Scots quartet struggle at Agadir, Morocco

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Scots Ross Cameron, Alexander Culverwell, Sam Kiloh and Chris Robb all struggled to get anywhere near the par of  71 in the first round of the 54-hole German PGA Developmental Tour event, the Ocean Open, at Agadir on Morocco's western coastline.
Cameron did best with a 75 for joint 69th place but he had only one birdie in halves of 41-37.
Rookie pro Culverwell ran up a triple bogey 7 at the 17th in halves of 36-40 for a 76 and joint 79th place.
Young Sam Kiloh had birdies at the fourth, ninth and 17th but needed them to offset a quadruple bogey 7 at the short seventh and double bogeys at the short third and par-4 14th in his 78 for tied 92nd position.
Chris Robb had a  nightmare birdie-less 10-over-par round of 80 with one triple bogey, and three double bogeys in halves of 41-39 for joint 102nd position in a field of 108 players.
Germany's Mortiz Lampert leads by two shots with a seven-under-par 64

OCEAN OPEN
Agardir, Morocco
LEADING FIRST-ROUND SCORES
Par 71 
64 M Lampert (Ger)
66 J Girrbach (Swi)

SCOTS' SCORES
75 R Cameron (T69)
76 A Culverwell (T79)
78 S Kiloh (T92)
80 C Robb (T102)
Field of 108 players 

TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES

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Torrance Park pip Kintore for Belhaven Best 

Scottish club title in sunny Turkey

   

SGU NEWS RELEASE

Lanarkshire club Torrance Park have been crowned Belhaven Best Scottish Club Handicap champions after Scottish Golf’s first-ever overseas event in sun-kissed Turkey.

Thanks to a ground-breaking new sponsorship deal, the Grand Final of Scotland’s biggest participation event was taken abroad this weekend to the magnificent Regnum Carya Golf and Spa Resort in Belek, Antalya, a European Tour host venue for the Turkish Airlines Open this November.

In glorious conditions on the south coast, Torrance Park duo Grahame Lockhart and Scott Gould (pictured above with their trophies) sparkled in the sun over the 36 holes to earn the title of national champions among the 20 club pairings who had qualified through regional finals back in Scotland.

It proved an incredibly close finale, as Lockhart and Gould finished on the same four-ball, better ball, two-over-par total as North-east club Kintore, represented by Brian Gilbert and Robbie Lawrence, but Torrance Park’s better back nine saw them lift the coveted trophy.

The move to host an event abroad is part of Scottish Golf’s ongoing campaign to provide exclusive benefits and unique golfing experiences to its 222,000 member golfers, achieved thanks to sponsors and partners Belhaven Best, Turkish Airlines, the Regnum Carya Golf and Spa Resort and GolfKings, Scottish Golf’s official travel partner.

Competing over the Carya layout today, following Saturday’s opening 18 holes at the National Golf Club,ockhart and Gould surged through the field with a closing 68, while Kintore’s Gilbert faltered with two late bogeys. 

In the end, Torrance Park’s back nine of three-under 32 was better than Kintore’s by two shots to claim victory.

Hayston pair John Paul Linning and David Carr finished third, thanks to a closing 69, pushing Cruden Bay duo James Booth and Eric Whiteside into fourth by a stroke. 

Lothians club Aegon and Sanquhar from the south shared fifth spot.

Grahame and Gould only joined as members at Torrance Park last year and have swiftly reaped reward, having won the Regional Qualifier for Turkey at Uphall.

Grahame, 43, a 19-handicapper from Bellshill, said: “It’s been a phenomenal experience this week and now a tremendous achievement for us, so I’m a little lost for words. We all came here to try and win it, but being here in Turkey itself was the first prize, to be honest.”

The production manager for McQueens Dairies added: “I can’t thank all the sponsors involved enough for this opportunity, as the facilities here are beyond five star for me. It’s an unbelievable resort.

"I’d also like to thank Scottish Golf for running events that give the average golfer the chance to live the dream for a few days.”

Gould, 33, a nine handicapper from Carluke who is also a dairy worker, added: “Never in a million years did I think I would be somewhere like this playing golf. It’s been the experience of a lifetime.”

Kintore were left to rue what might have been and Gilbert, 36, who plays off two, said: “We thought we had missed out by a couple of shots, so losing to a better back nine is a little frustrating. We threw away silly shots with a few three--putts, but finishing runner-up is still a great result and, overall, it has been a brilliant trip.”

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All finalists have been starring in front of the Scottish Golf TV cameras, another added bonus for the 40 club golfers who battled through Regional Finals last year to qualify for the Turkey showpiece.

The Belhaven Best Scottish Club Handicap Championship has been the country’s biggest participation event since its launch in 1999, with around 20,000 club members taking part in local qualifying each year. 

Belhaven Best has been Scottish Golf’s official partner since the inception of the event, making it one of the longest standing sponsorships in the domestic game.

ALL THE FINAL TOTALS
Par 142 (2x71)
 144 Torrance Park (Lockhart, Gould) 76, 68; Kintore (Gilbert, Lawrence) 74 70 (Torrance Park won with better inward half in second round)
145 Hayston (Linning, Carr) 76 69
146 Cruden Bay (Booth, Whiteside) 76 70
147 Aegon (Ede, Hislop) 74 73, Sanquhar (MacFarlane, Bigger) 74 73.

151 Alva 80 71, Dalbeattie (Henry, McDowall) 76 75.

152 Caldwell (Arthur, McGuire) 80 72, Kirkhill (Maitland, McPhillips) 78 74.

153 Peebles (French, Dickinson) 81 72

154 Strathpeffer (Mackay, McKie) 76 78

156 Milnathort (Brown, Carver) 83 73, Nairn Dunbar (Barron, Quinn) 82 74.

157 Pitlochry (Stewart, Dunbar) 81 76

163 Earlsferry Thistle (Campbell, Sim) 84 79, Hawick (Revel, George) 82 81.
165 Michelin (Brodie, Petrie) 86 79.
Retired: Torvean (Chancellor, Tolmie) 84 ret

Disqualified: Dumbarton

Willett holes 15ft birdie putt at last to win 

Dubai Desert Classic

   Too big for his suitcase? Danny Willett with the huge Dubai Desert Classic trophy (picture by courtesy of Getty Images(c)

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
Danny Willett showed nerves of steel to make a 15-foot birdie on the 72nd hole to win the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, edging out his compatriot Andy Sullivan and Spaniard Rafa Cabrera-Bello by one shot. 
The 28 year old from Sheffield knew Sullivan was in the clubhouse on 18 under par after a four under par 68, and had just watched playing partner Cabrera-Bello tap in for birdie to reach the same total, but he calmly rolled in his own birdie putt for a 69 and his fourth European Tour title. 
Having started the day with a one-shot lead, Willett  withstood the pressure from Sullivan and Cabrera-Bello, who won here at Emirates Golf Club in 2012 and was tied second in Qatar last week. Three dropped shots gave his rivals hope, but birdies on the 12th and 13th helped set up a thrilling finish, and Willett closed out in the same ruthless style that won him two titles last season en route to second place in the Race to Dubai. 
South Korea’s Byeong Hun An and Spain’s Alvaro Quiros both had rounds of 65 to leap into a tie for fourth, while that score was also matched by defending champion Rory McIlroy for a share of sixth place, alongside Henrik Stenson. 
Quotes
 Danny Willett “I’m just ecstatic. You can’t buy that feeling, coming down the back nine, the last three holes, in contention of a golf tournament. You can't pay for that experience: you've got to earn it. 
"With all the permutations that were going on as we were coming down the last, with Sully making birdie ahead of us and then Rafa on the green in two, it’s very nice to know that I can dig deep and produce what I can when it is needed the most. 
"You'd love to win by five or six every time you win, but when you win in that fashion, it does feel that little bit extra special. It means when the pressure is on I can produce the goods, I guess. 
"It’s always great to come out early in the season and win. Everything I’ve done has been really good this week, and mentally I’ve been as good as I have been for a long, long time. I stayed patient and let things happen.” 
Andy Sullivan “Fair play to Danny, holing that putt - that was a tough putt. I didn’t feel like I put him under enough pressure through the midpoint of the round. I had a lot of chances and didn’t take them. 
"The putts towards the end kept me in it, par saves, and when you hole that putt on the last, you feel you’ve given yourself a sneaky chance. But Dan is a quality player and you expect him to step up, and he did. 
"After nine holes I said it’s going too quickly, I was enjoying myself so much. You want to bottle that feeling. It was fantastic, the adrenaline, the emotions - it was good fun and bodes well for the rest of the year. If I can just keep putting myself in that position, eventually I'll get over the line.” 
Rafa Cabrera-Bello “Overall I’m very happy. Finishing second again, it’s a great position. It’s been a fantastic tournament. I played really well and I’m proud of myself. I’m obviously disappointed I didn’t get to win, but I know that playing like this, it’s around the corner. 
"I knew the back nine was going to be very important. Getting off to a strong start would have been ideal, but that didn’t happen, so I just stayed patient. I fought back all day long and played aggressively. 
"I knew that coming down the stretch I could make some birdies and that’s what I did. I tried my best and Danny was one shot better today.” 
Rory McIlroy “I got it going today a little bit better and played the front nine better. All in all, it was a decent weekend and a decent way to play the last 27 holes. My game feels in good shape. There are still a few things to work on – I’m struggling with the driver a little bit, so I want to work on that.”
FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
269 D Willett (Eng) 70 65 65 69
270 A Sullivan (Eng) 70 66 66 68, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 67 67 67 69
272 B An (SKor) 71 67 69 65, A Quiros (Esp) 68 69 70 65
273 H Stenson (Swe) 69 68 70 66, R McIlroy (Nir) 68 72 68 65
274 H Porteous (RSA) 72 66 66 70, C Wood (Eng) 68 68 69 69, T Olesen (Den) 72 64 70 68, T Hatton (Eng) 70 70 68 66, J Luiten (Ned) 69 67 67 71, A Cañizares (Esp) 71 69 68 66, S Kjeldsen (Den) 70 70 66 68, S Hend (Aus) 71 68 66 69
275 M Ilonen (Fin) 70 70 67 68, B Wiesberger (Aut) 68 71 69 67 276 B Dredge (Wal) 70 70 68 68, G Stal (Fra) 70 68 71 67, J Carlsson (Swe) 71 67 70 68, G Storm (Eng) 68 70 69 69, E Els (RSA) 68 67 74 67, B Dechambeau (am) (USA) 70 69 68 69
277 B Rumford (Aus) 67 70 69 71, A Wu (Chn) 70 73 69 65
278 N Holman (Aus) 69 70 67 72, R Fisher (Eng) 70 71 68 69, T Fisher Jnr (RSA) 67 68 72 71, W Ormsby (Aus) 71 69 70 68, G Coetzee (RSA) 72 70 67 69, P Hanson (Swe) 67 73 71 67, R Paratore (Ita) 70 71 71 66
279 R Rock (Eng) 72 71 70 66, B Evans (Eng) 69 71 69 70, P Edberg (Swe) 71 72 67 69
280 G Bourdy (Fra) 72 71 66 71, D Horsey (Eng) 70 73 68 69, R Bland (Eng) 69 69 69 73
281 R Kakko (Fin) 72 69 67 73
282 J Hansen (Den) 72 71 64 75, N Colsaerts (Bel) 73 70 66 73, B Hebert (Fra) 69 73 71 69, A Levy (Fra) 71 69 71 71, J Morrison (Eng) 69 70 70 73
283 S Jamieson (Sco) 69 71 71 72, M Fitzpatrick (Eng) 73 70 68 72, L Bjerregaard (Den) 72 69 69 73, A Johnston (Eng) 73 69 68 73, J Allan (am) (Eng) 69 72 70 72
284 T Fleetwood (Eng) 71 71 70 72, J Campillo (Esp) 72 69 70 73, A Noren (Swe) 66 75 69 74, O Fisher (Eng) 69 71 73 71
285 G Havret (Fra) 71 70 68 76, P Larrazábal (Esp) 72 69 75 69, S Webster (Eng) 70 73 74 68, D Drysdale (Sco) 72 70 72 71, C Lee (Sco) 72 71 70 72
286 R Jacquelin (Fra) 69 73 72 72, M Manassero (Ita) 69 72 70 75
287 O Wilson (Eng) 74 69 72 72, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 70 70 74 73
289 D Howell (Eng) 71 70 71 77, D Lipsky (USA) 68 73 74 74, E Pepperell (Eng) 70 73 72 74
290 E España (Fra) 72 71 76 71, L Slattery (Eng) 73 67 76 74
291 D Foos (Ger) 73 69 77 72
298 S Dyson (Eng) 68 75 76 79

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

S African Norris wins Myanmar Open by four

ASIAN TOUR NEWS RELEASE

South Afrian Norris wins Myanmar Open by four

Yangon: South Africa’s Shaun Norris kept his composure and shrugged off the challenges of his closest rivals by carding a one-under-par 71 to win the Leopalace21 Myanmar Open on Sunday.

The South African was a bundle of nerves in his front-nine but regained his advantage with a flawless inward-nine which helped clinch his second Asian Tour title by four shots at the Royal Mingalardon Golf and Country Club.

Japan’s Azuma Yano had to settle for second place with Korea’s Junwon Park after he signed off with a 68 at Myanmar’s richest sport event.

LEADING FINAL TOTALS

Par 288 (4x72) Yardage: 7218 Yards

264 - Shaun NORRIS (RSA) 66-66-61-71.

268 - Azuma YANO (JPN) 66-68-66-68, Junwon PARK (SKOR) 73-64-63-68.

269 - Jeunghun WANG (SKOR) 66-68-66-69.

270 - Casey O'TOOLE (USA) 71-69-63-67, S S P CHAWRASIA (IND) 66-66-68-70.

272 - Soomin LEE (SKOR) 71-66-68-67.

273 - Yuta IKEDA (JPN) 69-69-68-67, Yikeun CHANG (SKOR) 69-65-71-68, Ryutaro NAGANO (JPN) 71-65-67-70, Thanyakon KHRONGPHA (THA) 68-68-67-70.

274 - Berry HENSON (USA) 70-68-68-68, Prayad MARKSAENG (THA) 67-70-67-70, Danny CHIA (MAS) 65-70-68-71.

275 - Yusaku MIYAZATO (JPN) 68-70-69-68, Sam BRAZEL (AUS) 66-67-71-71, Chapchai NIRAT (THA) 68-70-66-71, Rahil GANGJEE (IND) 71-66-66-72.

276 - Jbe KRUGER (RSA) 69-67-71-69, Dodge KEMMER (USA) 68-70-68-70, Younghan SONG (SKOR) 67-68-69-72, Kalem RICHARDSON (AUS) 69-67-67-73.

277 - Carlos PIGEM (ESP) 69-69-68-71, Keith HORNE (RSA) 72-63-69-73, Aaron TOWNSEND (AUS) 71-68-72-66.

Michael Sim finishes tied 5th in Vic Open

By Olivia McMillan
Australian PGA Media
Michael Long played one of the most miraculous golf shots seen in the history of the Oates Vic Open to win the title. Ending regulation play tied for the lead with Matt Millar at 13-under-par 275, Long won the tournament on the first play-off hole in remarkable circumstances.
Teeing off the 18^th, which was played sudden death, Long found the middle of the fairway. In a bizarre stroke of misfortune he pushed his second shot well left, almost crossing into the hazard.
Staring at a horrible lie in thick rough, Long played an incredible shot to eight feet of the hole, delighting not only himself but also the crowd ringing the green ten deep.
All through this drama, Millar watched on in amazement before standing over his own 25 foot birdie putt.
Unable to make it, Millar then handed the tournament's fate into Long's hands. With nerves of steel he drained his eight foot birdie putt to claim the 2016 Oates Vic Open. 
Long and Millar, who  both closed with 69s, finished two strokes clear of joint third placed Aron Price and first-round leader with a 63, Scott Strange.
Aberdeen-born Michael Sim, pictured right , signed off with a 69 - birdies at the par-5 fifth, ninth, 14th and 15th with a sole bigey at the short 17th - for a total of six-under 278 - only three behind the play-off participants - and tied fifth place.
Sim, now 31, emigrated with his parents from the Aberdeen suburb of Westhill when he was seven or eight years old. After becoming the No 1 amateur in the world in 2005, he turned pro a year later but a stress fracture of the spine halted his rise to the top in America after he won three Web.com Tour events, gaining automatic promotion to the US PGA Tour. 

VICTORIAN OPEN
13th Beach Links, Barwon Heads
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
Players are from Australia unless stated
275 Michael Long 69 70 67 69, Matthew Millar 71 68 67 69 (Long won play-off at first extra hole).
277 Aron Price 67 68 72 70, Scott Strange 63 74 70 70.

SELECTED TOTAL
278 Michael Sim (Sco) 67 71 71 69 (T5)

MENA Tour will have 21 tournaments

 on 2016 schedule

NEWS RELEASE

DUBAI  — MENA Golf Tour Patron Darren Clarke today announced the 2016 season schedule that expands its footprint in nine countries across three continents, highlighted by a ground-breaking tie-up with the Sunshine Tour.

Starting with the inaugural Qualifying School at Almenara Golf Club in the Spanish resort Sotogrande in the Cadiz province from February 13 to 16, the tour features a total of 21 tournaments, making maiden voyages to Spain, South Africa, Egypt and Kuwait. 

The introduction of the Q-School, conforming to the guidelines set forth by the game’s apex body, will pave the way for the MENA Golf Tour to become eligible for Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status, hopefully in a month or two.

Meanwhile, the top 60 players from the 54-hole Q-School in Spain will be eligible for Category-7 membership of the MENA Golf Tour for the 2016.

2016 MENA Golf Tour schedule:

Mar 22-25: Royal Golf D'Anfa Open at Royal Golf D'Anfa Golf Club, Morocco, Casablanca

Mar 28-31: Hotel Pullman Mazagan Royal Golf & Spa, Morocco

Apr 3-6: Sotogrande Masters at LA Reserva GC

Apr 24-27: Ajman Golf Championship at Al Zorah Golf Club

May 1-4: Ras Al Khaimah Classic at Tower Links Golf Club 

May 12-15: Thailand event (TBA)

May 18-21: Thailand event-2 (TBA) 

June 9-12: South Africa Tournament 1, Johannesburg

June 15-18: South Africa Tournament 2, Johannesburg 

June 21-24: South Africa Tournament 3, Johannesburg

Sept 4-7: Dubai Creek Open at Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club 

Sept 11-14: Shaikh Maktoum Dubai Open at Al Badia Golf Club

Sept 18-21: The Golf Citizen Classic at The Els Club, Dubai

Sept 25-28: ASCORP GOLF CITIZEN Abu Dhabi Open at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club 

Oct 9-12: Dirab Golf Championship at Dirab Golf & Country Club, Saudi Arabia

Oct 16-19: Kuwait Tournament at Sahara Golf and CC , Kuwait (TBC)

Oct 23-25: Ghala Open at Ghala Golf Club, Muscat

Oct 30 to Nov 2: Muscat Hills Golf Citizen Championship at Muscat Hills Golf and CC, Muscat

Nov 20-23: Cairo Classic at Katameya Heights Golf Club, Cairo

Nov 26-29: MENA Golf Tour Championship at Katameya Dunes Golf Club, Cairo

Calum Hill's great start to 2016 in Hawaii

FROM ALAN MURDOCH
Coach at Merchiston Golf Academy, Edinburgh

Hi Colin,
I think worth a mention that Calum Hill, Merchistonian schoolboy, made a great start  to his first event (Amer Ari Invitational at Waikoloa King's Course, Hawaii) of the year in the PAC12, arguably the strongest conference for a one-under-par aggregate of 215 over a par-72 course of 7,074yd.

Calum, a third-year student from North Berwick, was the third top performer for Oregon State who  finished seventh out of 19 of the TOP US golfing universities.
Southern Cal (835) won the team title ahead of UCLA (837) and joint third Arizona State and Oregon (842).
Aaron Wise (Oregon) was the individual winner by two shots with a 16-under 200 (69-67-64).
Welshman David Boote (Stanford) finished T13 on 211 (67-72-72).
 Calum Hill finished T36 in a field of 115. His ever-improving rounds were 74, 73 and 68.

You can view all the team and individual scores by clicking on the following:


http://golfstatresults.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=player&tid=8723


Alan Murdoch 
Coach at Merchiston Golf Academy
Director Of Golf at Kings Acre Golf Course and Academy
Sent from my iPhone