SPENCE LEADS BY THREE BUT HEADS 

FOR THE PRACTICE RANGE

      Tim Spence, three shots clear in race for £10,000 first prize in Aberdeen Senior Masteres

                                         Picture by Cal Carson Golf Agency

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Tim Spence from West Sussex opened up a three-stroke lead with one round to go in the Aberdeen Senior Masters at Meldrum House Hotel golf course, Oldmeldrum - and then went straight to the practice range.

"I shot a 66 (four under par) for 131 (nine under) but I did not hit the ball at all well," said Spence who at 49 years is too young for the European Seniors Tour but just right for the independent Senior Golf Circuit for which the starting age is 48.

"I began by three-putting the first green - my only bogey in 36 holes - but by the end it was my putting that held my round together. An eagle 3 at the 11th helped a lot and I had birdies at the fifth, ninth and the 18th where I sank an 18-footer up the hill."

Spence's nearest challenger is Welshman Phillip Price who birdied the 16th and 17th on his way to a 66 for 134. The Newport man is a shot ahead of joint third placed American Barry Conser (67-68) and desposed overnight leader Paul Wesselingh (64-71).
Scot Stephen McAllister is hanging on in there in joint fifth place on 136 with rounds of 66 and 70.

Conser birdied four of the first eight holes and added another at the 11th.

Wesselingh, seven strokes worse than his opening 64, said he simply did not play well enough to deserve a better score.

Whereas some 30 players had scores under the par of 70, only 11 shot second rounds in the 60s.

Aberdeen businessman and co-sponsor of the event Nick Robson, who had a 74 for 142 but has a six-shot lead over Meldrum House clubmate Barry Brooks (74-74) in the leading amateur contest, explained:

"We made the course a little bit more difficult, particuarly the front nine, than it was for the first round, pulled some tees back, put the flags in more difficult positions - and that made the difference.

"I was party to the changes and I have to say, I suffered too. It was a struggle for me. I didn't play as well as I did on Tuesday and I went out of bounds at the 17th."
First prize is £50,000 and the leading 40 pros will earn prize money.
Instead of an over-60 years prize there is a novel way of giving the older guys a chance to win some money. Players' ages will be deducted from their 54-hole totals, i.e. the older a player is, the more he will deduct from his score.
Three prizes in this novely section  with the first one £1,000. Interesting to see how this works out. Fair to say it is on trial.

The leading amateur will win a voucher to the value of £500 with the runner-up getting a £200 voucher and the third highest amateur £100.

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