PRO CRERAR AND AMATEUR McKINLAY REACH TURN IN 29 SHOTS

PANMURE PAIR, 7 under par after 7 holes,

WIN PLACE IN GLENEAGLES FINAL

Panmure Golf Club professional Andrew Crerar turned the clock back a decade or two for he and his amateur partner Craig McKinlay to win the Lombard Trophy Scottish qualifying round at Ladybank Golf Club today (Tuesday).

Crerar, pictured right, one of the Tartan Tour's leading players in the 1990s - he won the Order of Merit in 1997 - and McKinlay shot a blistering seven-under-par 64 round the woodland Fife course.

They hit the track running and were seven under par after seven holes, thanks to eagle 2s at the third and sixth and birdies at the first, long second and long seventh to be out in 29. Two more birdies were captured after the turn - at the long 13th and 15th - but they were cancelled out by their only bogeys of the day, at the 12th and 18th.

Crerar won £475 but more important for Andrew and his Panmure amateur partner,they will be heading to the £43,600 Lombard Trophy 36-hole Grand Final over the Gleneagles' King's Course on September 2-3, three weeks or so before the Ryder Cup takes centre stage at the same Perthshire venue.

The Panmure pair had to score very well to head the Ladybank field and they just got over the winning line by a single shot from three pairs on 65 - Deer Park's Sandy Strachan and Scott Forrest, Deeside's Frank Coutts, Deeside's pro and David Macklin, plus the Paisley pairing of Andrew Carlton and Archie Gibb.

Strachan and Forrest and one eagle and five birdies; Coutts, who was a Walker Cup team place contender in his prime as an amateur, and Macklin had seven birdies; Carlton and Gibb and one eagle and four birdies in a bogey-free round.

Each of the pros on the 65 mark earned £350.

Edzell's Alastair Webster and Stuart Reid combined for a  66 mark as did Greig McSporran (Kinross) and Russell Dunlop. Webster and McSporran earned £225 each.

Completing the prize list on 67 were Gordon Law (Uphall) and Peter MacMillan, and Paul Edgecombe (Forrester Park) and Brian Gilfillan. Law and Edgecombe earned £150 each.

LOMBARD TROPHY - Scottish qualifier

Ladybank GC, Fife

SCOREBOARD
(pros named before amateur partners)

Par 71

64 Andrew Crerar (£475) and Craig McKinlay (Panmure).

65 Sandy Strachan (£350) and Scott Forrest (Deer Park), Frank Coutts (£350) and David Macklin (Deeside), Andrew Carlton (£350) and Archie Gibb (Paisley).

66 Alastair Webster (£225) and Stuart Reid (Edzell), Greig McSporran (£225) and Russell Dunlop (Kinross).

67 Gordon Law (£150) and Peter MacMillan (Uphall), Paul Edgecombe (£150) and Brian Gilfillan (Forrester Park).

68 Ross Harrower and Craig Sutherland (Boat of Garten), Gordon Stewart and Paul Reid (Cawder), Sandy Smith and Duncan Glass (Ladybank), Ron Walker and Jeff Swan (Lundin)

69 Christopher Nugent and Russell Claydton (Dunfermline), Alan Martin and Scott Ross (The Duke's), David Murchie and Tony Reely (Crieff)

70 Simon Payne and Jim Campbell (Cowglen), Martyn Huish and Alasdair Simpson (North Berwick), Alastair Forrrow and Graeme McGuinnity (Whitecraigs)

71 Charles Dernie and Douglas McGlashan (Blairgowrie), Paul Wytrazek and Colin Wheeler (Burntisland), Ian Collins and Iain MacFarlane (Stirling), Tom Ecdkford and Alastair Frood (Ranfurly Castle)

72 John Harrison and Frank Mann (Matfen Hall), Craig Mackie and Ross Burnett (Scotscraig), Gerry Reilly and David McCluskey (Lochwnnoch).

73 Alan Reid and Lee McBride (West Lothian), David Naylor and David Bisset (Banchroy)

74 Colin Fairweather and Mark Begg (Kirkintilloch).

78 Stuart Wilson and Allan Smith (Eastwood).

ends