SOUTH OF SCOTLAND GOLFERS’ ASSOCIATION 
MATCH-PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP

Chris Corbett (Dumfries and Galloway) is the new South of Scotland Golfers' Association match-play champion.
He beat Danny McConnachie (Dumfries and County) by one hole in the final at Stranraer Golf Club today.
The semi-finals and final took place on a typical autumnal day with a slight breeze.

Both the morning semi-finals were very tight games with McConnachie beating Martin McNae (Lochmaben) at the 19th and Corbett beating Neil Hamilton (Powfoot) by one hole.

The final was another closely fought and friendly game. Danny got off to the perfect start by winning the first hole after both he and Chris hit wayward drives. Chris won holes 4 and 5 with regulation pars to go one up and held this slim advantage to the turn before a birdie at the tenth increased his lead to two holes.

A par at the short tenth by Danny reduced Chris’s lead to one hole before Chris won 13 and 14, with another birdie, and they halved the short fifteenth for Chris to be three up. 
Danny then produced a spirited and rousing surge, winning 16 and 17 to stand on the eighteenth tee needing a win to take the match into extra time. The hole was halved in par 4s and Chris emerged as the worthy South match-play Champion for 2017.

RESULTS


SEMI-FINALS
Danny McConnachie (Dumfries and County) bt Martin McNae (Lochmaben) at 19th.
Chris Corbett (Dumfries and Galloway) bt Neil Hamilton (Powfoot) 1 hole.

FINAL
Corbett bt Hamilton 1 hole.

The photograph shows, left to right, Jim Burns, past president of Scottish Golf, winner Chris Corbett and runner-up Danny McConnachie 

           Vive La France! Gerrier wins in Ireland,            Wattel in KLM Open

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS Julien Guerrier clinched a second European Challenge Tour win of the season with a dominant six-shot victory at the Irish Challenge hosted by Mount Wolseley Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort, just hours after compatriot Romain Wattel had sealed a maiden European Tour win at the KLM Open. Wattel has significant Challenge Tour history of his own, having won on the tour in 2010 when still an amateur, and he is sure to be joined on the European Tour next year by Guerrier, who remains second on the Road to Oman but has cut Aaron Rai’s lead to around 19,000 points. Guerrier had previously won on home soil at June’s Hauts de France Golf Open but rarely has he been more impressive than in Carlow, where his bogey-free five under par final round of 67 extended his run to 48 holes without dropping a shot. He also credited becoming a father for the first time earlier in the year with his recent run of good form, which he will hope continues at the lucrative Kazakhstan Open next week. “I just heard about Romain’s win,” said the 32 year old. “It’s so great because he’s had a difficult year so I am very happy for him, and for my friend Joël Stalter who tied for third – it’s a great day for French golf with me winning as well. “It was a very good round, very steady. I’m really surprised by how well I managed to play such steady golf – it’s my goal but then to do it this week so well is very pleasing. “The goal was to make birdies and not to make bogeys. I had a steady start and with Oscar unfortunately dropping shots I built a good gap, and then I made a few more birdies, a second bogey-free round in a row, so it’s very good." Playing with Guerrier, Oscar Lengden bounced back from a disappointing start to take a share of second place on 11 under par, with Jarand Ekeland Arnoy securing his career-best result alongside England's Steven Brown, who sealed his fifth top five finish of the season. The leading Irishman was Ruaidhri McGee, whose third successive round of 69 took him to six under par and into a share of 15th place, five shots ahead of Chris Selfridge. This earned the 26-year-old Derry man the Christy O’Connor Junior Memorial Trophy, awarded for the second time following last year’s sad passing of the popular Irish golfing icon who designed the course at Mount Wolseley. Final scores: par 288 (4x72) 271 J Guerrier (Fra) 71 68 65 67 277 S Brown (Eng) 72 68 68 69, O Lengden (Swe) 68 68 69 72, J Arnoy (Norway) 73 68 66 70 279 K Samooja (Finland) 73 68 70 68, M Trappel (Austria) 74 69 67 69, J Dantorp (Swe) 74 68 67 70, C Ford (Eng) 70 74 66 69, O Lindell (Finland) 72 69 71 67 280 N Von Dellingshausen (Ger) 73 70 67 70, B Hellgren (Swe) 75 70 68 67 281 C Braeunig (Ger) 72 70 70 69, M Nixon (Eng) 74 70 68 69, J Van Der Vaart (Netherlands) 73 70 69 69 282 R McGee (Ire) 75 69 69 69, M Baldwin (Eng) 71 72 72 67, R Saxton (Netherlands) 73 68 70 71 283 M Fenasse (Fra) 74 67 73 69, J McLeary (Sco) 77 69 67 70 284 M Madsen (Den) 72 69 72 71, J Sarasti (Spn) 72 70 73 69 285 D Fox (Australia) 74 70 74 67, G Forrest (Sco) 70 73 75 67, T Santos Silva (Portugal) 75 70 69 71, E Cuartero Blanco (Spn) 75 69 71 70 286 D Law (Sco) 70 74 71 71, A Kristiansen (Norway) 73 72 72 69, D Van Driel (Netherlands) 70 74 72 70, C Sordet (Fra) 72 71 71 72 287 N Johansson (Swe) 77 70 74 66, W Enefer (Eng) 74 72 69 72, J Lando Casanova (Fra) 72 68 72 75 288 C Selfridge (Nir) 75 72 71 70, R Kellett (Sco) 75 70 75 68, H Joannes (Belgium) 72 74 73 69, G Schoeb (Fra) 71 73 66 78, B Paolini (USA) 77 69 68 74, O Rozner (Fra) 74 73 73 68, T Perrot (Fra) 74 72 70 72, P Martin Benavides (Spn) 76 70 71 71 289 A Bernadet (Fra) 73 73 68 75, C Sharvin (NIre) 75 68 72 74, B Poke (Denmark) 74 73 72 70 290 M Laskey (Wales) 72 74 74 70, G King (Eng) 73 74 71 72, G Boyd (Eng) 72 72 75 71, J Harrison (Eng) 75 71 72 72 291 L Johnson (Eng) 76 71 74 70, D Carey (Ire) 72 71 76 72, N Lindstrom (Swe) 72 75 69 75 292 P Eriksson (Swe) 75 72 73 72, L Nemecz (Austria) 76 71 72 73, 293 M Ovesen (Denmark) 72 75 69 77, R McCarthy (Australia) 72 75 72 74, M Wolf (Ger) 74 72 72 75, J Vecchi Fossa (Ita) 69 77 71 76 294 H Smart (Eng) 75 71 75 73, A Wennstam (Swe) 76 69 75 74, J Wrisdale (Eng) 74 71 73 76 296 F Maccario (Ita) 71 75 72 78 297 J Makitalo (Fin) 75 72 76 74

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

Senior Foster stages England victory march

Lancashire’s Trevor Foster went on a victory march today to win the English Senior Men’s County Champion of Champions tournament at Woodhall Spa.

Foster was eight under par for 36 holes, after yesterday’s two-under 71 and today’s 67 on the Hotchkin course. He finished eight shots clear of his closest challenger, David Nelson of Cheshire.
He was a man on a mission because his season’s results had seen him fall just short of a place in the England senior team and he wanted to use his last event of the season to show what he could do.
Foster, 57, has already had a remarkable golfing career, including 108 appearances for Lancashire; two men’s county championships and now the senior men’s titleholder. He played all four rounds of The Open in 1988, when his caddy was 14-year-old Ryan Done, now the PGA professional at Heysham and Foster’s coach.
But he’s got that one ambition left, to represent his country. 
“My daughter, Nikki, played in four Home Internationals and she gives me a little nudge, saying I haven’t played for England yet! It would be nice, it would finish my career off. Hopefully next year it will be a dream come true.”
For the time being he has the satisfaction of two great days of golf. “It has given me so much pleasure out there today to hit every fairway and to hit 17 greens in regulation,” he said.
His first round gave him a one-shot lead over Hampshire’s Richard Elmes (Stoneham) with David Nelson (Northenden) and NAPGC/Worcestershire’s Steve Green (Rose Hill) a further stroke back.
But today Foster put his foot down and simply powered away from the field. He was four under on the front nine, then added two more birdies on 13 and 14 before dropping his only stroke of the day on the 17th, where he found a fairway bunker. However, he immediately repaired the damage with a pitch and putt birdie on the last.
“I’ve been fully-focussed, I’ve been 100 per cent satisfied before I hit any shots,” said Foster, who was supported by his caddy and Lancashire team mate, Bill Bromilow.
He also reaped the benefit of a recent lesson with putting guru Mike Kanski, provided by the Lancashire Golf Union. “I’ve struggled with my putting all year, which has cost me,” said Foster. “I’ve got to thank Lancashire because they’ve backed me all the way and asked me to have a lesson on my putting.”
Third place in the championship went to Steve Green on two over, while four players tied on three over: Hertfordshire’s Tyrone Carter (Stevenage), Kent’s Chris Reynolds (Littlestone), Lincolnshire’s Richard Latham (Woodhall Spa) and Surrey’s Keith Waters (West Byfleet).

Click here for full scores
Image copyright Leaderboard Photography

‎ Lyndsey Hewison
‎ Press Officer
‎ England Golf
‎ pr@englandgolf.org
‎ 07590 878349

Frenchman Romain Wattel scores first 

European Tour win in KLM Open 

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

Romain Wattel landed his first European Tour title after a dramatic finish at the KLM Open today.

The Frenchman, who had recorded 25 top-ten finishes in his previous 186 events without tasting victory, was in control for much of the final round but survived a late scare when he missed the green with his approach to the last hole.

He successfully got up and down for par and a closing 69, which gave him a 15 under total.

That was one ahead of fast-finishing Canadian Austin Connelly, with Kiradech Aphibarnrat – Wattel’s main challenger for much of the day - finding water with his second to the 18th and dropping to 12 under with the subsequent double bogey.

Wattel’s victory was all the more remarkable as he had not finished higher than 24th previously this season and came into the week down at 130th in the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex.

Thailand’s Aphibarnrat held a one-shot lead overnight but Wattel swiftly passed him with three birdies from close range in his first six holes.

French rookie Joël Stalter leapfrogged Wattel when he birdied the eighth and his compatriot’s par putt from eight feet lipped out. Stalter’s challenge faded with three bogeys on the back nine but Wattel birdied the tenth and, although he bogeyed the next, a run of pars kept him in contention as others stumbled.

Aphibarnrat briefly led whe he birdied the 14th, but he found water at the next and double bogeyed before suffering the same fate at the last as he attempted to put pressure on Wattel by reaching the green at the par five in two.

The 20 year old Connelly had six birdies in a closing 66 to finish second on 14 under 270 with Stalter, German Sebastian Heisele, English pair Eddie Pepperell and Lee Westwood and South Africans George Coetzee and Justin Walters all tied for third a shot further back.

Lee Westwood said: “I played lovely again today. I might have gone as low as I needed to but this has been a really positive week for me. To be honest this is the best I have played for a couple of years in terms of ball-striking and control so I am delighted with what is my best results of the year. There are a lot of positives to take from that and now I can really look forward to playing in and hosting the British Masters.”

FINAL TOTALS

par 284 (4x71)
269 R Wattel  (Fra) 69 67 64 69

270 A Connelly (Canada) 71 67 66 66

271 L Westwood (Eng) 70 65 67 69, J Walters (SAf) 72 67 65 67, E Pepperell (Eng) 69 68 69 65, S Heisele (Ger) 66 68 68 69, G Coetzee (SAf) 69 67 68 67, J Stalter (Fra) 65 67 69 70,

272 B Wiesberger  (Austria) 66 69 71 66, C Wood  (Eng) 70 69 68 65, M Wallace (Eng) 68 68 69 67, K Aphibarnrat (Thailand) 68 65 66 73, J Lagergren (Swe) 67 65 70 70,

273 P Dunne (Ire) 74 68 65 66, C Pigem  (Spn) 72 67 68 66,

274 J Lima  (Portugal) 70 68 69 67

275 R Finch  (Eng) 66 67 72 70, C Berardo (Fra) 69 72 67 67, M Manassero (Ita) 68 68 68 71

276 J Scrivener (Australia) 70 68 70 68, D Stewart (Sco) 71 68 70 67, A Björk (Swe) 73 65 73 65, W Besseling  (Netherlands) 70 69 70 67, T Sinnott (Australia) 68 73 68 67,

277 R Ramsay  (Sco) 70 72 68 67, W Ormsby (Australia) 74 68 66 69, M Ilonen  (Finland) 69 70 68 70, C Hanson (Eng) 68 71 68 70, M Kieffer (Ger) 69 69 72 67, O Fisher  (Eng) 72 68 70 67

278 R Dinwiddie  (Eng) 69 69 73 67, S Manley (Wales) 71 68 68 71, W Ashun (China) 67 68 71 72, R Fisher (Eng) 73 68 68 69, D Frittelli (SAf) 70 69 69 70, B Evans  (Eng) 72 69 67 70, M Carlsson  (Swe) 72 68 67 71

279 D Horsey (Eng) 76 66 68 69, P Hanson (Swe) 70 69 68 72, J Carlsson (Swe) 75 67 67 70, M Pavon (Fra) 68 69 70 72, D Perrier (Fra) 69 70 69 71, T Detry  (Belgium) 75 66 68 70, F Zanotti (Paraguay) 70 70 67 72, D Huizing (Netherlands) 69 71 72 67, M Korhonen (Finland) 67 71 70 71, P Angles  (Spn) 68 70 73 68

280 J Campillo (Spn) 76 66 73 65, J Ahlers (SAf) 72 69 73 66, M Albertus (Netherlands) 69 70 73 68, D Brooks (Eng) 69 71 69 71, F Fritsch  (Ger) 71 70 68 71, D Burmester (SAf) 77 65 68 70, A Otaegui  (Esp) 71 71 70 68,

281 A Wall (Eng) 70 69 74 68, J Suri (USA) 70 68 71 72, P Widegren  (Swe) 68 72 69 72, P Harrington (Ire) 72 70 70 69,

282 M Warren (Sco) 69 67 73 73,

283 R Fox (NZ) 71 71 71 70, A Chesters  (Eng) 70 70 73 70,

284 G Storm  (Eng) 70 72 72 70, A Cañizares  (Spn) 72 70 71 71, R Bland (Eng) 71 67 70 76,

285 S Brazel (Australia) 73 67 74 71, J Fahrbring (Swe) 69 73 70 73,

286 J Edfors (Swe) 68 74 72 72, P Maddy (Eng) 69 69 75 73,

288 N Fasth (Swe) 69 72 73 74,

289 R Miller (Netherlands) 73 69 72 75, S Gros (Fra) 75 66 74 74,

 Moray 1's home victory over Murcar Links in Northern Counties Cup Final

   Moray's winning line-up (left to right): Stuart Tatters, Kyle Godsman, Malcolm MacLeman and Graham Murray. Picture by Gary Abel

By GARY ABEL

Moray 1's team of Stuart Tatters, Kyle Godsman, Malcolm MacLeman and Graham Murray achieved a convincing eight-hole victory over Murcar Links  in the final of the Northern Counties Cup at the Moray Golf Club links at Lossiemouth today.
Moray last won the double foursomes match-play tournament  on their home course in 2005 while Murcar Links' last triumph was at  the Lossiemouth links  in 1999 when their team was Bryan Innes, Ronnie Duncan, Alan Reith and Andrew Campbell. 
Moray’s last winning line-up was John Matheson, Ian Geddes, Gary Thomson and Kevin Thomson. This is the 106th final since the first competition in 1900.

Local knowledge played a big part in Moray's win over the past three days but, in the final, Malcom MacLeman and Stuart Tatters were four under par after 15 holes and five up. At the 450 yard 14^th hole Anthony Bews of Murcar Links holed his second shot to bring their deficit back to three holes but with Moray’s first string being five up at the 15^th the game was all over.

Murcar Links were represented by Adrian Styles, Bryan Innes, Anthony Bews and Ian Galbraith.

SUNDAY RESULTS

 SEMI-FINALS

Murcar Links bt Turriff by 13 holes

A Styles, B Innes 8, J. Dalgarno, N Smith 0; A Bews, I Galbraith 5, A Ogg A Purdie 0.

Moray 1 bt Inverness by 6 holes

M L MacLeman, S Tatters 6, J Forbes, K Mackay 0; K Godsman, G Murray 0, D Joel, B Thomson 0.

FINAL 

Moray 1 bt Murcar Links by 8 holes

MacLeman, Tatters 5, Styles, Innes 0; Godsman, Murray 3, Bews, Galbraith 0

 Renfrewshire are county champions after 

 countback against Midlothian

Renfrewshire are the 2017 Scottish women's county champions. They finished level on the 5pt mark (2 wins, 1 draw) with Midlothian after the three-day finals programme at Glenbervie Golf Club today (Sunday). 
Earlier in the week the teams drew 4.5 in the match against each other. 
It boiled down to individual games won over the three days and Renfrewshire (16-11) had the edge over Midlothian (14-5) in that respect.
Renfrewshire won their last match 6-3 against the defending champions Dumfries-shire, taking the foursomes 2-1 and the singles 4-2.
Midlothian beat Perth and Kinross 5-4 today.
Midlothian won the foursomes 2-1 and the singles were shared 3-3.
Renfrewshire achieved only their 10^th win overall and their first since 2010 at Bothwell Castle

Megan Briggs is MVP with five wins and
sister Elaine wins four out of four!

Renfrewshire's Megan Briggs, pictured, was the MVP of the tournament with 5 wins from six outings. Sister Eilidh won all four of her matches and Carol Whyte also scored four wins out of six for champions Renfrewshire.
Eilidh  Briggs commented: “I couldn’t get a day off work on Friday, I’ve just started a new job as a PE teacher, but the team did well without me! I was 100 per cent over the weekend which was great, as I’ve not played for the county since 2014, so it was really good to come back and contribute. I was in the winning 2010 team as well, which was a duel with Midlothian too."
Midlothian had two players with four wins apiece - Gabrielle MacDonald and girls' champion 13-year-old Hannah Darling.

SUNDAY RESULTS                           

RENFREWSHIRE 6, DUMFRIESSHIRE 3
FOURSOMES (2-1)
C Whyte and M Briggs lost to E Greenlees and G Batty 5 and 4.
G Kyle and E Briggs bt D MacDonald and M Fraser 1 hole.
J Rankine and D Jackson bt C Lee and J Graham 1 hole.
SINGLES (4-2)
M Briggs bt MacDonald 2 and 1.
E Briggs bt Greenlees 4 and 3.
Rankine lost to Lee 3 and2.
Kyle btn Fraser 2 holes.
Jackson bt Graham 2 holes.
Whyte lost to Batty 2 holes.

MIDLOTHIAN 5, PERTH and KINROSS 4
FOURSOMES (2-1)
K Marshall and H Darling bt J Saxton and E Ogilvy 4 and 3.
L Fraser and R Livingstone bt L Walker and K Alexander 6 and 4.
K Ferguson-Snedden lost to I Moncrieff and K Brodie 4 and 3.
SINGLES (3-3)
Fraser bt L Campbell 3 and 2.
G MacDonald bt M Ashley 3 and 2.
Marshall lost to Brodie 2 and 1.
Ferguson-Snedden bt Moncrieff 4 and 3.
A McBride lost to Ogilvy 4 and 3.
Darling lost to  Saxton 3 and 2

FINAL TABLE
                             P  W   D   L   F        A    Pts
1 Renfrewshire    3    2    1   0   16      11     5
2 Midlothian        3    2    1   0   14.5   12.5  5
3 Perth and Kinross
                             3    0    1   2   12      15     1
4 Dumfriesshire   3    0     1  2    11.5   15.5  l

Perth and Kinross boys pip North, North-east at Tain but Kemnay player is individual No 1

Perth and Kinross (542) scored a narrow win over North (544) and North-east (545) in an inter-district invitational boys' tournament at Tain Golf Club today.
Perth's top scorer was Andrew Thornton (Muckhart) with a 70.
Steven Pears (Nairn) had the lowest score of 71 in the North team while Cameron Carnegie (Kemnay) was North-east's top scorer with a 70.
In the individual prizelist (CSS 72), Carnegie was placed first with a better inward half than Thornton. Pears finished third and Cameron Black (Royal Aberdeen) fourth with a 74.

HOW THEY FINISHED
CSS 72
1st PERTH and KINROSS 542

Fraser Mathews (Blairgowrie) 83
Harry Clark (Auchterader)      80
Gregor Graham (Blairgowrie) 77
Andrew Thornton (Muckart)   70
Alex Simpson (Strathmore)     78
Cormac Sharpe (Blairgowrie)   77
Rowan Carey (Auchterader)    77
Findlay Hamilton (Muckart)   84
                             Sub Total 626
         less highest score           84

                            Team Total 542

 2nd     NORTH  DISTRICT 544

Angus Davidson (Nairn Dunbar) 78
Steven Pears (Nairn)                 71
Calum Daun (Inverness)             75
Euan Innes (Nairn Dunbar)        78
Fraser Owenson (Nairn)             80
Jake Williamson
(Fortrose and Rosemarkie)        81
Ben Patience
        (Fortrose and Rosemarkie) 83
Finlay Wickenden (Nairn)       81
                         Sub Total      627
            Less highest score  83
Team Total 544

3rd NORTH EAST 545

 Jack Pirie (Hazlehead)                   79
 Calvin Duffton (Aboyne)               77
 Cameron Black (Royal Aberdeen) 74 
Jonathan Bell (Royal Aberdeen)     77 
Cameron Carnegie (Kemnay)          70 
Cameron Gray (Cruden Bay)           94 
Brad Murray (Inverallochy)             87 
Liam Strath (Hazlehead)                  81 
                                      Sub Total 639
                  Less highest score          94 
                                     Team Total 545

  

Richardson’s final-hole birdie is just champion

Lincolnshire’s Simon Richardson pulled off an astonishing final-hole birdie to shoot four under par 69 and win the English Men’s County Champion of Champions tournament by a stroke.

The championship, on the Hotchkin course at Woodhall Spa, was reduced to 18 holes after fog delayed the start of play by three hours.
But the slow start was forgotten in a dramatic finish. BB&O’s Tim Shin had set the clubhouse target on three-under par, shortly before Richardson reached the last tee on the same mark.
Something special was called for, but the Spalding player’s drive finished on the edge of the left hand fairway bunker and his second shot clipped a tree and swerved left on to the first fairway. However, from there he got up and down from 149 yards, holing out from about 5ft.
“I just had the feeling that I probably needed to hole that putt,” said Richardson.
But the drama wasn’t over. Nottinghamshire’s Martin Foulkes was also three-under playing the last and his birdie putt to force a play-off just shaved the hole – and Richardson took the title.
He has been county champion four times in the last five years, but this was his third attempt at this title and he won in perfect style, with a bogey-free round.
“To win it in my home county, representing my county, with county President Les Toyne as my caddy, is great,” said Richardson. “It means so much that I could get over the line.”
He had to be patient to get his score. “I hit it inside 15ft on the first five holes and I was level par,” he said. “My first birdie was on the seventh, where I finally holed from 15ft.”
Another birdie followed on the ninth where his wedge approach finished six inches from the hole and he got to three-under when he rolled in another 15ft putt on the 15th. Then it was time for his magical finish.
Richardson is the full time manager of an estate agent’s office and takes holiday to play his golf, maintaining a handicap of plus-four and taking fourth place in both the Lytham and Westwood Trophies this season.

Shin, from Castle Royle, and Foulkes, from Worksop, were disappointed but philosophical. “It is what it is,” said Shin, who has also had a successful season and is county champion for the first time. “I’m gutted not to have won but delighted with the way I played the course,” said Foulkes, a past winner of the English open mid-amateur championship.

 

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Image copyright Leaderboard Photography

 

 

 

‎ Lyndsey Hewison
‎ Press Officer
‎ England Golf
‎ pr@englandgolf.org
‎ 07590 878349

MARK THOMSON WINS N E DISTRICT

 

CHAMPIONS' TITLE

 

Kintore scratch player Mark Thomson beat Clark Brechin (Portlethen), who has a +1 rating, by one hole in a closely contested North-east District Champion of Champions final at Deeside Golf Club today (Sunday).

The handicap final was won by Calum May, who plays off eight at Insch. He won by 5 and 4 against Hazlehead nine-handicapper, Michael Angus.

Higson holds on to win Sandy Pipey Young Masters at Royal Dornoch

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Thomas Higson (Gleneagles Hotel) made almost all the running over two days to win the Sandy Pipey Young Masters with scores of 68 and 70 for a two-under-par total of 138 over Royal Dornoch's classic links.
Higson won the £1,422 first prize by one stroke from Alastair Forsyth (Mearns Castle) (70-69) and Fraser McKenna (Caldwell) (69-70) who earned £975 apiece for their joint second finish.
Overnight leader Higson wobbled a bit on the outward half of his final round with back-to-back bogeys at the sixth and seventh but he raised his game to hold off Forsyth and McKenna by coming home in two-under-par 33, highlighted by birdies at the long 12th and 18th.
Forsyth had a birdie at the long ninth in the middle of 17 par figures while McKenna's birdies at the 10th and 12th were sandwiched between bogeys at the severnth and 13tyh.
Steven O'Hara (North Lanarkshire Leisure), who tied with Calum Nairn for fourth place on 140, had an eagle 3 at the long 12th and birdies at the 14th and 15th for an inward half of 31 but earlier bogeys at the fourth and seventh had left him with too much ground to make up, even with a 68.
Nairn had a double bogey 6 at the first hole and birdies at the fourth, 12th and 14th could not close the gap.

FINAL TOTALS AND PRIZEMONEY
Royal Dornoch par 140 (2x70)
138 T Higson (Gleneagles) 68 70 (£1,422).
139 A Forsyth (Mearns Castle) 70 69, F McKenna (Caldwell) (£975 each).
140 S O'Hara (North Lanarkshire Leisure) 72 68, C Nairn (Kilmarnock Barassie) 70 70 (£533 each).
141 S Binning (Mearns Castle) 69 72 (£381).
142 K Nicol (Dunes) 71 71, G Forbes (Mar Hall) 74 68 (£342 each).
143 R Munro (Duddingston) 72 71, M Owenson (Gullane) 72 71, R Clarke (Golf Dedication Centre) 71 72 (£299 each).
146 C Curran (Bathgate) 77 69, S Grant (Scotscraig) 74 72, M O'Donnell (Linlithgow) 73 73, R Tinker (Piperdam) 73 73 (£259 each).
147 H Burness (Paul Lawrie Golf Centre) 73 74, K Zeynalov (Portlethen) 73 74 (£228 each).
149 S Burgess) (Nairn) 78 71, J J Fraser (Prestwick) 77 72, D Flannery (Renaissance) 75 74 (£203 each).
151 S Griffiths (Dunes) 78 73, R McKen (Trump International) 74 77 (£185 each).
152 D Stein (Ranfurly Castle) 80 72, S Craigon (Balbirnie Park) 77 75, E Bowden (North Berwick) 76 76, F Robertson (Kingsbarns) 76 76 (£170 each).
153 J Bell (Lanark) 75 78 (£157).
154 G McDougall (Elie Links) 81 73, S Milne (Balbirnie Park) 81 73, S Speirs (Swanston New) 76 78, Jennifer Potter (Loch Lomond) 76 78 (£110 each).
155 R Black (Inverness) 79 76,C West (Scotscraig) 81 74,D Ramsay (Moray) 78 77, R Delaney (unatt) 78 77, O Robertson (Panmure) 76 79.
156 S Gillies (North Berwick) 76 80.
157 A O'Donnell (Largs) 81 76, D Grindell (Inverness) 77 80.
159 A Hutchison (Douglas Park) 81 78, J Lamb (Royal Burgess) 81 78, F Pomfrey (Trump Turnberry) 79 80, C Steel (Trump Turnberry) 77 82.
160 S Rose (Kingsbarns) 81 79, J Treasurer (Loch Ness) 80 80, D McBratney (Carnwath) 80 80, G Foley (Royal Troon) 79 81.
161 E Campbell (Paisley) 82 79, J Ferrie (Royal Dornoch) 81 80.
163 Hannah Robb (Elie Links) 83 80.
164 C Robinson (unatt) 83 81.
165 A Todd (Panmure) 79 86
166 J Allan (Peebles) 81 85
167 C Allison (Glenbervie) 90 77
171 S Wilson (unatt) 89 82.

MacKenzie's Men win final-day singles 7.5-2.5 to retain PGA Cup with 16-10 victory

  Great Britain and Ireland, captained by Albert MacKenzie from Hopeman, have retained the PGA Cup.
They chalked up a convincing win by a 16-10 margin by overpowering the United States team of PGA pros 7.5-2.5 in the final set of 10 singles at Foxhills Resort Surrey today.

RESULTS
Damien McGrane (Ireland) bt Mark Brown (USA) 3 and 2.
Robert Coles (England) bt Josh Speight (USA) 1 hole.
Chris Currie (Scotland) halved with Rod Perry (USA).
Matthew Cort (England) bt Jamie Broce (USA) 2 and 1.
Andrew Raitt (England) bt Dave McNabb (USA) 3 and 2.

Christopher McDonnell (England) lost to Rich Berberian (USA) 4 and 3.
Greig Hutcheon (Scotland) halved with Paul Claxton (USA)
Garry Houston (Wales) halved with Omar Uresti (USA).
Philip Archer (England) bt Matt Dobyns 1 hole.
David Higgins (Ireland) bt Adam Rainaud 3 and 2

Team effort delivers PGA Cup triumph for Great Britain and Ireland

PGA News Release By ADRIAN MILLEDGE

It would have come as no surprise had the brass band that serenaded the victorious Great Britain and Ireland team during the PGA Cup’s closing ceremony blasted out a few bars of Scotland the Brave. In defeating the USA 16-10 to register back-to-back victories for the first time since 1984, a trio of Scots played influential roles at Foxhills Resort, Surrey. Greig Hutcheon, an Aberdonian, holed the match-winning putt after Glasgow’s Chris Currie had staged a stirring recovery to halve the match that retained the trophy.  Masterminding the triumph, meanwhile, and pulling the string behind the scenes was Albert MacKenzie, another son of the North-east of Scotland, Hopeman in Morayshire to be precise. Inevitably, MacKenzie made it clear the success was not solely down to his compatriots. “It was all about being a team effort, there was no individual glory here,” he insisted. And he was right. Every member of his 10-strong team, vice-captains Cameron Clark and Martyn Thompson and numerous backstage staff, played their parts in what turned out to be a comprehensive victory. That appeared an unlikely scenario after the USA won Saturday’s foursomes 3 and 1 to go into the singles a point adrift of their hosts. A close contest looked in the offing, especially as it has ‘previous’ in that respect. The match at Slaley Hall in England four years ago ended all square and its successor in 2015 at CordeValle, California, resulted in Great Britain and Ireland prevailing by a point. It was the first time Great Britain and Ireland had won on American soil and, at last, the Llandudno Trophy accompanied the visitors home. The trophy, which is presented to the winners of the biennial competition, boasts a rich and curious history. As well as bearing the name of a Welsh seaside town, the silver pot sustained a dent in its lid when dislodged from its perch in rural Dorset by earth tremors caused by an errant bomb dropped by the Germans during World War II. Fast forward three-quarters of a century or so and it was the Americans who were left reeling after Great Britain and Ireland reprised the 7.5–2.5 singles victory they registered at Slaley Hall. With the benefit of hindsight, the Americans’ first tee shot executed by Mark Brown was a portent of things to come. Despite taking an iron for accuracy, Brown’s ball arced its way west towards the driving range. To put the Americans’ demise down to poor play, however, does them and their opponents a disservice. Robert Coles, Matthew Cort, Andrew Raitt, Phillip Archer, Greig Hutcheon and David Higgins all won their matches, as did Damien McGrane after trailing Brown by two holes. The comeback kid, however, proved to be Currie. Three down at the turn, Currie went up the 18th a hole to the good after halving the 17th. His hopes of taking his tally to four wins, a defeat and winning the contest for the hosts were thwarted when his approach felled Coles’ caddy and his par was eclipsed by Rod Perry’s birdie. Reflecting on his match, Currie said: “Rod’s such a consistent player. He hits the ball very straight, he’s a good iron player and chips and putts great. He was one of the people I thought I could do with avoiding in the singles! “I was three-down at the turn but got a couple of birdies and managed to put him under pressure coming down the stretch. He made a great birdie on the last to halve the match, which I thought was the right result. It was certainly a game of two halves and I’ll take that. It was another half point to where we had to be.”  That meant it fell to Hutcheon on the 17th to claim the half point needed for victory and deliver the coup de grace match-wise. Describing how it unfolded, Hutcheon said: “I hit a great second shot in – one of the best I’ve hit all week but it went too long and I’ve left myself the tricky chip.   “I managed to knock it down. But I’m glad no-one told me the putt was for the official victory because I might have missed it! “I managed to roll it in. It is absolutely brilliant. At my age, I’m never going to get in a Ryder Cup team, so it’s absolutely the next best thing. “As for Albert – he’s been fantastic. He has done all sorts this week. There have been messages, joke presents, team talks. He has been a great captain. It’s a great honour for me coming from the same neck of the woods – we’re both Aberdeen fans. To hole the putt that won the Cup is great. “It has got to be right up there with the best. I had a feeling when I saw I was playing seven that it could come down to me. “But I have been playing with an injury this year. I had left hip problems and you put your body through a lot when you are pounding balls. So I haven’t been playing well.  “Golf is an easy game when it is going well but when it goes bad it is so difficult. I found it hard this week. Albert rested me a couple of times and that was probably just as well – so I could get that half point.” In doing so, Hutcheon ensured that, as well as winning the match, the cream of Great Britain and Ireland’s PGA Professionals succeeded where others have failed. While the Ryder, Solheim and Walker Cups remain in American hands, the Llandudno Trophy stays at home.

Thomas Higson (Gleneagles) wins Sandy Pipey Young Masters at Royal Dornoch

FINAL TOTALS will be updated shortly
par 140 (2x70)
140 S O'Hara (North Lanarkshire Leisure) 72 68
142 G Forbes (Mar Hall) 74 68.
143 R Munro (Duddingston) 72 71, M Owenson (Gullane) 72 71, R Clarke (Golf Dedication Centre) 71 72
146 C Curran (Bathgate) 77 69, S Grant (Scotscraig) 74 72, M O'Donnell (Linlithgow) 73 73, R Tinker (Piperdam) 73 73
147 H Burness (Paul Lawrie Golf Centre) 73 74, K Zeynalov (Portlethen) 73 74.
149 S A Burgess (Nairn) 78 71, J J Fraser (Prestwick) 77 72,  D Flannery (Renaissance Club) 75 74.
151 S Griffiths (Dunes) 78 73, R McKen (Trump International) 74 677.

Moray 1 v Murcar Links Northern Counties 

Cup Final at Lossiemouth

By GARY ABEL

It's a Murcar Links v Moray 1 Final to the Northern Counties Cup tournament over the Moray Golf Club links at Lossiemouth.

This morning Murcar Links were too strong for Turriff with their first pair winning by eight holes and the second string by five. Meanwhile, Moray 1's first pairing of Malcolm MacLeman and Stuart Tatters played really well to beat Kieran MacKay and John Forbes of Inverness, by six holes,  with the second pairing ending up all square.

 RESULTS:

Semi-finals

Murcar Links bt Turriff by 13 holes

A Styles, B Innes 8, J. Dalgarno, N Smith 0; A Bews, I Galbraith 5, A Ogg A Purdie 0.

Moray 1 bt Inverness by 6 holes

M L MacLeman, S Tatters 6, J Forbes, K Mackay 0; K Godsman, G Murray 0, D Joel, B Thomson 0.