Nairn win Senior Northern Counties Cup for 

first time by four-hole margin

Nairn's winning quartet (left to right): Walter Morris, Robert Smith, Pat Tomisson and Peter Saggers. Picture by Robin Wilson.

By ROBIN WILSON
Nairn Golf Club now hold both the Northern Counties Cup and the Senior Northern Counties Cup following their four-hole victory today over Duff House Royal in the final of the Senior Cup tournament at Royal Dornoch.
Robert Smith, at 55 in his first year as a senior golfer, played for both winning Nairn teams.
 Smith and Peter Saggers - 68th birthday next week - finished six up on Duff House Royal's lead-off pairing of Alan Kennedy and Duncan Clark.
The Nairn second string of Pat Tomisson and Walter Morris lost by two holes to Mike Jenkins and Ian Angus, leaving Nairn the winners by four holes overall. It was Nairn's first ever success in the Senior Northern Counties Cup which was first played in 2002.
Smith and Saggers won their first hole with a birdie but lost the second and regained a one-hole lead at the third.  Nairn were bunkered off the tee and then through the green to lose the fifth.
Nairn began their decisive run by winning first the seventh, where Duff House Royal took three from the edge of the green,  then the eighth with a par and the  ninth with a birdie putt from Smith for Nairn to be three up at the turn.
The 12th saw the start of another three-hole winning run - the 12th with a birdie, the 13th, where the Banff pair took two shots to get out of an awkward bunker lie, and the 14th with a par. Nairn now six up.  

Nairn lost two balls off the tee to go back to five up with one to play - and they won the 18th with a par 4 into the wind to regain their six-hole advantage.

In the second match, Duff House Royal's Ian Angus and Mike Jenkins lost the the first hole but won the second and halved the next three. Nairn lost a ball on the par-3 sixth to go one down.
Duff House Royal three-putted the seventh to be pulled back to all square.
Nairn won the ninth with a par after their opponents missed the green in three. Nairn one up.

half 8th but won 9th par to bogey, Duff House Royal miss green in three +1

Duff House Royal were on the beach at the 11th to go two down.

Nairn lost both the 12th and 13th to be pulled back to all square.

lost 12 pat Tomisson  skinned chip and lost 13 -  game level

Duff House Royal's Angus, playing the side's second shot from a difficult lie on top of a bump, put it to within six inches of the flagsick for them to go one up.

The Nairn pair three-putted the 17th to go two down.

SENIOR NORTHERN COUNTIES CUP

FINAL

at Royal Dornoch GC

The Nairn 1 bt Duff House Royal 1 by 4 holes

(P Saggers, R Smith 6, A Kennedy, D Clark  0;  P Tomisson, W Morris, 0, M Jenkins, I Angus 2)

  Duff House Royal's beaten finalists: left to right:   Mike Jenkins, Duncan Clark, Alan Kennedy and Ian Angus. Picture by Robin Wilson