Job Opportunity: Pro Shop Assistant / PGA Trainee at Peebles Golf Club

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a dedicated assistant / trainee to join the Professional team at Peebles Golf Club. Must be hard working, friendly, reliable, with good attention to detail and excellent customer service. The role involves general pro shop duties and excellent coaching opportunities. Candidates must have a handicap of 4 or below (male) or 6 and below (female) with the ambition and passion to start a career as a PGA professional.

PGA Assistants currently enrolled in PGA diploma programme and qualified assistants are welcome to apply.

To apply, please send your CV and cover letter to Steve Johnston, PGA Professional at Peebles Golf Club, via e-mail to peeblespro@yahoo.co.uk by 7 February 2020.

Annual General Meeting - Committee Vacancies

Dear Member

Annual General meeting – Committee Vacancies

Our Annual General Meeting will take place on Tuesday 11th February 2020 and I would like to draw your attention to the following notice regarding positions on the Club Committee.

To summarise, if you or any fellow members you know would like to be considered for the Committee, we are seeking nominations by no later than Friday 17th January 2020.

The following positions on the Club Committee require to be confirmed by the meeting:

BY ROTATION:

Election of Vice Captain (two year term)

Election of five General Committee Members (three year term)

Under the terms of the Articles of Association of the Club, the Committee is required to post, prior to 31st December 2019, notification of Committee Vacancies and where nominations have been received, the names of the members whom it recommends to fill the above vacancies. Notices were posted in the Clubhouse today, 30th December.

Any two Ordinary Members of the Club may nominate a member to fill a place on the Committee having previously obtained the consent in writing of such member and notice of such nomination (together with the written consent of the nominee) shall be submitted to the office not later than 17th January 2020.

The following retiring Committee Members have indicated that they would be willing to serve a further three year term of office should there be insufficient nominations to fill the arising vacancies.

Ross Duncan – Board member and Marketing Convenor;

Grant Foster – Board member and Finance Convenor;

Mary Macintyre – General Committee and Handicap Convenor;

Jim Dixon – General Committee and Greens Convenor;

Mark Hosker – General Committtee

Nomination of Vice Captain

The Board has spoken to a number of prospective Vice Captains but is unable to put forward a nomination at this time. It would appear that the perceived size of the role is a potentially restrictive factor. Whilst some candidates feel comfortable with the ceremonial aspect of the role, they are less comfortable with performing the duties of a Board Director and vice versa. In addition, the effective four year tenure of the role (two years as Vice Captain followed by a further two years as Captain) is a potentially inhibiting factor.

The Board recognises the legitimacy of this feedback and the size of the current role. It is therefore prepared to consider amending the role of Vice Captain and in time the Captain’s role to suit the talents of the individuals nominated. For example, flexibility could be built into the articles that does not require the Vice Captain or Captain to automatically be a member of the Board (albeit they would need to be a member of the General Committee). Similarly the tenure of these two positions could be reduced to a minimum of one year.

We would ask members to be cognisant of the above comments when submitting nominations for a new Vice Captain in 2020.

The Board is keen to secure additional support from the wide array of business skills and expertise that exists across the membership base. If you would like to serve on the Board, please liaise with your fellow members to secure a nomination.

Similarly, if you would like to get involved in the running of the Club without the formality of General Committee membership, we are always seeking members who would like to get involved in our sub-committees - Match & Handicap, Greens, House, Juniors, Social and Finance. Please contact the office if you want to get involved.

Should you have any questions regarding the notice or require further clarity on the nomination process, please contact the office.

On behalf of Peebles Golf Club, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year and best wishes for a successful golf season in 2020.

Yours sincerely

Ross Duncan

Captain

Debutant Darren Helps Scotland to Runner-Up Finish

Peebles golfer Darren Howie was an impressive debutant in the Men’s Home Internationals as he helped Scotland come within a whisker of lifting the Raymond Trophy at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland.

The 20-year-old followed in the footsteps of older brother Craig and club-mate Stephen Roger to become the third Peebles golfer in successive years to pull on the Scotland colours in the prestigious event, posting an excellent return of 3.5 points out of a possible five over the three days.

Scotland went into the opening game against the hosts as underdogs, but Howie contributed a vital halved match against Sean Flanagan in the afternoon singles as his side edged to a superb 8.5 – 6.5 victory on the opening day.  The Peebles man then partnered Eric McIntosh to a narrow one-hole win in the morning foursomes against their Welsh opponents on day two before maintaining his unbeaten record with a fine 3 & 1 win in the singles as Scotland eased to a 9.5 – 5.5 triumph.

The win left Scotland level on two wins with defending champions England as the ‘Auld Enemy’ faced up in a winner takes clash on the final day. Howie and McIntosh once again combined to perfection in the foursomes, cruising to a 5&4 win over Harry Hall and Ben Schmidt, leaving the sides tied at the halfway stage.

The matches ebbed and flowed in the afternoon with six out of ten matches going down to the wire on the final hole, only for England to pull through to record a 9 – 6 victory. Howie fought back from being three holes down, but just failed to draw level, losing to Matty Hall on the final green.

Clubhouse Lounge and Restaurant to Open to Public

We are looking forward to welcoming our new catering to the club this weekend and we are confident that ‘Harry’s View’ will provide a fantastic new service to our members. After much preparation and working through your feedback over the past few weeks, Stuart and his team are excited about starting at Peebles Golf Club. It will be a busy opening weekend so please be patient as the team settle in and we hope that many of you will join us for the introductory ‘Meet, Great and Eat’ event on Monday 2nd September. You can purchase tickets for the nominal fee of £1 from behind the bar.

Harry’s View - Opening Hours

 Mon – Tues: 10.00 – 16.00

Wed - Fri : 10.00 – 20.00*

Sat – Sun: 08.00 – 20.00*

*Last orders at 20.00

As discussed at the AGM and as per previous correspondence, the Board and Secretary have been reviewing our options on how we grow revenues at the club. Over the past year, there has been a downturn in our income from both membership fees and the bar, partly caused by the catering challenges we have experienced. The appointment of our new catering team should have a positive impact on our finances and we would encourage you to support ‘Harry’s View’ with your business, bringing friends and family to enjoy the food and clubhouse experience at Peebles Golf Club.

However, with clubhouse usage decreasing and membership numbers on a downward trend at present, we need to ensure that the catering team have a sustainable business throughout the year, with a requirement to attract non-members and the wider community to our club.

To this effect, we have taken the decision to open up the lounge and restaurant to the general public as of w/c 2nd September for food and beverage, with the bar remaining exclusively available for members and their guests. A successful catering operation will result in increased bar revenues, coupled with increased turnover rent from the catering partners, which will help maintain our long-term sustainability and additional investment in the course. By opening up the clubhouse to the wider public, we also give ourselves a better opportunity of attracting new members, with more people seeing the fantastic product we have on offer. We have a fantastic golf course and an excellent clubhouse in a prime location, but we need to increase our potential market so that more people can experience what we have to offer.

Based on the feedback we had from previous communication on this matter, we appreciate that some members have reservations about opening up the clubhouse, however in general the response was very positive. As has been witnessed with the recent closures of clubs such as Eastwood and Lothianburn, golf clubs in Scotland can no longer rely on the traditional membership business model and we need to look at new and innovative ways of increasing our revenues, while maintaining good value for our members. This change is part of that process and we continue to strive to do what’s best for the long-term interests of Peebles Golf Club.

We are part of a vibrant community which we need to do more to embrace, in order that more people are attracted to play golf, use our facilities and feel more connected to us. We have made significant progress over the past few years in modernising our club, growing our junior section, improving our facilities and enhancing our course and we hope that you will support this latest change, with the bigger picture in mind.

We plan to retain social and non-playing membership categories but will be reviewing our pricing structure and associated benefits to ensure that value is retained.

Finally, the Harry’s View team also have a wealth of experience in providing great quality food for functions with a variety of package options, so please get in touch if you have a birthday, anniversary or work event coming up, while we are also now taking bookings for our Christmas Party Nights.

Odd Shaped Ball Leaderboard, Results & Prizes

A huge thanks to everyone who took part in the Odd Shaped Ball, with 42 teams taking part, 168 golfers and an amazing total of £2,000 raised for junior golf in Peebles - a record amount! Thanks also to all our sponsors who contributed to the prizes as well as the other clubs who donated four-balls.

Congratulations to the winning team of Robert Hunter, Dale Thornton, Michael Horsburgh and Jamie Ferguson with a superb nett score of 54.7 and well done to the runner-up team of Alan Aiken, Murray Aiken, Ross Aiken and Andrew Pretswell. The winner of our two star raffle prizes were Eden Collins (PING wedge) and Brian Robson (ShotScope Performance Watch).

Click the links below to see the final leaderboard and prize list. Prizes can be collected from the Pro Shop if you weren’t at the presentation last night.

> Final Leaderboard

> Prize List - Team Winner, Individual Prizes & Raffle Draw

Sponsors: HowDidIDo, Holland & Sherry, PING, Tait & Maping Roofing, Dunbar GC, Mortonhall GC, Dunblane New GC, Macdonald Cardrona, Belhaven Breweries, West Linton GC, Ryton GC, Blue Fun Insurance, Stuart Duncan, Steve Johnston PGA Professional.

Odd Shaped Ball - Saturday 24 August

Costs

·       Entry fee £40 per team – please pay in full at registration

·       Your entry fee includes a strip of raffle tickets

·       Additional raffle tickets can be purchased at £5 per strip

·       Please purchase your raffle tickets before or after your round – draw at 7.30pm

·       All proceeds will go towards the Odd Shaped Ball fund – helping to support the development of junior golf in Peebles.

Handicaps & Tees

·       Your team handicap will be 15% of the combined handicaps

·       If you do not currently have an official handicap please use your most recent handicap (maximum 24)

·       Play is from white tees for men; yellow tees for Under-12s; red tees for ladies (please check out the signs on the holes for any other allocated tees)

Format

·       The event format is Texas Scramble – with the odd twist! For the holes not detailed below, normal Texas Scramble rules apply. Choose your best then each player plays from that spot. Choose your best second shot then each player plays from that spot and so on until you finish the hole.

·       For balls on the fairway, players should place within 6 inches of the marker no nearer the hole. For balls in the rough, players should drop within one club length of the marker, no nearer the hole.

·       Please note the different formats for the 4th and 8th holes!

Drives

·       Each player must have 3 counting drives – please mark which player’s drive you have used at each hole (A, B, C or D). The drive on the 4th hole does not count as a selected drive.

Prizes

·       Team prizes will be awarded to the leading 6 teams based on nett scores.

·       Nearest the pin prizes will be awarded to the individuals who are closest to the holes at the designed holes – please mark your name and distance from the pin in Metres (e.g. 1.23m)

·       Longest drive prize will be awarded to the individual who hits the longest drive at the designated hole – Ladies at the 9th; Gents at the 18th.

SPECIAL HOLES

1st - Nearest the Pin Team Bet

Bet £1 each for nearest the pin – if no one hits the green the money is donated to the Odd Shaped Ball fund!

2nd - Play from the Blue Junior Tee

Walk up towards the bunker for a shorter 2nd hole!

3rd - Seniors Bus Pass

Seniors (aged 65+) play from the forward tee – everyone else from the back Black Tee! (Ladies still play from the red tee)

4th - Alternate Shot Format

Only the person with the LOWEST handicap in the team tees off, then players should take alternate shots until the hole is completed

5th - AS Duncan 1-iron Challenge

Tee off with the 1980s 1-iron blade!

Nearest the pin in two prize

7th - Nearest the Pin

For the Big Easy’s wine!

8th- Last Man (or Woman) Standing Elimination Hole

All drive off – whoever’s drive you choose then drops out. Whoever’s 2nd shot you choose then drops out. Whoever’s 3rd shot you choose drops out. The player left standing then completes the hole!

9th - Ladies Longest Drive

Earn your Solheim Cup Cap & ASI Ladies Scottish Open Cap

10th - Roll the Dice

The team captain rolls the dice on the tee to determine how your team plays the 10th hole 

12th - Nearest the Pin

Then left-handed putter!

13th- One Club Challenge

Each player in the team must use the SAME nominated club in their bag for this hole e.g. all use a 7-iron

14th - Where’s the Flag?

Guess the pin position…

15th - Nearest the Pin in Two

But you’re playing from the back tee! (Gents only)

16th - Nearest the Pin ClubGolf Challenge

Test your skills with plastic clubs and tennis balls!

17th - Greenkeepers Revenge!

A testing pin position. All objects are immovable and any ball that comes to rest must be taken as a penalty drop 2 club lengths.

18th - Gents Longest Drive & Davie Putter

With a twist…then use the putter provided when you reach the green

Toonie to the fore for Doddie!

What does the head coach of the Scotland team do the day before his charges fly the 6,000 miles to Japan for the 2019 Rugby World Cup?

Gregor Townsend will be spending it criss-crossing his Borders homeland in an epic charity initiative to raise funds for his friend, the inspirational Doddie Weir.

Townsend and Weir played together for Scotland on 35 occasions between 1993 and 2000 and also toured together with Scotland, Scotland 7s and the British & Irish Lions.

Townsend, whose older brother Craig, was an outstanding amateur golfer, has hit upon playing a hole at each of the 21 golf courses within the Scottish Borders to raise funds for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.

He explained: “It’s been great to see rugby and wider sporting world get behind Doddie and help him raise more awareness and money in his battle against Motor Neurone Disease.

“Who can forget Doddie’s match-ball delivery with his sons, Angus, Hamish and Ben at BT Murrayfield before the Scotland v New Zealand match in 2017 and the very many other examples of folk expressing their love and admiration for Doddie.

“He has been relentless in his pursuit of finding a cure for MND and I wanted to contribute in some way before we head off to Japan.

“I have set a challenge of playing one hole at every golf course in the Scottish Borders, an area where Doddie and I grew up and still call home.

“The Borders Golf Challenge for Doddie takes place on Sunday 8 September with all funds going to the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.

“There are 21 courses in the Borders and Doddie has promised to join me for the day.”

Asked about undertaking the challenge the day before flying to Japan, Townsend added: “Rugby World Cup is obviously hugely important and in the white heat of competition it’s equally important to maintain a sense of perspective.

“What Doddie – and others affected by this terrible disease – are going through and yet managing to retain his sense of humour is incredibly humbling and whatever I can do to help is a privilege for me.”

> Click here for the route.

There will also be an opportunity to bid for the chance to play with Gregor, with each club tasked with raising £500.

You can support Gregor’s challenge through his Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/doddiegolf

 The 21 golf courses in the Scottish Borders are at Duns, Eyemouth, Galashiels, Hawick, Innerleithen, Jedburgh, Kelso, Langolm, Lauder, Lilliardsedge, Lilliesleaf, Cardrona, Melrose, Minto, New Woll Estate, Newcastleton, Peebles, Selkirk, St Boswells, The Hirsel, The Roxburghe and Torwoodlee.

Howie Reaches Scottish Semis

Peebles golfer Darren Howie came oh so close to a place in the Scottish Amateur Championship final last weekend after a superb run in the country’s flagship amateur event at Crail.

Scotland’s 256 leading amateur golfers gathered in the East Neuk to contest a trophy previously won by the likes of Colin Montgomerie and the nation’s newest golfing sensation Bob McIntyre, with Howie going into the tournament in fine form after a runner-up finish in the North of Scotland Championship at Nairn Dunbar the previous week.

That form continued in the stroke play qualifying as the Peebles youngster opened up with a sensational 7-under par 62 over the Balcomie Links, followed by a 68 on the Craighead Links leaving him in share of second place on 11-under par.

With the leading 64 qualifiers reaching the match play stages, Howie was third seed and he backed up his ranking with a first round win over one of the country’s leading junior players, Aiden O’Hagen by a narrow one-hole margin. A comfortable second round victory followed, and he had to dig deep in the third round with another final hole victory, this time against Lewis Dobelaar. Aiming to become the second Peebles in two years to reach the semis after Stephen Roger’s fine run last year, Darren’s next opponent was fellow Scotland international John Paterson from St Andrews and he staged a superb fightback to earn his semi-final spot, coming from two holes behind with eight to play to seal the match with a half on the final green.

The last Peebles golfer to reach the final was Allan Turnbull in 1996 but with Darren facing the host club’s George Burns, it was always going to be a tough task. Early chances came and went and Burns edged into the lead with a birdie on the 3rd before going three up at the turn. Despite three Howie birdies on the back nine, he couldn’t close the back and Burns clinched a 3&2 win on the 16th green.

A bronze medal was Darren’s consolation and his excellent run sees him leap into second place in the Scottish Golf Men’s Order of Merit, with Home Internationals selection hopefully just around the corner.

Get into Golf Classes - Book Your Place Now!

Peebles Gents Open & Weekend Round-Up

Peebles Gents Open

A packed field of 160 members and visitors took to the fairways the following day for the Peebles Open, with the course in superb condition and the sun shining. The best scoring came late in the day and it was Torwoodlee’s former Scotland boys international Simon Fairburn who took the top scratch prize, recovering from two double-bogeys on the front nine to record a superb two-under par 68, storming home in 32 with birdies at the 10th, 13th, 17th and 18th.

The top handicap prize in the first class section went to his playing partner, club captain Ross Duncan, who ended his silverware drought with a 68 (6) thanks to birdies at the 6th, 9th and 18th, surviving a back-nine wobble to edge out the previous day’s winner, Rick Martin. Lochmaben’s Tyrone Wales won the second class scratch with a fine 77, while the net prize went to another south-west visitor in Southerness Golf Club’s Tom Jardine, who carded a 67.

Allan Turnbull finished second in the first class scratch on level par, while Jamie Morris narrowly missed out on his sixth consecutive Open title, earning third place also on 70. Darren Davidson was third in the handicap section on 69, with Jamie Fenton in fourth place. The club would like to thank all the volunteers who gave up their time for starting and scoring duties to ensure the very smooth running of one of the biggest days in the calendar.

Route Sixty-Six for Rick

Rick Martin produced a career-best four-under par 66 to take the glory in Saturday’s Scotsdale July Medal. The five-handicapper carded no fewer than six birdies to record a remarkable net 61, giving him a three shot win over young greenkeeper Lewis Thomson, who must have thought his brilliant net 63 (10) would have been good enough to win. Martin was out in 32 and raced to five-under the card with further birdies at 10 and 13, only to be halted by bogeys on 14 and 15. He bounced back with a two at the 16th before finishing par-par. It was a day of impressive scoring all round, with TAMS regular George Langlands rolling back the years with an excellent 64 (21) while former High School art teacher Jim Lyle finished fourth with a creative 65 (15).

Ladies Centenary Trophy and Round-Up

Denise Richards’ disappointment over losing out to Sheila Cuthbertson in the final of the Ladies’ Championship was partially salved by winning the Centenary Trophy in testing high winds, scoring 74(11).  Anne Derrick came out on top in the 9-hole Qualifying Stableford with 19pts while the Boocock Trophy was won by Lilian Smith with an excellent 68(25).

Returning her best-ever competition score, Mary Macintyre had a superb tally of 40 points to win the 18-hole Stableford. In the mixed section, Iris French, partnered by husband, Gary, followed up her Bronze Division Championship win by lifting the Charity Trophy with an unbeatable net 63. This is their second Mixed Foursomes trophy this season.

Junior Results

Championship semi-finalist Robbie MacKay topped the leaderboard in the YMCA Trophy with a fantastic net score of 61, which saw his ever-reducing handicap cut to 17. He finished two shots of clear of Mr Practice Range Callum Waldie, who recorded his own excellent score of 63, while James Thomson was third on 65 (32). Congratulations to all three players for their performances.

Clubhouse News

We will be showing live Sky Sports coverage of this weekend’s ASI Scottish Open from The Renaissance and next week’s Open Championship from Royal Portrush, so come in and enjoy the action on our screens with a few drinks and a bite to eat! You can also take part in our Pro Shop’s Open competition, with the fantastic prize of three PING wedges up for grabs.

Peebles Golf Club – Catering Franchise

We are currently seeking a Franchise Caterer to take over the running of our golf club catering operation. The successful candidate(s) will be required to provide an excellent standard of catering to meet the needs of our golfing membership, golfing visitors and other customers who visit the club, with a choice of good ‘golfers fayre’ food on a daily basis.

The caterer will also be required to provide service for competition days, team matches and other events, as well as a fantastic opportunity to work with the club and generate new business for the clubhouse.

Candidates must demonstrate a good understanding of the golf club market, a flexible approach to working hours and the needs/tastes of golf club members.

We are inviting applications from a highly motivated, hard-working and enthusiastic person or team capable of producing consistently high standards of food and service, with a proactive and customer-focused attitude.

The club has invested significantly in its clubhouse facilities and kitchen, giving the successful candidate a great platform to maximise the opportunity to develop Peebles Golf Club as one of the town’s best eating destinations among members and other customers. We have a large membership and a reputation as one of the best clubs in the region, with a good catering partner required to add value to our membership (playing and social), improve our visitor offering and attract new customers locally.

The applicant(s) must be experienced in all aspects of kitchen operations, including maintaining the kitchen to comply with current health and safety requirements. Additional requirements include:

• Have a proven track record in catering operations, preferably in a golf club or large restaurant environment;

• Have a team of staff available to deliver a consistently high standard of catering product and service;

• Be commercially minded to grow clubhouse revenues in partnership with the club’s management team;

• Have good communication and interpersonal skills;

• Have a proven record of Food Hygiene and compliance to Safety Standards with working experience of all relevant regulations;

• Have high personal and professional standards and be able to demonstrate excellent customer service;

• Be compliant with all pertinent employment regulations relating to its staff and have a proven track record in the management of its staff.

Prospective candidates should apply by sending their CV and cover letter via e-mail to: secretary@peeblesgolfclub.com by Friday 19 July. Interested parties should be available to start the role in September. If you require further information on the role, please call the office on 01721 720197.

Club Championship Finals: Morris and Cuthbertson Continue Dominance

Jamie Morris’s relentless pursuit of a record haul of Club Championship wins continued in style on Saturday as he cruised to his 22nd title with an emphatic win over Steven Waldie on Saturday afternoon.

An 11&10 winning margin looked harsh on the gallant runner-up, but it gave Jamie his eleventh Championship final victory bringing TT Sanderson’s club record of 15 titles ever closer. He was imperious form throughout the week, dropping only three shots and such was the quality of his golf, he was only required to play 67 holes out of a possible 90.

Along the way to the final, he overcame the challenges of Scott MacFarlane, Cameron Young and Colin Fraser, destroying all in his path, before facing the 2016 club champion Waldie in the final, who had taken the scalps of Ryan Forsyth, Allan Turnbull and a resurgent Walter Forsyth in the semi-finals.

A fine opening tee-shot set up an opening par to give Steven an early lead and he almost went two up after lipping out for birdie at the second hole. That would be the last time he held the lead as Jamie applied the pressure, winning the 3rd to draw level before birdies at the 4th, 5th and 9th put him three up at the turn. The foot went down on the back nine and although there was a glimmer for Waldie with an impressive birdie putt at the 14th, Jamie bounced back immediately with back-to-back birdies at 14 and 15 to reach five up. He gained another hole at the 17th to go into half-time with a six-hole lead, and the win was never looking in doubt from thereon in.

With the weather closing in for the later round, Jamie wasted no time in closing the deal, adding two more birdies to see out the match on the 26th hole. Win number 11 matches the number of Peebles Open wins he has in the bag, and having made it a hattrick of Peebles Championship wins, few would bet against this local legend making it three Lothians Championship victories on the bounce when he defends his Area title later this month. Congratulations Jamie, superb golf!

In the B Championship, Mark Cowan was in unstoppable form all week and took his first title with an excellent win in the final against Iain Mitchell. He beat Andrew Beveridge, John Elliot and Robin Connor in the earlier rounds, while Mitchell saw off number one seed Noel Flannery, David Brotherstone and Alan Jackson.

The C Championship went with form as number one and two seeds Brian Morris and Keith McDonald reached the final. Morris was looking to share the glory with son Jamie after a fine run to the final, but it was his close friend Keith who took his second C Championship title in the space of three years with the win.

Ladies Championship: Cuthbertson Counts on Title Twenty-Two

Sheila Cuthbertson and Denise Richards contested the final of this season’s Ladies’ Championship, having defeated the respective challenges of Marny Waddell and June-Anne Clark in the semi-finals. Despite being 2 down after 4 holes, Denise fought back to be all square after 10, due in part to rare putting lapses on Sheila’s part at the 5th, 8th and 10th holes. Sheila steadied her game, being level par over the next 5 holes, with a birdie at the 11th and a bogey at the 14th.

Denise could not match Sheila’s fine tee shot to the centre of the 16th green. Unable to get down in two after overshooting the par-3 hole, Denise conceded the hole, and the match. This is Sheila’s 22nd Championship win and there is no sign of her giving up her perennial crown any time soon.

There is a new name on the Laverock Cup which is awarded to the Bronze Division Champion, this year contested between Julie Oram, runner-up on two previous occasions, and Iris French, a one-time runner-up. Sheila Horsburgh and Lilian Smith respectively were eliminated in the semi-finals. The standard of golf, over the front 9 in particular, was worthy of promotion to the Silver Division, both ladies reaching the turn in 45. Nerves were apparent over the back 9, with Julie missing some crucial puts. Iris was a worthy winner, having never been down in the match. One down at the 16th, Julie put her tee shot out of bounds to give Iris a 2-hole lead. Both ladies played excellent pitches to the 17th green and Iris’s steady putting ended Julie’s challenge, winning 3&2.

Sutherland Celebrates Junior Championship Win

There’s a new name on the junior honours board as Kerr Sutherland won the Junior Championship after an excellent final against Michael Smith, with a winning margin of 3&1. Both players were in fine form during the match and the standard of golf was high throughout as it had been all week. Kerr showed his intent early in the week by beating defending champion Jack Kinghorn in the quarter-finals before earning his final berth with a win against Ross Aiken, while Michael took the notable scalp of Frankie Masson then defeated Robbie Mackay in the semi-finals.

 Thanks to all the volunteers who supported the week through starting, refereeing and admin duties, and to those members who turned in good numbers to watch the finals on Saturday. More photos and video highlights can be found on our Facebook page.