Tuesday night ties at Musselburgh postponed to Wednesday

Miller and Dick make shock early exits at  Lothians Championship   FROM THE LOTHIANS GOLF ASSOCIATION WEBSITE Defending champion David Miller and Stuart Cup winner Allyn Dick both suffered exits on the opening night of the Lothians Championship at Musselburgh. Miller (Duddingston) lost at the 20th to West Linton's Stephen Smith while Dick (Kingsfield), the 2010 title-winner, went down by one hole to Deer Park's Keith Wilson. Home hope Callum Burgess, last year's Stuart Cup winner, negotiated his opening test this time around after suffering the same fate as Dick 12 months ago. A day before turning 22, Burgess beat West Lothian's Barrie Lewis on the 18th green. Other winners included Longniddry teenager Jack Rogan and new Lothians team member Ross Thomson (Gullane). This evening's scheduled play at Musselburgh was postponed due to bad weather. The remaining eight first-round matches will now be played on Wednesday night, with play then progressing on Thursday and Friday. Round 1 ties rearranged for Wednesday 4.45pm Stephen Simants (Dunbar) v Keith Watt (Turnhouse) 4.52 Kenny Mail (West Linton) v Daniel Eardley (Liberton) 5.00 Alan Stewart (Harrison) v Sean Marc (Broomieknowe) 5.07 John Yuille (Royal Burgess) v David Rudd (Longniddry) 5.15 Colin Renton (Broomieknowe) v Iain Melville (Glencorse) 5.22 Keith Reilly (Silverknowes) v Stuart Thorburn (Newbattle) 5.30 Craig Davidson (Craigielaw) v Lewis Bain (Musselburgh) 5.37 Scott Walker (West Linto Round 1 results Calum Burgess (Musselburgh) bt Barrie Lewis (West Lothian) one hole Stephen Smith (West Linton) bt David Miller (Duddingston) at 20th Ross Thomson (Gullane) bt Lewis Bain (Turnhouse) 4 and 3 Derek Thomson (Glencorse) bt Alan Sim (Broomieknowe) 2 and 1 Keith Wilson (Deer Park) bt Allyn Dick (Kingsfield) one hole Ricky Moffat (Turnhouse) bt Alan Crawford (Deer Park) 4 and 3. Sean McGarvey (Glencorse) bt Jordyn Rhind (Kingsfield) 4 and 3. Jack Rogan (Longniddry) bt Sean Walter (West Linton) 2 and 1

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	Dick wins Stuart Cup for second time
Kingsfield's Allyn Dick won the Stuart Cup for the second time in four years after leading the qualifiers for the Lothians Championship. The former Scottish international followed a morning 70 at Broomieknowe with a 68 at Glencorse to finish two shots clear of the field. n) v Jamie McIntosh (Broomieknowe) Dick will now try to regain the title he won in 2010 when the match-play takes place at Musselburgh. Both a shot back after 36 holes, West Linton's Sean Walter and West Lothian's Barry Lewis were his closest challengers, with Jamie McIntosh from Broomieknowe and Musselburgh's Lewis Bain, who had a best-of-the-day 64 at Glencorse, a stroke further adrift. The last of the three 32 spots in the knock-out phase were decided on a countback among those on 147. The CSS for both courses was +3.

Lanarkshire boys' team for Dunblane

Lanarkshire team  to play Stirlingshire on Sunday  (11am) at Dunblane New Golf Club in the first of the West of Scotland Inter-county boys' League matches is:

Under 18s

Andrew Thomson       Lanark

David Fair                   Strathaven

Graeme Greer             Carluke

Fraser Kane                 Kirkhill

Under 16s

Callum Paterson        Strathaven

Greg Dalziel               Kirkhill

Lewis Irvine                Kirkhill

Jonathan Torrance     Drumpellier

W S O Sharpe

Press Officer

Lanarkshire Golf Association

Rory McIlroy's historic win and five talking 

points from the World match-play 

FROM SKYSPORTS.COM

Rory McIlroy made more history with his win at the WGC, but he's not the only talking point from Northern California. Here are the five things we learned this weekend. 

McIlroy is World No 1 for a reason
McIlroy doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone but if you wanted further evidence of his class, here it is: In winning the WGC Cadillac World Match Play, McIlroy joined Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only players to win 10 PGA tours before their 26th birthday. Add that one to the history list.
Against Paul Casey in the quarter-final, he was one down with two to play. He prevailed at the 22nd hole. Next up in the semi-final against World No 5 Jim Furyk he was again one down on the penultimate tee. What followed was perfect golf; a birdie two on the par three 17th and then a long iron from the rough to the 18th green to set up a 45-footer for eagle. He drained it.
Furyk accepted the defeat with grace and resignation. He’d played the last three holes in one-under but you can’t beat that kind of golf and that’s why McIlroy is presently the best in the game.

Casey heading back to his best

In 2013 Paul Casey had dropped from the world’s top three to 167 in the space of four years. On-and-off the course life wasn’t as bright as it had once been for a man that had played in three Ryder Cups and notched up 12 professional wins.
The 13th win came at the 2013 Irish Open but it was still his only his second title in more than four years. Starting the 2015 season ranked 75th in the world, Casey’s decision to drop his European Tour commitments to limit the volume of travel is paying dividends. He’s back to 34th in the world and over the course of the week beat former World Number 1 Adam Scott, 10th in the 2014 FedEx Cup Chris Kirk and Francesco Molinari before dispatching 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel in the quarter-final.
It took McIlroy 22 holes to finally beat him and even that came after darkness took the match into a second day and illness meant Casey resumed without the benefit of a full night’s sleep and his full powers. On current form Casey can realistically look forward to breaking back into the elite.

Where there’s a Willett, there’s a way

“A meaningless match that should be axed.” Louis van Gaal, then Netherlands manager, on the third place play-off at the 2014 World Cup. Rarely the most popular match at a tournament, beaten semi-finalists could be forgiven for not taking this one seriously but not so this weekend for England’s Danny Willett in California.
Beaten 3 and 2 by Gary Woodland in the semi-final, perhaps having something extra to play for made the difference for Willett in his own 3 and 2 win over veteran American Jim Furyk. 
Victory meant he earned £430,000 instead of £345,000 but more importantly secured his US PGA Tour card. He is now inside the world’s top 40 and the future looks bright on both sides of the pond for the Yorkshireman.

By Jimenez!

He is 51-years-old, has 21 European Tour wins spanning three decades and is a senior statesman of European golf. But there is fire in the belly of Miguel Angel Jimenez yet!
Playing in a dead rubber against Keegan Bradley, Jimenez took exception to a ruling given to Bradley after he’d fired his drive close to the TV compound on the 18th.
 When Bradley’s caddie, Steve “Pepsi” Hale, tried to intervene, Jimenez dismissed him with a short, sharp “shut up”.
Hale refused to shake hands after the round with Jimenez, who said he was “trying to be helpful”. Perhaps the Manny-Money build-up had filtered onto the golf course but it shows that despite being eligible for the Seniors’ Tour, Jimenez has lost none of his desire to win against the elite.

By the way, Jimenez won the hole and the match by two holes.

Ryder Cup watch

The United States might have found a future Ryder Cupper in beaten finalist Gary Woodland but the signs from San Francisco are that Europe still has the edge in match play.
Four of the players to reach the last eight are eligible to play for Europe, while only two were from the US, and only five Americans made it to the last 16 from a field of 29 starters, compared to five from 22 Europeans.
However the Americans edged the head-to-head with a 20-19 scoreline in US v Europe matches. The biggest win of the week though went to Finland’s Mikko Illonen with his third round 8 and 6 whipping of American Matt Every.

Rory McIlroy speaks to Tim Barter after his victory at the WGC-Cadillac Match Play beating Gary Woodland in the final to clinch the title.

Justin Thomas gets Victor Dubuisson's place 

at TPC Sawgrass this week


Only 49 of the world's top 50 golfers will be at TPC Sawgrass this week.
For the second year in a row, Victor Dubuisson has declined to enter The Players Championship.
The 21st-ranked player in the world went 0-3 in pool play last week at the WGC-Cadillac Match Play and decided late Friday, according to the Florida Times-Union, to withdraw from the US PGA Tour's marquee event, just as he did last year.
The 25-year-old Frenchman arrived in the American golf consciousness last year with his run to the Match Play final and his subsequent play for Team Europe in the Ryder Cup.
He will be replaced in the field by 21-year-old US PGA Tour rookie Justin Thomas, who is excited about his first his crack at The Players, if not his first at Sawgrass:

Fowler and Poulter "most overrated players on 

US PGA Tour" says Sports Illustrated survey

FROM GOLF CHANNEL.COM
Rickie Fowler and Ian Poulter have a lot of style but not much substance, according to an anonymous survey of US PGA Tour players. 
The poll, conducted by Sports Illustrated, found that Fowler and Poulter are the most overrated players on the circuit, with each garnering 24 percent of the vote.
Fowler, 26, and Poulter, 39, have combined for only three US PGA Tour wins, and none since 2012. 
Fowler’s lone victory came at the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship, but last year he became only the third player in history to record top-5 finishes in all four majors.
Poulter is a 12-time winner on the European Tour and one of the most feared members of the European Ryder Cup team, but he’s failed to bring that success Stateside. Since he began playing full-time on the US PGA Tour in 2005, he has only won the 2010 Match Play Championship and 2012 HSBC Champions, both of which are limited-field World Golf Championship events.
Bubba Watson was next on the list, at 12 percent, while Hunter Mahan earned 8 percent of the vote. 

Gleneagles Scottish professional championship

Hutch and Hay spearhead North challenge
 
Twice winner Greig Hutcheon, with a five-under-par 66, and Nairn Dunbar's Gavin Hay with a 67 spearheaded the North challenge on a day when Paul Lawrie's bid to complete a title treble began with a four-putt double bogey 6 in the £40,000 Gleneagles Scottish professional championship over the King's course at the Perthshire resort.

Hutcheon, playing out of the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre, shared the lead overnight with Chris Currie (Caldwell) while Hay is joint third with David Orr (Eastwood), a former winner of the title, and Sam Binning (Mearns Castle).
Hutch had the best inward half of the day - six-under-par 30 with birdies at the 10th, 11th, 14th, 16th, 17th and an eagle 3 at the 18th. He had a bogey at the 13th.
In his outward half he had birdied the fifth but bogeyed the fourth and sixth.
Hay had a mixed bag of birdies and bogeys in an outward one over par 36 but he got his game together on the way home with birdies at the 10th, 12th, 13th,1 4th and 16th for five-under 31.

Joint leader on 66, Chris Currie turned in one-under, and came back in four-under

"The front nine was a real struggle in the wind but it had dropped unbelievably by the finish," he said

"My game has been solid for the last couple of years. It has gone to another level since I started working with Alan Martin at Buchanan Castle."

Sam Binning, 25-year-old who is attached to Mearns Castle, shot a 67

Like Orr, he was also three-over after six but he had eagles at both the 14th and the 18th as he came home in 31

"The 14th is a special hole for our family as my grandad, Thomas Sneddon, was a member here for 40 years. He died last year and his ashes were scattered at the 14th. My mum, Karen, was caddieing today and she got a bit emotional when I made that eagle."

2012 winner Graham Fox 69 birdied the 15th, 16th (25 feet) and 17th before three-putting the last for a par

"The greens are awfully fast - you have to be sensible on them - so I'm quite happy with that start."

Defending champion Gareth Wright had a par 71 and said:
"I'm disappointed really as I got off to a good start, standing at one-under after four. I then had a bit of a shocker for a few holes, taking a double-bogey at the seventh then bogey at the eighth. I scrambled it thereafter."
2012 winner Graham Fox 69 birdied the 15th, 16th and 17th before three-putting the last for a par
"The greens are awfully fast - you have to be sensible on them - so I'm quite happy with that start.
Paul Lawrie did well to salvage a one-under 70 after a dismal start.
He four-putted the first for a double-bogey 6 from about 25ft range below the hole
Paul had five birdies in all - the second, seventh, 10th, 13th and 18th inhalvges of 36 and 34.
“I four-putted the first and had two three-putts as well on the front nine,” said Lawrie. “From tee to green I struck it really well - the best I’ve hit it for a long time.”

David Orr, 40, now the head pro at Eastwood, was three over par after only five holes before he turned things around, first with an eagle-3 at the sixth h, where he hit a 3-wood for second shot to 20 feet and holed the putt. That  sparked his round. He had six birdies  - at the 8th, 10th, 11th, 14th, 16th and 18th - thereafter with bogey at the 13th.

Said Orr:

"My mind is elsewhere these days due to my new job at Eastwood, where I started on March 1.

"I've only played 36 holes of competitive golf in the last six months and only hit 300 balls in practice.

"I had little expectations coming into this event but today showed that I've not forgotten how to play"

FIRST-ROUND SCORES
par 71
66 C Currie (Caldwell), G Hutcheon (Paul Lawrie GC)
67 D Orr (Eastwood), S Binning (Mearns Castle), G Hay (Nairn Dunbar)
69 G Fox (Clydeway Golf)
70 P McKechnie (Braid Hills), C Sutherland (Cherry Lodge), C Robinson (Portpatrick Dunskey), R Rafferty (Monte Rei), R Arnott (Bishopbriggs), C Farrell (Cardross), K McNicoll (Gullane), P Lawrie (Carnegie Club).
71 J Lomas (Caprington), A Oldcorn (Kings Acre), Alan Duncan (Golf Moray), G Wright (West Linton), F Dunlop (Gleneagles), J McCreadie (Largs), N Fenwick (Dunbar), S Henderson (Kings Links), C Ronald (Carluke), P Robinson (Largs), P Lawrie (Carnegie Club), M Loftus (Mearns Castle).
72 M Kerr (Marriot Dalmahoy), A Good (Gullane), K Hutton (Downfield), G Dingwell (Royal Dornoch), S Williamson (Clydeway Golf), S McAllister (S McAllister Golf), C Robinson (Elie Links), S Gray (Hayston), F Mann (Carnoustie GC), G Brown (Montrose Links), R Dixon (Renaissance)
73 C Kelly (unatt), M Patterson (Kilmacolm), G McBain (Paul Lawrie GC), S Taylor (Bothwell Castle), S Caitlin (unatt).
74 C Everett (Caldwell), S Savage (Dalmuir), M Mackenzie (Edzell), M Huish (North Berwick), P Shields (Kirkhill), Brian Marchbank (unatt), M Burtt (Helensburgh), P Wardell (North Berwick), I Deacon (Loch Lomond)
75 T Mathieson (Murcar Links), M Hillson (Tandridge), C Tierney (Bishopbriggs), I Anderson (Colville Park), G Forrester (St  Andrews GS), A Reid (West Lothian), S Morrison (Tain), C Matheson (Falkirk Tryst).
76 I Taylor (Drumpellier), A Hutchinson (Douglas Park), J Dick (Duddingston), A Mackrell (Playsport Golf), D Wood (Hirsel), J Hopwood (Royal Aberdeen), P Walker (Ballumbie Castle), G Paxton (Ralston), A Cooper (Newmachar), L Gaughan (Bathgate), G Robertson (Airdrie), M Isaacs (Newmachar), G Hardy (Belleisle).
77 S Herald (St Andrews LGA), R Drummond (unatt), F Cromarty (Nairn), L Vannet (Craibstone), J Sharp (Carrick on Loch Lomond), S McLaren (Blairgowrie), R Neill (Drumpellier), D Stein (Ranfurly Castle), C McMaster (Panmure), D Laing (Craigielaw).
78 G Niven (Ping), J Porteous (Craigielaw), A McHardy (Noah's Ark), S Rettie (Callaway), G Cook (Elie Links), D Ramsay (Moray), P Kerr (Hayston), J Clive (Buchanan Castle), G Hillson (Dunbar), T Dingwall (Kemnay)
79 Heather MacRae (Gleneagles), R McConnachie (Peterculter), K Zeynalov (Portlethen), R Tinker (Piperdam)
80 S Spiers (unatt), M Patterson (Cruden Bay), A Jowett (Gleneagles), A McDonald (Dunnikier Park), F Rummins (Canmore), P Edgecombe (Forrester Park).
81 R McIntyre (Whitekirk), A McCandlish (Kingsbarns), K Campbell (Machrihanish), R Gray (American Golf), N Cameron (Blairgowrie), S Smith (Scotscraig)
82 N Scott-Smith (Palacerigg), G Mackay (Melville GR), F Cramb (Crieff), E Macpherson (Auchterarder)
83 Nichola Ferguson (American Golf), P B rookes (Pitreavie), C Adam (Linlithgow), J Bell (Craigmillar Park), I Hannah (Strathclyde Park).
85 C Lawson (Elmwood), S Fay (Royal Dornoch), C Haugh (Cawder).
86 P Wytrazek (Burntisland).
87 S Costello (Strathaven).
88 B Mason (Callaway).
Withdrew: A Crerar (Panmure), J McKinnon (McKinnon Golf Services)
Disqualified: P Malone (Braid Hills)
Retired: C Gordon (Edinburgh GC), A Hogg (Kingsbarns), M Robertson (Balmore).