DON MACKAY WINS NORTH ALLIANCE

WITH A 66 ON RETURN TO REAY

By ROBIN WILSON
After missing most of last season with getting married and house building, Caithness county champion Don Mackay (Thurso) has made an immediate impact on return to the North Alliance scene with a blistering 66 over his former Reay course.
Mackay, pictured left by Robin Wilson, left Reay to join Thurso where his handicap has crept up to two but the former three times winner of the Alliance's aggregate Scratch Quaich is definitely on his way back to a scratch rating and a series challenger this season.
At ease on his return to his old stamping ground, he found five birdies in the perfect scoring conditions and a shortened course in halves of 32 and 34. Three sub par figures came on the outward stretch, the fourth, sixth and ninth holes, then a second par-5 birdie hole, the 14th, before finishing below the clubhouse windows with a classy birdie 2.
Mackay's only dropped shots came at par-3 holes, the seventh, by missing the green to the left, and the 15th from a three-putt from the difficult left side of the green across the slope.
Mackay's win was by three shots from Brora's Tony Gill whose 69 was his best ever score over the Caithness venue. Gill birdied the ninth hole for a level par outward card of 34 and then got to one under par with birdies at the 13th and 14th before giving back his red position with a bogey on the 16th after finding a bunker with his approach to the green from the right hand side rough.
Finishing with two par figures, he was home in 35.
Another gross 69 came from the unusual source of local eight-handicapper Steve Efemey who enjoyed three of his four birdies on the considered tougher inward half. Needless to say Efemey was the runaway winner of the Class 1 net returns with 61.
The Reay members made hay of the ideal conditions and their home advantage to take the lion's share of the prizes. Graham Grant, handicap four from Helmsdale, already with a second position at Durness the previous week, was again in good form and although with a better score at Reay he slipped to third place with net 67 because of a net 63 from local Colin Stewart.
Shaun Sutherland (Bonar Bridge) was another Sutherland visitor who got a listing in this section with a net 67 off eight.
The Bonar member, after picking up birdies at the 16th and 17th, lost a ball on the next hole but still made a 5 with his second ball for a fighting 75.
The local domination continued into Class 2 where Andy Mackay (13) shot a 65 to win by a shot from his club secretary, Bill McIntosh. Then Allyn Sutherland arrived two shots further back before Richard Thain put Wick onto the board in fourth place with another net par score, a 68 off 17.
Tarbat's Mike Keay, holder of the MacKintosh Salver for aggregate net scores, was in Reay to begin his trophy defence and before getting his own course into shape this week for a first time Alliance visit to the Portmahomack Lighthouse nine-hole course.
From a bright start at Reay, a birdie 2 at the short fifth hole, the Tarbat greenkeeper put his drive out of bounds from the eighth tee and closed with a net 73.
Results
(All Reay unless stated)
SCRATCH
66 D A Mackay (Thurso).
69 A J Gill (Brora), S Efemey.
70 A Swanson (Thurso).
71 G Grant (Helmsdale).
72 E Larnoch (Lybster).
73 J O'Brien.
75 S Sutherland (Bonar Bridge), D Dunbar.
76 W Mowat.
HANDICAP
Class1 - S Efemey (8) 61; C Stewart (10) 63; G Grant (Helmsdale) (4), J O'Brien (6), S Sutherland (Bonar Bridge) 67.
Class 2 - A MacKay (13) 65; B McIntosh (20) 66; A Sutherland (16), R. Thain (Wick) (17) 68.