Andy Sullivan leads with a pair of 64s

BAD WEATHER ABOUT TOO IN A ROW

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS Andy Sullivan made hay whilst the sun shone on the second day of the Portugal Masters, as the Englishman opened up a commanding lead courtesy of a second successive round of 64. With adverse weather over the weekend threatening to curtail the tournament for the second year in succession, the jovial Englishman is in pole position to claim his third European Tour title of the season after moving to 14 under par. Sullivan’s closest challenger at Oceânico Victoria Golf Course is Belgian Thomas Pieters, who climbed to 11 under par courtesy of a round of 66. Austrian Bernd Wiesberger, currently seventh in The Race to Dubai, shares third place on ten under par alongside Eduardo De La Riva after the duo carded respective rounds of 64 and 67. Due to the adverse weather forecast for Saturday afternoon, the tournament organisers have agreed to begin the third round at 8am with a ‘shotgun start’. Heavy rain, high winds and even possible thunderstorms are predicted to arrive in Vilamoura from Saturday lunchtime, giving organisers no option other than to bring forward the tee times and start all players at the same time. The only other time there has been a shotgun start during an official European Tour event was the final round of the 1994 Czech Open.  Key quotes Andy Sullivan: “It’s always nice to back up a good score with another one. Sometimes it’s quite tough to go out there and do it again, but I played much in the same vein as I did yesterday. I felt really confident out there, attacked the flags again and putted with heart again. So it was difficult not to shoot a good a score, the way I was hitting it and putting it. “It’s always nice to start with a birdie to keep the momentum rolling. After that, there weren’t too many periods where I didn’t have a birdie. So it was nice just to keep it flowing. “I hit a few really good chip shots today, but the one on the seventh was just ridiculous. Me and my caddie were just thinking to ourselves that if I left myself with a ten footer for par back down the hill it would really be nice, so to see it go in was a massive relief. Thomas Pieters: “I thought I played better yesterday, but still managed to hit it close a few times today and I played the par fives well. I was pretty disappointed with the finish, missing two short putts, but at least I’ve given myself a chance going into tomorrow. “Even though the forecast for tomorrow doesn’t look great, I’ve still got to try to make birdies. I don’t know how bad it’s going to be, but hopefully we can get at least three rounds in.” José María Zamora, Tournament Director: “On Saturday morning we are expecting some very heavy rain from one o’clock onwards, so the only option to try to get the third round completed will be to have a shotgun start. “At this moment in time, the forecast for Sunday is not looking great either. But our first priority is to try to get the third round completed. Then if we get lucky, there’s a chance we can play the fourth round on Sunday. “It’s a real shame, because the weather so far this week has been fantastic. It’s so hot and sunny out there today, we’ve got thousands of people following the golf. We were also very unfortunate last year with the cancellation of the last two rounds because of the weather, but hopefully we can get at least three rounds done this year. “We’re going to change the preparation of the golf course for the third round. As well as the rain we’re also expecting 30-40 miles per hour winds, so we’ll not be cutting the greens. We will also move some of the tees forward to make the course more playable, because we’re expecting a really tough day.” Round Two Scores 128 A Sullivan (Eng) 64 64,  131 T Pieters  (Bel) 65 66,  132 B Wiesberger  (Aut) 68 64, E De La Riva  (Esp) 65 67,  133 A Wall (Eng) 69 64, T Fleetwood  (Eng) 69 64,  134 T Fisher Jnr (RSA) 66 68, A Otaegui  (Esp) 67 67, S Kjeldsen (Den) 68 66, T Bjørn (Den) 67 67, C Paisley  (Eng) 67 67,  135 H Otto (RSA) 70 65, A Quiros  (Esp) 67 68, T Aiken (RSA) 65 70, S Jamieson  (Sco) 67 68, P Maddy (Eng) 66 69, A Hansen (Den) 68 67, N Colsaerts  (Bel) 64 71, J Singh (Ind) 69 66, J Campillo (Esp) 66 69, B Ritthammer (Ger) 69 66,  136 D Drysdale (Sco) 65 71, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 68 68, K Broberg (Swe) 66 70, G Mulroy (RSA) 69 67,  137 C Wood  (Eng) 68 69, R Rock (Eng) 70 67, D Brooks (Eng) 68 69, E Espana (Fra) 70 67,  138 C Lee (Sco) 67 71, C Doak (Sco) 69 69, J Van Zyl (RSA) 71 67, G Storm  (Eng) 68 70, M Korhonen (Fin) 69 69, S Gallacher (Sco) 67 71, R Wattel  (Fra) 67 71, R Green (Aus) 68 70, D Fichardt (RSA) 68 70, J Quesne  (Fra) 70 68, B Stow (Eng) 69 69, O Fisher  (Eng) 69 69,  139 J Carlsson (Swe) 66 73, M Warren (Sco) 71 68, A Cañizares  (Esp) 70 69, A Johnston (Eng) 70 69, J Scrivener (Aus) 70 69, J Walters (RSA) 71 68, D McGrane (Irl) 67 72, B Hebert  (Fra) 75 64, G Bourdy (Fra) 70 69, R Gouveia (Por) 71 68, M Lundberg (Swe) 70 69, T Silva (am) (Por) 71 68,  140 R Gonzalez (Arg) 70 70, M Kaymer (Ger) 70 70, L Jensen (Den) 73 67, P Dunne (Irl) 68 72, S Hutsby  (Eng) 72 68, P Harrington (Irl) 70 70,  141 T Olesen (Den) 71 70, R Paratore (Ita) 70 71, K Phelan (Irl) 70 71, L Bjerregaard  (Den) 72 69, R Bland (Eng) 71 70, P Lawrie (Sco) 71 70, S Brown (Eng) 73 68, M Crespi  (Ita) 68 73, M Kieffer (Ger) 71 70, D Gaunt (Aus) 72 69, B Evans  (Eng) 73 68, G Havret  (Fra) 71 70, J Kruger (RSA) 72 69, MISSED THE CUT 142 A Hortal  (Esp) 71 71, M Madsen  (Den) 70 72, M Siem  (Ger) 70 72, L Slattery (Eng) 71 71, N Fasth (Swe) 72 70, T Cruz  (Por) 71 71, R Jacquelin (Fra) 72 70, M Ford (Eng) 71 71, G Stal  (Fra) 69 73, F Aguilar (Chi) 71 71, F Fritsch  (Ger) 70 72, R Santos  (Por) 69 73, P Larrazábal (Esp) 72 70, A Tadini (Ita) 73 69,  143 A Velasco (Esp) 70 73, J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 70 73, T Murray (Eng) 70 73, D Woltman (USA) 73 70, T Lewis (Eng) 72 71, R Fisher (Eng) 67 76, C Del Moral (Esp) 70 73, M Manassero (Ita) 75 68, S Hansen (Den) 73 70, V Lopes (am) (Por) 74 69,  144 P Oriol (Esp) 72 72, M Carlsson  (Swe) 70 74, R McEvoy  (Eng) 74 70, J Lagergren (Swe) 78 66,  145 O Farr (Wal) 73 72, C Bouniol (Fra) 73 72, P Edberg (Swe) 72 73, M Lorenzo-Vera  (Fra) 70 75, J Barnes (Eng) 73 72, P Lawrie (Irl) 73 72, J Carlota (Por) 71 74,  146 M Foster (Eng) 76 70, M Hoey  (Nir) 74 72, J Roos (RSA) 72 74, T Hatton (Eng) 76 70, J Lima  (Por) 78 68, M Lampert (Ger) 69 77, A Levy (Fra) 72 74,  D Clarke (Nir) 71 75, M Tullo (Chi) 71 75,  147 S Benson (Eng) 73 74, J Edfors (Swe) 75 72,  148 J Hahn (USA) 77 71, M Nixon (Eng) 75 73,  149 C Lloyd (Eng) 77 72,  151 A Pavan (Ita) 71 80,  152 J Lando Casanova  (Fra) 76 76,  153 N Elvira  (Esp) 75 78,  156 P Figueiredo  (Por) 77 79#=  ** R Finch  (Eng) 75 WD, - Ends -

Daily Telegraph BMW junior championships at Quinta do Lago North

LONE SCOT JOE BRYCE FINISHES 

FOURTH ON ALGARVE

Joe Bryce from Bathgate, the only Scot in the select field of 12 boys and nine girls, finished fourth in the boys' section of the BMW national junior golf championships at the picturesque but demanding Quinta do Lago North  Course on Portugal's Algarve coastline.

On a day when the temperature touched 80 degrees, Bryce had a final round of 75 after earlier scores of 74 and 71 for a four-over-par aggregate of 220.

He finished nine strokes behind the winner from Bath, Jamie Li, with scores of 71, 67 and 71 for five-under 211.

John Gough from Stoke finished runner-up, one shot behind Li with rounds of 73, 69 and 70 for 212.

At one stage of the final round, Li lost the lead to Gough, who had a four-shot advantage, but the Bath boy managed to regain it before the finish.

The girls' event turned into a procession behind Northern Ireland's 17 year old Olivia Mehaffey (Royal Co Down Ladies), winner of the Ladies Golf Union Order of Merit title this year and a member of the GB and I women's team in the Vagliano Trophy match against the Contintent of Europe in June.

Oliva won by SIXTEEN strokes with classy scores of 71, 70 and 69 for six-under-par 210, lower by one stroke than Li achieved in the boys' event - which was Mehaffey's motivating target in the absence of a challenge in the girls' section.

England junior cap Eloise Healey from West Lancashire was runner-up with rounds of 71, 78 and 77 for 226.

FINAL TOTALS

players from England unless stated otherwise

BOYS
par 216 (3x72)

211 J Li 71 69 71

212 J Gough 73 69 70

216 D List 73 71 72

220 J Bryce (Sco) 74 71 75

222 B Spooner 75 72 75

223 C Farr 74 71 78

225 B Brown 73 73 79

231 S Dimmick 74 75 82

232 T Plumb 79 74 79

234 K Faulkner 74 82 78

238 C Holmes 78 81 79

241 M Flynn 80 82 79

GIRLS
par 216 (3x72)

210 O Mehaffey (NIre) 71 70 69

226 E Healey 71 78 77

230 C Howard 76 76 78

237 C Frankish 78 81 78, L Brunt 83 75 79

238 J Guest 82 75 81

250 O Hamilton 86 84 80, M Clarke 81 82 87

255 J Campbell 89 83 83

MEHAFFEY SIGNS OFF JUNIOR CAREER IN STYLE AS LI MAKES IT THIRD TIME LUCKY AT QUINTA DO LAGO

Olivia Mehaffey, the world No 16 amateur, emphatically won the 30^th Telegraph BMW Junior Championship girls’ title while Jamie Li won his first finals at the third – and final – time of asking after a one-shot victory in the boys’ event at Quinta do Lago on Friday.

Mehaffey, the rising Northern Irish star and a member at Royal County Down, won by a staggering 16 shots, one of the biggest gaps in Junior Championship history.

The 17-year-old co-led after the first round with Eloise Healey, but stamped her authority in the final two rounds to finish six under par after a 69 in her third round.

She said: “Whatever lead you have, it feels like everyone is breathing down your neck. I was shaky after three bogeys but managed to relax and enjoy the back nine.

“I looked at the honours board the other day and to win alongside the other girls is such an honour. It’s a great event and I’m really grateful to be a sponsors’ invite and win it.

“It’s my last ever junior competition and I put my year down to the hard work over the winter.”

Her end of season victory at the prestigious 54-hole strokeplay Telegraph event added to the Scottish, Irish and Welsh Open Amateur titles she has won this year, clutch of titles that earned her the Ladies Golf Union Order of Merit title.

Healey finished second after a 77, while Chloe Howard posted a 78 to finish 20 strokes off Mehaffey’s winning score.

Meanwhile, there was a contrasting win in the boys’ finale as Li won a thrilling 18-hole battle with John Gough.

Bath’s Li, a two-time Telegraph finalist at Quinta do Lago, had held a two-shot lead overnight from Stoke Park’s Gough.

But the round started badly for the England junior as Li suffered a two-stroke penalty shot on the par three second when he practised and grounded his club from a water hazard.

It meant a triple bogey six for Li and his lead wiped out in one hole. Gough soon had a four-shot lead, but Li fought back superbly on the back nine with four birdies to finish with a 70 and -5 under overall, as his rival failed to claw back the deficit on the 18^th’s sloping green.

“It was the best I’ve ever putted on that back nine and this win feels great,” said Li.

“It was hard going after my two shot penalty but after the worst moment it switched around pretty quickly to become the best moment of my career and the back nine was just so enjoyable for me.

“I’ve finished my junior career on a real high and I’m extremely happy.”

Wentworth’s Daniel List finished third at level par for the tournament.

F

Lanarkshire A   v   Glasgow  A    at  Ralston

On Sunday  October  18th  2015       11am                     

1.   Steven Rennie      Drumpellier 

2.    Kenny Gallacher   East Kilbride                        

3.    Dominic Dougan  Airdrie 

4.    Mark O’Donnell   Hamilton                 

5.    Robbie Main        Airdrie                  

6.    David Cardwell     Hamilton                     

7.     Craig Longmuir    Bellshill  

8.    Ross Hinshelwood East Kilbride   

Youth Team    v        Glasgow  Y    

 10-30 for 11     Sunday October  18^th  

 at Shotts  Golf Club     

1.   Andy Thomson         Lanark

2.   Graeme Greer           Carluke 

3.   Greg  Dalziel               Kirkhill

4.   Mitchell Ronald         East Kilbride

5.    Jack McMorris          East Kilbride

6.   David Fair                   Strathaven

7.   Jonathan Torrance    Drumpellier

8.   Dylan Burt                 Bellshill

Graeme Brown leads Tartan Tour quartet in 

Bulgaria with six-under-par tally

Graene Brown (Montrose Links) is best placed of the four Tartan Tour competitors with one round to go in the PGAs of Europe championship at Pravets Golf Resort and Spa, Bulgaria.

Brown, pictured, is shared ninth place on six-under-par 210 after rounds of 68, 72 and 70. He is 10 shots behind the leader by three, Englishman Matthew Cort who has scored 68, 66 and 66 for 16 under par 200.
Craig Ronald (Carluke) is inside the leading 20 with rounds of 73,71 and 768 for 212 and a shjare of 17th place.
Craig Matheson (Falkirk Tryst) is joint 32nd on 216 with rounds of 71, 71 and 72.
James McGhee (Bishopbriggs) has had rounds of 69, 76 and 72 for 217 and joint 38th place.

PGAs OF EUROPE CHAMPIONSHIP
Pravets Golf Resort and Spa, Bulgaria
THIRD-ROUND LEADERBOARD 
Par 216 (3x72)
200 M Cort (Eng) 68 66 66
203 J L Adarraga (Spa) 66 69 68
204 H Santos (Por) 72 70 62
205 R Miller (Net) 70 67 68
SELECTED SCORES
207 S Parry (Eng) 69 72 66 (T5)
210 G Brown (Sco) 68 72 70 (T9)
212 C Ronald (Sco) 73 71 68 (T17)
216 C Matheson (Sco) 73 71 72 (T32)
217 J McGhee (Sco) 69 76 72 (T38)


TO VIEW THE COMPLETE SCOREBOARD

CLICK HERE

Blairbeth Golf Club forced to close down after 

105 years in existence

•  

Club report debts "in excess" of £135,000 leaving members and staff gutted 

FROM THE DAILY RECORD

By Douglas Dickie

Blairbeth Golf Club has been forced to close with debts of over £135,000

A golf club based in Fernhill, south of Glasgow is being forced to close after 105 years in existence.
Members of Blairbeth were last week told the club would cease trading on Wednesday, October 14 due to debts in excess of £135,000.
An email went out on Thursday while golfers arriving at the clubhouse over the weekend were left stunned to see notices informing them that the last day of play was due to be Sunday (October 11).
Members were given a deadline to clear out their lockers before the clubhouse was locked up.
Four staff employed by the club were told the news last week.
The move comes just weeks after an EGM voted to cut the course to nine holes in a desperate attempt to save money on fuel costs.
Captain Davie McKay told the "Rutherglen Reformer": “We all got together on Sunday to play the ‘Snyder Cup’ between out 9.30am groups and the 12.30pm guys.
“Despite everything there was a fantastic atmosphere. There were lots and lots of tears shed from men you would not think had a tear in them.
“One older member, I could hardly look him in the eye.
“The last eight to 10 years, the club has been unsteady. I don’t think anyone could have worked any harder than myself and my vice-captain, Craig Crawford.
“We were all very upset on Sunday.”
Although the course has been plagued by rumours for the past few years, the news still came as a shock to members and staff.
One of the bar staff, Mandy Allum, described the news was “heart-breaking.”
The 42-year-old from Fernhill has worked there for nine years, and said: “I’m gutted, it’s a cracking wee club.
“It’s just horrible, I just kept thinking ‘it’s not going to shut, it will never shut’.
“When I first started in here it was so busy, but it’s just gone downhill.
“I don’t blame the committee or Davie. I feel sorry for him, he tried everything to keep it going.”
Member Phil McFarlane (74), from Rutherglen, had played at Blairbeth for 50 years, and said: “A lot of the guys are going to really miss this place.
“I actually enjoyed the nine holes because it was an easier walk, I thought it was going to be great.
“The problems have been going on for years, and last year we had 40 members walk out and that more or less settled it.”
Another member, who did not wish to be named, said the club had suffered a “slow, lingering death,” adding: “It’s very sad what’s happened.”
Rutherglen MSP James Kelly said he still retained hope the course could be saved: “This is really disappointing news about Blairbeth Golf Club.
“I know that many local golfers have a strong affection for the course.
“I enjoyed a few rounds of golf there myself as a youngster. I know the course like other courses in the area had suffered a drop off in members and the club had taken steps to try and sustain the future of the course.
“Even at this late stage, I will support and work with anyone on any plans that can be developed to save the course.”

FIFE GOLFING ASSOCIATION

2015 BOYS ORDER OF MERIT

Presented by www.MyGolfRanking.net

Final Positions after 23 events

1 Sam Nicholson (Ladybank) 1033 pts

2 John Paterson (St Andrews New) 485

3 Greg Cessford (Balbirnie Park) 440

4 Jack Lockhart (Pitreavie) 390,

5 Ryan Brown (Dunfermline) 310,

6 Hamish Gorn (Aberdour) 300,

7 Keith Bowman (St Andrews New) 280,

8 Steven Paterson (Lundin) 263,

9 Ben McKay (Crail) 250,

10 Stewart Philp (Lundin) 220.

Many congratulations to Sam Nicholson who won the Order of Merit by a record margin of 580 points from the 2014 winner, John Paterson.

The FIFE GOLFING ASSOCIATION

2015 ORDER OF MERIT

for The Mackay Bowl

Presented by www.MyGolfRanking.net

Final Positions after 20 events:

1 Connor Syme (Drumoig) 660 points,

2 Steven Aitken (Leven GS) 440,

3 Andrew Davidson (Charleton) 360,

4 David Mitchell (Leven Thistle) 300,

5 Alan Sutherland (Cupar) 280,

6= Joshua Jamieson (The New Club) 260, Alex Moir (Thornton) 260,

8 Fraser Carr (Crail) 240,

9 Ben Kinsley (St Andrews) 200,

10 Greg Forrester (Lundin) 185.

Congratulations go to Connor Syme for winning the Mackay Bowl from Steven Aitken and Andrew Davidson.

On behalf of Fife Golfing Association, I thank the Clubs and their members who gave up their golf to allow the Counting Events in the 2015 Fife Order of Merit to take place and the Press for publishing the results throughout the year.

David Moir

Honorary Life President, FGA