JAKE SCOTT WINS NORTH CHAMPION

 

OF CHAMPIONS' TOURNAMENT

 

By ROBIN WILSON

North Youth champion, Jake Scott (22)  won the North Champions of Champions event at Nairn Golf Club today. The tournament  was cut from 36 to 18 holes in the hope of getting a bigger entry but only 16 played from a possible entry of 70.

 

Scott qualified as Youth Champion from the North District Championship in May and played in the worst of what was a dismal wet day when young golfers shone in the early returns.

Nairn’s Calum Scott, just home after winning the Scottish Junior Champion of Champions event the previous day at The Duke's Course,  and Stephen Pears,  Junior Champion at Nairn Dunbar, both returned two over par 74s from the blue tees.

Scott (38-35) finished his round with a birdie.  Pears had halves of 34 (two under) for the first nine and 40 for the second nine.

 

They led until the  club champions from the host club, Fraser Fotheringham  and Inverness’s David Joel, went into the lead with 73s  Fotheringham (37-36) and Joel 36-37.

The lead changed again when the farthest travelled champion, Dougie Thorburn  (Thurso), brought in a  72 (37-35), finishing with a bogey 6 after finding a bunker from the 18th tee.

 

Rising above them was  Jake Scott who has ambitions to turn professional. He was last to leave the course, taking the trophy with a one-under-par 73. His outward half of 34 contained birdies at the fourth and eighth, and he came home in one-over 37.

.If he remains an amateur Scott will gain entry to next Spring’s Scottish Champion of Champions tournament.  Thorburn finished runner up and Fotheringham third on count back.

 

The CSS was calculated no change at 74

 

SCOREBOARD

Nairn GC. Par 72. SSS 74. CSS 74

71 J Scott (Moray).

72 D Thorburn (Thurso)

73 F Fotheringham (Nairn Dunbar) (bl6), D Joel (Inverness).

74 C Scott (Nairn), S Pears (Nairn), J Shaw  (Boat of Garten).

75 R McKerron (Forres), Lewis Reid (Fortrose and Roemarkie).

76 T Ross (Reay).

79 M Bartlett (Strathpeffer), S Forbes (Muir of Ord).

80 G Urquhart (Tain).

81 J Carpenter (Forres)

82 M Wilson (Forres).

NR T Bell (Forres)

No show L Miller (Nairn Dunbar)

 

Left to right: Fraser Fotheringham, Peter Abbott (North District secretary), Jake Scott, Kate Bartlett and Dougie Thorburn. Picture by Robin Wilson