SCOTS WIN SENIOR MEN'S HOME INTERNATIONALS' TITLE

ON COUNTBACK AT SOUTHERNESS

Scotland won the Senior Men's Home Internationals title at Southerness Golf Club today (Thursday) after a countback involving England and Ireland who also finished with 2pt from three games.

The Scots beat England 5-2 and Wales 6.5-0.5 and it was the margin of the latter win that tipped the countback scales in Scotland's favour. Scotland won 15 games, England 13.5 and Ireland 12.

THURSDAY RESULTS

      SCOTLAND 5, ENGLAND 2

R Clark bt R Kellock 2 and 1.

K Gallacher bt I Attoe 1 hole.

R W Smith halved with S East

J A Fraser halved with T A Foster.

L Blair lost to R Partridge 3 and 2.

M Reid bt R Jones 4 and 3.

I Brotherston bt R Norton 4  and 3. 

SCOTLAND 6.5, WALES 0.5

Clark bt N Evans 5 and 4.

Gallacher bt N Grimmitt 3 and 2.

Smith halved with P Sutton.

Fraser bt M Calvert 3 and 1.

Blair bt A Williams 1 hole.

Reid bt C Jones 6 and 5.

Brotherston bt J Williams 2 and 1.

OTHER RESULTS:

IRELAND 5, WALES 2

ENGLAND 5.5 IRELAND 1.5

FINAL TABLE

SCOTLAND        W2 L1  15-8  2pts
ENGLAND          W2 L1  13.5-9.5  2pt
IRELAND           W2 L1  12-11  2pt
WALES              W0 L3    5.5-17-5  0pt


FULL SUMMARY

SCOTLAND STORM TO SENIOR MEN’S HOME INTERNATIONALS GLORY

Scotland have been crowned Senior Men’s Home Internationals champions at Southerness once play resumed following a visit from the uninvited Storm Ali.

After losing the second day’s play due to the extreme weather conditions, a change to the original format was agreed with two sessions taking place today, which consisted of seven head-to-head battle, ensuring all three country versus country matches were played.

In the round robin format, Scotland, England and  Ireland all won two out of three matches, so the title was decided on the most match points scored across all three matches.

On the final day, it was Scotland who turned on the style, losing only one match from fourteen. In the morning session, the hosts defeated England 5-2 with Ireland getting the better of Wales by the same score line.

The morning’s battle with the Auld Enemy was a close affair. Scotland lead England 3-2 with two matches on the course, but 4 and 3 victories from both Malcolm Reid and captain Ian Brotherson closed out the match.

With it all to play for in the afternoon matches, England convincingly defeated Ireland 5.5 – 1.5, whilst Scotland took charge early on against Wales and never let up, winning 6.5 – 0.5.

When all was said and done, it couldn’t have been closer, with the winner decided by the team with the highest number of points scored across all three matches. Scotland totalled 15 points, England 13.5 and Ireland 12, meaning Scotland were crowned champions for the first time since 2014, which was also on home soil at North Berwick.

·         Senior Men’s Home Internationals – Match Scores

 

After the victory, we caught up with Scotland Captain, and Southerness member Ian Brotherston, who said: “It’s always a dream come true to win the Senior Men’s Home Internationals, especially at your home course.

“We practised and prepared for this championship well, and as Captain, I have had great support from the team all week.

“We played very well today, we were undefeated in 13 of the 14 matches, the whole team did themselves very proud today.

“We were very disappointed at losing our opening game against Ireland, so yesterday when play was cancelled, we all went along the road to Dumfries and County Golf Club and used their indoor swing studio, so perhaps that was the secret.

“The Home Internationals is a great focus for the year, with the format being foursomes and singles each day, it is a great championship to play. There is fantastic camaraderie within the team, this victory means a lot to all of us, and to do it in Scotland, on home soil, is the icing on the cake.