elevated to winner of the Class 1 section, with nett 67. 

In the same section Thurso's John Meiklejohn found his putter in late overdrive mode, holing monster putts in succession on the 16th and 17th greens for birdie 2s. When  he overshot the final green he gave back a shot with a bogey 5 to fall back into second handicap place with nett 68, off 7. The Class 1 section winner's list was completed by Reay's Wayne Mowat, gross 77 for nett 71, and Golspie's Alistair Bell gross 80, nett 72.

Thurso travellers to Tain did find a winner in the higher handicap section by way of eleven handicapper Stanley Ross who broke 40 in each half ( 39 and 38) for gross 77, nett 67 to win by one shot from local Alan Sangster who left his push for first place too late. 

The local eleven handicapper finished with three pars for an inward 38 and gross 79 reducing to nett 68. 

Although Durness members missed out on the prize list at the last fixture at Reay, there were eleven of them in the entry of forty at Tain and last off the course, Martin Mackay, handed in a card of nett 70 to grab third place ahead of Reay's Alistair Gunn.

The fixtures' venues return to Caithness next month when, on February 9, Wick is the venue.

TAIN RESULTS

Scratch

73  M Ferries (Tain) (40-33), A Watt (Tain) (35-38).

75 B Ferries (Tain) (36-39).

Handicap 

Class 1 – A Watt (Tain) (6) 67; J Meiklejohn (Thurso) (7) 68; W Mowat (Reay) (6) 71; A Bell (Golspie) (8) 72.  

Class 2 – S Ross (Thurso) (10) 67; A Sangster (Tain) (11) 68; M Mackay (Durness) (11) 70; A Gunn (Reay) (10) 73.