Bad weather hits PGAs of Europe pro championship in Bulgaria

The third round of the PGAs of Europe professional championship at Pravets, Bulgaria was washed out today by bad weather. No play was possible.
Tournament has been cut to three rounds, the last of which will be played tomorrow.
Several Scots professionals are playing, the best placed of whom is Montrose Links assistant Graeme Brown.

Superyacht finishing company Pinmar sign 

up Paul Lawrie

NEWS RELEASE
 Pinmar, one of the world’s biggest superyacht finishing companies, has signed an ambassador agreement with former Open Champion Paul Lawrie.  

Pinmar, part of the Global Yachting Group (GYG), a leading provider of services to the world’s superyacht fleet, headquartered in Majorca, has helped define the world’s superyacht finishing business to include painting, refit, supply and distribution. They have also established themselves as a leader of golf events within the superyacht world, with the annual charity Pinmar Golf Tournament taking place in Majorca, in which over 350  players take part and 800 industry personnel attend the gala dinner.

John Duff strikes again at North-east Alliance

John Duff today scored his third scratch victory of the 2016-2017 North-east Alliance season. The win at Ballater earned him £150.
Read Joel Hopwood's report and scores by switching over to www.sgvalliances.com 

CLICK HERE

DUNBLANE STUDENT'S SECOND USA TOP TEN FINISH OF NEW SEASON

    Nicola Robertson in action this week.

Nicola Robertson from Dunblane, a third-year student at King University, Bristol in Tennessee, achieved her second top-10 finish of the US college golf 2016-17 season with a sixth place in a field of 77 at the Patsy Rendleman Invite tournament at the Country Club of Salisbury, North Carolina this week (tournament finished Tuesday).

Robertson had rounds of 80 and 71 (one under par and the joint second lowest round) for a total of 151 over the par-72, 6,005yd course.

She finished 10 shots behind the winner by five, Abbey Hartsell (Lenoir-Rhyne) (73-68 for 141).

King team-mate Samantha Taylor from Newcastlew shot 78-79 for 157 and a T19 finish.

King (634) finished eighth of 15 behind team title winners Tusculum College (613) and runners-up Wingate University (618)

STRATHMORE TEENAGER HAS BIRDIE BONANZA

AT FALDO SERIES GRAND FINAL

Strathmore's Alex Simpson was in sparkling form with a second-round, seven-birdie score of 68 in the Faldo Series Grand Final's Under-16 boys' category at Stoke by Nayland Golf Club today (WED).

Simpson birdied the fifth, sixth, 11th, 14th, 16th, 17th ane 18th in halves of 35-33.

With a 36-hole tally of 141 - his first-round score was a 73, Simpson has moved up to joint second, two shots behind the Under-16s' leader, Harry Goddard (England) (69-70).

Sharing second place with the Scot is Kiet an Der Weele (Netherlands) whose second-round 67 was the only score better than Simpson on the day.

Carrine Taylor (Elgin) added a 76 to her opening 79 and maintained seventh place in the Under-21 girls' section. She is12 shots behind the category leader, Sara Zrnikova (Slovakia) who has had a pair of 71s for 142.

Emily Brennan (England) (74-70) and Mary Doyle (Ireland) (75-69) are sharing second place on 144.

Leading Day 2  scores: 

Boys’ Under-21: 

139 – Adam Chapman (ENG) (67-72), Henrik Machado (BRA) (69-70) 

141 – Adam Puchmelter (SK) (70-71).   

Boys’ Under 18: 

136 – Jiri Zuska (CZE) (67-69)

138 – Nathan Longley (ENG) (71-67).  

Boys’ Under 16: 

139 – Harry Goddard (ENG) (69-70)

 141 – Alex Simpson (SCO) (73-68), Kiet van der Weele (NED) (74-67).  

Girls’ Under-21: 

142 – Sara Zrnikova (SK) (71-71)

144 – Emily Brennan (ENG) (74-70), Mary Doyle (IRE) (75-69).  

Girls’ Under-16:

139 – Nicola Slater (ENG) (69-70)

145 – Amy Taylor (ENG) (74-71).

For live scoring updates during the 20^th Faldo Series Grand Final please visit www.faldoseries.info/tic/tmtic.cgi.  

You can also follow the Faldo Series on Facebook at www.facebook.com/faldoseries and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/faldoseries.

Paulding to leave Scottish Golf for new role with British Athletics

NEWS RELEASE

Scottish Golf today announces the departure of Steve Paulding, Performance Director, who is to take up a new role with British Athletics.

The 54-year-old, pictured, has enjoyed a successful seven-year spell with the governing body and leaves to become British Athletics’ National Performance Institute Director.

Paulding has made significant changes in the way Scottish Golf supports and develops aspiring male and female golfers, with teams and individuals enjoying notable results on the world amateur stage during his tenure.

Paulding, who will leave his post on November 11, helped guide Scotland to back-to-back European Men's Amateur Team titles in 2015 and 2016 for the first time in 39 years.

A record eight male Scots also reached the top 100 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings last year, with Grant Forrest, Ewen Ferguson and Jack McDonald playing their part in the record-winning GB and I Walker Cup team in 2015. Paulding has also seen three Scots reach The Amateur Final in the last three years, with Bradley Neil victorious in 2014, and Connor Syme and Craig Ross win the Australia and South African Amateur titles this year.

Given Scotland also had two players in the GB and I Girls Junior Vagliano team in 2015 and won the Boys' Home Internationals last year, Paulding is confident for the future.

“I’ve enjoyed my time with Scottish Golf and we’ve achieved some great results that I’m very proud of,” said Paulding. “Most people are only interested in those results, but the systems and processes needed to consistently identify and produce players who can compete on the world amateur stage has been my focus.

“There are now more PGA professional coaches working in and supporting the performance system at all levels and there is now a far more robust tracking and monitoring system in place for players.

“There have also been significant changes to improve our winter training, using the UAE and South Africa as training and competition bases, while we have developed an excellent team of support service personnel within sportscotland's institute of sport to further develop the players.

“While there remain challenges ahead, I’m encouraged by the progress we have made in the female amateur ranks since we became an amalgamated body a year ago. I’m also confident that our new partnership with Bounce Sports will increase the potential for the current crop of male amateurs and newly-turned turned professionals to break through.”

National Coach Ian Rae, Performance Development Manager Stuart Clayton and the former Ladies European Tour professional Clare Queen, Programme Co-ordinator, will take responsibility for the Performance programme following Paulding’s departure next month.

Blane Dodds, Scottish Golf Chief Executive, said: “I would like to thank Steve for all his hard work leading the performance team over the past seven years.

“Scottish Golf is in a stronger place thanks to his endeavours and we wish him well in his new challenge with British Athletics.

“In the interim, Steve leaves a strong and experienced Performance team behind him and I’m confident Ian, Stuart and Clare will continue their good work before we make any future decisions.”

World Hickory Open Championship 2016

Sandy Lyle leads by seven at Panmure

Sandy Lyle, the 2014 winner, had a clear lead after the first round of the 2016 World Hickory Open championship, being played this week at Panmure Golf Club, near Carnoustie.
LEADING SCORES
67 Sandy Lyle (R and A)
74 Andrew Marshall (Dereham), Johan Moberg (Norrkoping)
76 Rymer Smith (Bucks), Magnus Sunesson (Helensborg)

Today's esults in the North District junior match-play championships, sponsored by Forres Golf Club professional Sandy Aird, at Forres:

UNDER-15 YEARS
Quarter-finals
Finlay Wickenden (Nairn) bt Rory Cromarty (Nairn) 4 and 2.
Logan Gillies (Nairn) bt Calum Daun (Inverness) 1 hole.
Ben Patience (Fortrose and Rosemarkie) bt Scott Lawrie (Fort William) 6 and 5.
Callum Scott (Nairn) bt Fraser Owenson (N) 3 and 1.
Semi-finals
Gillies bt Wickenden 4 and 2.
Scott bt Patience 3 and 2.

UNDER-18 YEARS
Quarter-finals
Jamie MacKintosh (Nairn) bt Cameron McArthur (Insch) 4 and 3.
Andrew Moir (Elgin) bt Matthew Wilson (Forres) at 19th.
Thomas Bell (Forres) bt Steven Pears (Nairn Dunbar) 1 hole.
Jake Carpenter (Forres) bt Jake Williamson (Fortrose and Rosemarkie) 3 and 2.
Semi-finals
MacKintosh bt Moir at 19th.
Bell bt Carpenter 4 and 3

HANDICAP 
Quarter-finals
Sam Christie (Rothes) (25) bt Jack Hart (Grantown on Spey) 5 and 4.
Euan Docherty (Moray) (15) bt Mathew Clark (Inverness) (8) 2 holes.
Shay Ewing (Forres) (18) bt Jordan Orr (Hopeman) (12) 3 and 1.
Lewis Fraser (Inverness) bt Regan Main (Moray) (15) 5 and 4.

Semi-finals
Christie bt Docherty 3 and 1.
Fraser bt Ewing 1 hole. 

Student from Portlethen's T11 finish 

at Buffalo Dunes

Ben Murray, pictured,  from Portlethen, a student at Midland College, Texas, finished joint 11th in a field of 82 players at the NJCAA Fall National Preview at Buffalo Dunes golf course, Garden City, Kansas on Tuesday (USA time).

Murray shot rounds of 75, 75 and 70 for a total of 220 - nine behind the winner by five shots, Witchayapat Sinsran (Dodge City) 73-68-70 for 211.

Another Midland College student, Tom Bailey from East Grinstead, finished T22 on 225 with ronds of 74, 75 and 76.

Midland (895) finished fifth of 13 behind team title winners Dodge City (867).

Calum Hill finishesT27 in California

 

Calum Hill from North Berwick, a student at Oregon State, finished T27 in a field of 80 players at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational college tournament at Meadow Club, Fairfax in California. He had been T11 going into the final round.

Calum, pictured, had rounds of 63, 72 and 75 for a total of 210 over a par-71 course of 6,734yds. He had only one birdie but five bogeys in his final round.
His opening round of 63 equalled the lowest ever score by an Oregon State student.

Joint winners on 15-under 198 were Ki Taek Lee (Arizona State) (66-64-68) and an Oregon State team-mate of Hill's , Conner Kampala who shot rounds of 68, 64 and 66.

Oregon State (827) finished runners-up to team title winners Arizona State (827) in a field of 15 teams.

Strathmore boy lying fourth in Faldo Grand Final

Alex Simpson (Strathmore) was in fourth position with a two-over-par 73 at the end of the first round of the Under-16 boys' category in the 20th Faldo Series Grand Final at Stoke by Nayland Golf Club.

Simpson is four behind joint leaders Harry Goddard (England) and Colombia's Esteban Jaramillo.

The only other Scot to reach the Grand Final, Carinne Taylor (Elgin), is eighth in the Under-21 girls' section with a 79 - eight behind leader Sara Zrnkova (Slovakia).

Leading first round scores:
 Boys’ Under-21: 
67 – Adam Chapman (ENG)
69 – Henrik Machado (BRA).   
Boys’ Under 18: 
67 – Jiri Zuska (CZE); 
69 – Peter Cummins (NIR), Sam Bairstow (ENG).   
Boys’ Under 16: 
69 – Esteban Jaramillo (COL), Harry Goddard (ENG); 72 – Pavol Mach (SK).  
Girls’ Under-21: 
71 – Sara Zrnikova (SK)
74 – Emily Brennan (ENG).  
Girls’ Under-16:
69 – Nicola Slater (ENG)
71 – Benedetta Moresco (ITA).