Royal Dornoch's new seventh hole will be open for play during 2021 season

NEWS RELEASE

The final part of a series of major improvements to historic Royal Dornoch Golf Club’s Championship Course has got underway.

Work is ongoing at the seventh hole and will continue in three phases over the next four winters, with the new hole opening for play during the 2021 season.

The changes are part of Royal Dornoch’s long-term strategy to continually seek to improve the world-renowned course, which earlier this month was ranked 2nd best in the world in the latest Golf Digest list.

The club’s own greenkeeping team is carrying out the work and follows recommendations by leading course architects Mackenzie and Ebert who were engaged to review The Championship Course and its adjacent Struie Course.

Last year the club completed changes to the fifth, 10th, 11th and 12th holes as part of the strategy.

The greenkeeping team will create a new green at the 479yd Par 4 seventh hole, about 40 yards to the right of the existing one, with the current tees staying where they are, so essentially the hole will pivot to the right from the tee.

There will also be new tees for the 8th hole, located where the current 7th green is. This will make the tee shot at the 8th more like the original intention, in that golfers will play their second shot from the top of the hill.

Neil Hampton, Royal Dornoch’s general manager, said: “The work at the 7^th hole will be the last major change of the recommendations made by Mackenzie and Ebert and it will be the biggest of them all.

“With such a big expanse of gorse bushes to the right of the current hole, we have been able to leave a ribbon of bushes next to the current fairway which acts as a barrier to the works so play continues without the golfers knowing what is happening. The final phase will see these bushes taken away and the new hole revealed.

“The overall effect will be to give stunning views of the golf course along the complete length of the hole, whereas these views are only available from the 7th tee at the moment.

“The stroke index will remain the same, as will the green complex. We all realise that the shaping of the current green in a major part of how the hole plays, so this will be replicated in the new green.

“The work is being done in-house by our own greenkeeping team as they have shown their skill and ability with the previous works and it was easy for the club to let them carry out this project.”

The recent Golf Digest rankings placed the Championship Course higher in its Top 100 world rankings than other top Scottish courses including Muirfield and the Old Course at St Andrews – both venues for The Open championship – and Trump Turnberry.

Royal Dornoch’s commitment to its community and natural environment also recently earned the club a coveted global sustainability accolade.

It was awarded the GEO Certified® ecolabel, an international symbol of ‘great golf environments’. This recognises clubs that have met high standards for performance in nature conservation, water and energy efficiency, ethical and environmental supply chain, pollution control and community engagement

Shacklady looks for Qualifying School redemption

image of David Shacklady and John Kemp by courtesy of Getty Images  NewsRelease England’s David Shacklady took the 36-hole lead at Staysure Tour Qualifying School Final Stage after carding a two under par second round of 69 to move to four under par at Pestana Golf Resort on Portugal's Algarve coastline. The 50-year-old, making his second Qualifying School appearance, missed out on one of the five coveted cards in 2017 after a three-man play-off, but has returned to Portugal in a bid to secure playing rights on the Staysure Tour in 2018. Shacklady started his round from the tenth hole, and made consecutive birdies on the 15th and 16th holes, cancelling out an earlier bogey. After starting the day two under par, he reached a total of five under par after further gains on the second and third holes, but undid his hard work with a bogey and double bogey on the fourth and fifth holes. Shacklady recovered strongly and birdied the final two holes for a four under par total, two strokes ahead of compatriot Paul Streeter and Argentina’s Mauricio Molina. “I’m very pleased that I showed some bottle out there,” said Shacklady. “On the fifth hole I found the bottom ridge of the green, lipped out for two and then missed the next two putts. I had to have a word with myself after that and calm myself down. “I said to my wife last night that everyone is going to have moments on this golf course, I just hope that was mine. It’s very easy to become negative. You have to commit to everything out there, but it’s easier said than done. It’s mentally gruelling. When it’s fiery, fast and windy out there, it’s no fun. “I’m just pleased I didn’t lose it towards the end, it can drown you when you have moments like that. I refocused and started again. I’d have been pleased finishing level par today, but to come in with two birdies is great. “It’s nice having the cushion at the top of the leaderboard, but I was in the same scenario last week at First Stage. I was coasting and only finished second. You have to play this like it’s a tournament and try to win it.” Making up the top five are English amateur John Kemp and Gary Wolstenholme, a six-time Walker Cup player and two-time Staysure Tour winner, on level par. Kemp, a member of Woburn Golf Club, host course of the Travis Perkins Masters, carded one of the lowest rounds of the day, a four under par 67. “It is very hard to judge how you are as a player when you go up against the pros,” said Kemp. “At First Stage, I didn’t play very well on my first nine holes, but I played the next 27 in six under par – which was good golf for me. “I now know I can compete at this level. I played well in patches and had a couple of breaks to get me back up the leaderboard. I played with a bit more freedom today, I did hit some bad shots in the middle of my round but I knuckled down in the end.” Players within eight shots of fifth place will make it through to Thursday’s final round on the Vale da Pinta Course at Pestana Golf Resort, with the top five earning cards for the 2018 Staysure Tour season. Scores after round two: par 142 (2x71) 138 D Shacklady (Eng) 69 69 140 P Streeter (Eng) 70 70, M Molina (Arg) 70 70 142 G Wolstenholme (Eng) 72 70, J Kemp (Eng) (am) 75 67 143 S Skinner (USA) 74 69, P Parker (USA) 74 69, J Buendia (Spn) 70 73 144 M Hallberg (Swe) 67 77, P Wilson (Eng) 73 71, A Franco (Paraguay) 75 69, M Booth (Eng) 68 76 145 V Casado (Spn) 72 73, S McNally (Eng) 74 71 146 M Wharton (Eng) 72 74, G Joyner (Australia) 74 72, J Quiros (Spn) 73 73, J Romero (Spn) 75 71, J Carriles (Spn) 75 71, D Wettlaufer (Canada) 75 71, S Brown (Eng) 74 72, N Cheetham (Eng) 72 74, R Gomez (Arg) 80 66 147 A Sherborne (Eng) 75 72, G Ryall (Eng) 73 74, T Dodds (Namibia) 76 71, M Bianco (Ita) 72 75 148 N Sweet (Eng) 73 75, J Carro (Spn) 75 73, J Riegger (USA) 79 69, J Cheetham (Eng) 74 74, J Hall (Eng) 75 73, G Rusnak (USA) 75 73 149 C Monasterio (Arg) 76 73, P Scott (Eng) 76 73, M Green (SAf) 75 74, S Little (Eng) 76 73 150 W Grant (Eng) 78 72, C Suneson (Spn) 74 76, T Spence (Eng) 75 75, J Steenkamer (Netherlands) 78 72, F Almskoug (Swe) 75 75, S Bennett (Eng) 75 75, B Conser (USA) 77 73, M Ashworth (Eng) (am) 78 72 151 S Cipa (Eng) 79 72, P Linhart (Spn) 78 73, J Bolger (Ireland) 75 76, C Swart (SAf) 78 73, J Robinson (Eng) 76 75, 152 R Gonzalez (Arg) 80 72, I Feliu (Spn) 76 76, R Sabarros (Fra) 78 74, M Dornell (Swe)(am) 78 74 153 J Laforce (Canada) 77 76, A Saddington (Sco) 78 75, M Davis (Eng) 79 74, J Sallat (Fra) 79 74 154 W Botes (RSA) 82 72, S Mondshine (USA) 71 83, S McAllister (Sco) 77 77, 155 D Hospital (Esp) 78 77, 156 M Stimson (Wal) 79 77, N Mitchell (Eng) 77 79, 157 D Westermark (Swe) 82 75, G Emerson (Eng) 85 72, K Tarling (Can) 80 77, 158 M Forrest (Can) 78 80, 159 S Wilkinson (Wal) 78 81, C Acutis (Ita) 80 79, A Wiltshire (am) (Eng) 77 82, 160 M Gallagher (Eng) 79 81, 161 J Murphy (Eng) 82 79, P Gresswell (Eng) 84 77, 162 P Martin (Eng) 83 79, ** M Buchter (Sui) WD 0

North-east Alliance tee times for Peterhead tomorrow

Mats will be required to be used on fairways.

Game

No.          Start Time Tee

1          08:25    1 Grant Leslie, Tom Boyle, Charlie Cassie, Brian Harper

2          08:34    1 Doug Booth, Richard Blackmore, Raymond Reid, Andrew Campbell

3          08:43    1 David Templeton, Peter Robertson, Stewart Kidd, Manson Merchant

4          08:52    1 Ritchie Davidson, Stewart Allison, Stewart Finnie, Ross McNeill

5          09:01    1 Mike Brown, Raymond Brown, Sandy Davidson, Phil Morrison

6          09:10    1 Ian Esslemont, Richard Wright, Peter Cheyne, Martin Forster

8          09:28    1 Joel Hopwood, Nick Macandrew, Keil Beveridge, Jordan Calder

9          09:37    1 Ben Lumsden, Jackie Forrest, Norman Stewart, Scott Melvin

10        09:46    1 Kevin Bedborough, Jim Scott, Brian Ritchie, John Duff

11        09:55    1 Gary Leslie, Donald Lawrie, Steve Shand, Steve Christie

12        10:04    1 Derek Craigie, Donny Adam, Graeme Riley, Ewan Riley

13        10:13    1 Gary Homer, David Leslie, Jim Stewart, Graham McLaggan

14        10:22    1 Willie Skene, Alistair B Clark, Richard Ruddiman, Robbie Duncan

15        10:31    1 David Fleming, Alan Gall,  Mike Duncan 

16        10:40    1 Phil McLean,  Chris Gilbert, Kris Nicol, Gordon Munro

17        10:49    1 Richard Denning, Mike Smith, Nigel Parker 

18        10:58    1 Murray Patterson, Chris Robb, Kevin Duncan

19        11:07    1 Colin Duffus, Derek Townsley, Mike Rogers, Leslie Roger

20        11:16    1 Mark Lawrie, Tommy Collie, Dave McLean, Glen Cochrane

21        11:25    1 Patrick McKenna, Kamran Zeynalov, Sam Kiloh, Ben Murray

22        11:34    1 Peter Low, John Borthwick, Ian Still, John Sunley

23        11:43    1 Paul Cornfield, Graham Allan, John Nicolson, Steve Lawrie

24        11:52    1 Ross Sinclair, Sean Lawrie, Craig Lawrie

Milnathort relishing chance to host new

R and A  nine-hole Championship Final

NEWS RELEASE

Perth and Kinross  venue Milnathort Golf Club is looking forward to shining on the national stage when it hosts the final of the inaugural Scottish Golf R and A 9-Hole Championship this summer.

An exciting new free-to-enter event on the domestic calendar, it offers club members a dream opportunity to play at Carnoustie on the eve of July’s Open Championship.

As Scottish Golf continues to encourage shorter formats of the game, each affiliated club is invited to host a 9-hole qualifying event during the early part of the season, with the winning pair from each club earning their place at Milnathort on Friday 15 June.

The event forms part of the qualifying process to find Scotland’s finalists for The R and A’s 9-Hole Championship, where winning pairs from the four Home Nations will savour the chance of a lifetime to tee up at Carnoustie just days before The Open commences.

Kenny Duncan, the Captain at Milnathort, is excited for all connected with the easily accessible, beautiful 9-hole venue near Kinross as they prepare to welcome golfers from all over the country. Indeed, in excess of 50 clubs have already registered to host a qualifier over the first few weeks since the event was announced.

He said: “It’s a great honour for the club and we are really looking forward to the event in June. It’s a terrific feather in the cap for Milnathort and we’re all over the moon.

“We have seen our membership push for more and more 9-hole competitions, as 18 holes can be too time-consuming for a lot of people nowadays, or too tiring for older players. Nine-hole medals are proving very popular for us.”

Duncan says golfers are in for a treat at Milnathort and he continued: “People have a misconception sometimes about 9-hole courses, that they are maybe inferior due to a lack of variety. But Milnathort has a variety of different tees and greens, so it doesn’t just feel like you are playing a 9-hole course.

“Overall, our course offers the perfect mix of challenge and forgiveness for golfers of all ages and abilities. It may be a little shorter than other courses, but it’s tighter, so you have to be careful with club selection.”

Part of the national member benefits package, the Championship is open to golfers of all ages and abilities who are members of clubs possessing a designated 9-hole Standard Scratch Score (SSS). Each affiliated club meeting the criteria – of which there are almost 300 nationwide – is invited to host a 9-hole stableford qualifying event before the end of May.

Eleanor Cannon, Executive Chair of Scottish Golf, welcomed the new event and said: “Scotland has 158 nine-hole courses, while many others have a 9-hole Standard Scratch Score. The new Championship gives us a fantastic platform to showcase what the country has to offer.

“We are keen to encourage the shorter format of the game to give those with time constraints more opportunities to play competitive golf. It’s great to see more and more clubs embrace this and we look forward to welcoming golfers of all ages and abilities to our newest national championship. There is no better incentive than the chance to play in front of the stands at The Open.”

Scotland’s top four pairings from the Milnathort final will join qualifiers from England, Ireland and Wales in front of the iconic stands at Carnoustie on Saturday 14 July.

Entries are now officially open with Scottish clubs encouraged to register their event via the link below.

CASTLE STUART TO HOST THE DUKE OF YORK YOUNG CHAMPIONS TROPHY

NEWS RELEASE

The internationally-renowned Castle Stuart Golf Links will play host to some of the world’s best young amateur golfers when it stages The Duke of York Young Champions Trophy later this year.

The 54-hole stroke play event for young men and women has featured in the past some notable players, including Rory McIlroy, Matteo Manassero, Pablo Martin, Oliver Fisher and Anna Nordqvist. Five former players also took part in the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

The 60-strong field at the four-time Scottish Open venue near Inverness from 17-20 September will be made up of golfers who are the current holders of their under 18 national Championship, or the winner of a separate but recognised major golfing event in the preceding year.

The competition is supported and overseen by officials of the R&A, golf’s governing body, and counts towards the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

The Duke of York, who is also The Earl of Inverness, founded the event in 2001 with the aim of promoting the development of junior golf, encouraging competitiveness and friendship between individual champions, whilst providing them with an opportunity to play on leading championship courses against their peers.

Dominic Hampshire, the Tournament Director, said: “Castle Stuart is a world class links course and we are delighted it will be the setting for this year’s Duke of York Young Champions Trophy, particularly as His Royal Highness has such a strong affinity with Inverness."

“I have no doubt that for those junior champions invited to play this year it will be a huge privilege to have the opportunity to play this wonderful course.” 

It is the first time the event has been staged in the Highlands, having previously been held at other Scottish venues, Royal Aberdeen and Royal Troon, as well as Royal Birkdale, Royal Liverpool, Royal St George's and the Prince’s Golf Club in Kent.

It is another milestone in the short history of Castle Stuart Golf Links, which was opened in 2009. The course was ranked at Number 53 in Golf Digest’s World’s Best 100 Golf Courses this month.

Stuart McColm, Castle Stuart’s general manager, said: “This is a huge honour for Castle Stuart and the Highlands."

“The Duke of York Young Champions Trophy is an event highly regarded around the world for promoting and supporting young golfers."  

“It is an exciting prospect to be involved in such a distinguished tournament and to see potentially the stars of tomorrow from around the world playing in the north of Scotland.”

Aberdeen Masters dates fixed for 

July 18 to 20 at Meldrum House

The dates of the 2018 Aberdeen Masters senior tournament have now been confirmed for Wednesday, July 18 until Friday, July 20 at Meldrum House Hotel golf course, Oldmeldrum.

The Gymrental Company , Thistle Windows , and Meldrum House are the joint sponsors with a minimum prize fund of £50,000. 

Said Nick Robson, pictured, owner of Thistle Windows and a successful senior amateur golfer: "We already have commitment from European Senior Tour players and from some Ryder Cup players. The tournament is open to pros and amateurs over the age of 48.

"Possible entrants  can contact me on my email address for more information   If they wish." 
Nick.Robson@thistlewindows.com