Date:- 04/07/2008
Time:- 00:51:58
Time:- 00:51:58
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 Mens Tournaments - Season 2005-2006 McRobert Thistle Open -
25 September 05
We had the full range of what the weather could throw at us for the last fixture of the Summer Season from dark clouds and driving rain to blue skies but all accompanied by a strong wind that got stronger as the day progressed. The earlier starters had to contend with the rain but the later starters had some rain but much stronger winds to battle through. The course analysis showed the CSS to be 69 and one eagle and 23 birdies was good for the conditions and the second hole back to claiming its place as the hardest on the day. Only three scores broke par and three equalled par which endorses the quality of the course and the challenge set out by Alf Mackay the Greens Convenor who has made an excellent job of preparing the course all year. Once again James Macadie the Greenkeeper had the course looking immaculate and well prepared. Only two birdies were claimed in Division Two with a nice birdie two at the 5th from Derek Reid of the East Aberdeenshire Club who had travelled a long with to compete. The other birdie also a two fell to Bill McIntosh at the 7th hole. Young Steven Lowe of the Thurso Club managed to get into the prizes claiming third in Division 2 with a score of 89-17-72 after a few attempts at Reay this year. Danny O'Hagan enjoying a bit of late season form scored the lowest gross in Division 2 with an 84 and good steady play in the wind to return 84-15-69. Out later in the day the best score in Division 2 went to Club Secretary Bill McIntosh also enjoying something of an Indian summer winning Division 2 with 86-18-68 and the only score to break par. R.Matheson of Thurso bagged a brace of birdies with putts dropping for him at the 12th and the 14th and stablemate Angus Cameron also made a nice birdie at the 14th. Birdies were claimed by Steven Cowie of Thurso at the 6th and Steve Efemey of Reay at the 5th to show he hasn't lost his touch after terrorising a few courses in Ireland in recent weeks. Old Don Mackay managed a double with birdies at the 6th and the treacherous 17th. The title of birdie king goes to David Mackay aka Snapper who put in a nice back to back double at the 8th and 9th and he had further birdies at the 12th and the 15th for a super personal haul of four birdies. Sadly very ugly scores on the 3rd and 4th meant it was always catch up golf but four birdies is a great achievement on a tough day at the office. We had four players tied on Nett 70 with Alan Mackenzie of Thurso sharing the honours with Lee Parnell, Gavin Gunn and Andrew Watt from Tain GC who came out top on countback courtesy of his two birdies at the 12th and the 14th making his journey north worthwhile. Ian Ritchie meanwhile had a nice personal tally of three birdies to come back in level par figures of 35 for the back nine. A nice birdie at the 12th and a great grandstanding finish with birdies at the 17th and 18th for a final 78-9-69 to claim the 3rd spot. This gave the left hander Ian the edge over Alistair Bell from Thurso who birdied the long 4th hole for 80-11-69 an excellent attempt but losing out on the dreaded countback. Ronnie Gray from Thurso a stranger to the Reay Links this year proved he still remembered his way around the track securing birdies at the 12th and the 13th to return a score of 76-8-68 to break par and collect a well deserved second place. John O'Brien meanwhile left the field standing with a super display of controlled golf in the toughest of the weather conditions. Out in 35 only one over par he had a great start with a birdie two at the hardest hole the second and followed this up with a majestic eagle 3 at the par five 6th hole. A very steady back nine of 37 with two bogeys gave John the lowest gross score for the day of 72 and a good days work securing the top prize and a winning score of 72-6-66. John now heads off to Spain for a couple of weeks golf in the sun. (Is this an attempt at the European Tour Q School?)
Banks Medal -
24 September 05
The Banks Medal was graced with a beautiful autumnal day and a breeze from the south contributed to excellent playing conditions with clear blue skies. The CSS for the Competition came in at 70 with twelve birdies for the day and the difficult 17th turned out to be the hardest hole. The second hardest was the 16th which combined with the 17th saw the ruin of quite a few cards and a testing finish for those that completed the full 18. Only three players broke par on the day as the course really tested the field and nobody made that illusive par 69. All the birdies fell in Division One with birdie two's at the 15th for Chris Hobson and Bruce Mackay who seems to have lost his early season form. Richard McDonald made a good birdie at the 6th as did Ian Ritchie and Andy Mackay now recovered from his broken ribs made a nice two at the short 5th. The par five 14th hole gave up birdies for Fred Groves and John O'Brien. Peter McCartney reminded us he was still about with an excellent birdie at the 12th and Neil McDonald putting in a rare appearance showed he hasn't lost his touch with a birdie at the 10th. Third place in Division One went to Gavin Gunn with an 82-12-70 just edging out Richard McDonald on the countback who managed a 77-7-70. Andy Bain was the only man to make two birdies and these fell nicely for him at the 2nd a difficult hole to make par on never mind a birdie and the 13th. With halves of 38 and 42 Andy put together a score of 80-12-68 to come out second in Division One. Lee Parnell had the lowest gross score of 73 and managed a nice birdie at the 13th. With halves of 36 and 37 Lee edged out Andy on the countback and came home with 73-5-68 to clinch the top spot in Division One. Lee and Andy had the only par breaking scores. In Division two life was really tough and the lowest gross went to our winner Kenny Farmer with an excellent 81, enjoying a late run of good form. There were no birdies in Division Two. Billy Dunbar with 91-18-73 picked up third spot also finding a bit of good form at the end of the season. Hugh Miller played a steady round and picked up the sweep money for second place with 99-27-72. Winning the Banks Medal with 81-14-67 and the only score to break par in Division Two was Kenny Farmer going out in 42 and coming home in 39 for a great round and a comfortable win. Kenny struggled earlier in the season but has come good at the right time to win one of the oldest trophies in the Club.
Texas Scramble (Teams of 3) - 18 September 05
The Texas scramble is a fun format with three golfers combining to produce a single score per hole. As is the tradition of this format the scoring was good with every team breaking the par of the course and there were birdies galore. Seventeen teams contested the event and special mention has to be made of Alison Campbell from the Thurso Golf Club as the only Lady brave enough to compete. It was nice to see Thurso Golfers out in force marauding around the course in search of the spoils for the third week running and they very nearly made it a hat trick of top prizes. A.Mackenzie, A.MacGregor and G.Cameron of Thurso combined well to produce four birdies at the 3rd, 9th, 14th and the 16th to finish with a nett 60. Also from Thurso the team of H.Boyd, G.Reid and Dougie Thorburn birdied the 6th and then a treble spree with birdies at the 12th, 13th and 14th. The Reay trio of John O'Brien, Bruce Mackay and Ian Ritchie managed an excellent 6 birdie haul with a triple at the 5th, 6th and 7th to be one under for the front nine. Three birdies on the back nine at 13th, 14th and 18th gave them an outstanding 32 which was three under and two bogeys on the front nine cost dearly. Three two's on the card certainly smartened things up. Steve Spargo, Richard Campbell and Sandy Stewart had a level par front nine and a nice birdie treble at 12th, 13th and 14th to be three under and finish 66-(6)-60 and lose third spot on the countback by half a shot. The veteran combination from Reay of Danny O'Hagan, Mike Browne and Chris Hobson just had the edge for third place with 69-(9)-60. Chris Hobson claimed the credit for two birdie two's at the 15th and the 18th and the extra handicap made the difference. Trying for the Thurso hat trick of wins was Jim Sangster, Thurso captain David Lyall and Match Secretary Ewen Mackenzie. A triple birdie blitz on the front nine with putts falling at the 4th, 6th and 7th saw them out in 31 and three under par. On the back nine they picked up a further two birdies at the 14th and the 16th for 33 shots and a gross total of 64 a terrific score. The combined handicap of 4.8 gave them a challenging 59.2 as a nett score which tied with the winners but losing out on the dreaded count back, nevertheless good enough for second place. Breaking the Thurso stranglehold at Reay in recent weeks was the home trio of Cammie Ross, David Mackay and Alistair Gunn. The lads equalled the Thurso challenge with five birdies as well but only one on the front nine at the 6th for a one under 33. The back nine made the difference as the handicaps were exactly the same at 4.8 and four birdies at the 10th, and a run of three at 12th, 13th and 14th to return in a glorious 31 and equal gross score of 64. The birdies on the back nine for a total of 31 beat the back nine of 33 by the Thurso trio and gave the Reay Team victory on the count back with the matching score of 64-(4.8)-59.2.
McVitie & Price Foursomes - 11 September 05 Foursomes is a difficult format to play and needs a lot of patience and teamwork to win. Players have to gel well. The weather was a bit tough on the day with a stiff breeze and due to previous inclement weather this was the second attempt to get the fixture played. Colin Stewart and John Disbury combined well with a joint handicap of 16 to return figures of 94-16-78 shooting equal halves of 47 to secure third place. Playing together was Ian Ritchie and Evan Sutherland on a combined handicap of 8.5 to return the lowest gross of 78. Out in 37 and back in 41 with an ugly triple bogey on the 17th causing some damage but they managed 78-8.5-69.5 and were comfortably in second place. Matching the lowest gross of 78 but with a combined handicap of 12 Alf Mackay and Sandy Chisholm played really steadily and managed to go out in 42 and come back in with an excellent 36 for the back nine. Their best hole was undoubtedly the 13th where the joint effort produced a nice birdie 3 and a steady run of pars to card 78-12-66 for a run away victory and enabled them to get their hands on the trophy.
RNLI Open (Thurso) - 11 September 05 Mark Mackay has not played much golf this season but he came straight back into action at the end of the season and managed to rack up an impressive scorecard to win the RNLI Open with a 82 (18) 64. Muray McGlasson is currently having a purple patch and was one behind Mark but secured the lower handicap prize. The scratch prize went to Ronnie Matheson (72), three shots infront of young Brent Munro. Donald Campbell Memorial Open - 10 September 05
We were blessed with good weather for the day with a stiffish breeze at times and the sun gradually breaking through as well. There was a great field of 99 golfers with strong support from a big contingent from Thurso Golf Club. The course was well prepared and the greens highly complimented by Lee Penrose who had just carried out an assessment by STRI (Scottish Turf Research Institute) as Reay Golf Course has made the finals once again for the BIGGA awards for the management of the Course, its quality and its environment. All that was needed was some good golf for the Inaugural playing of the Donald Campbell Memorial Open with the course clearly in excellent condition for the event. The size of the field showed the respect and the great esteem in which local golfers held Donald. It was very poignant to have Richard Campbell, Donald's son playing in the tournament. The analysis of the day showed the CSS to be 69 and with the wind blowing from the East for a change the hardest hole became the 17th which was strange as it had a tail wind. There were 42 birdies on the day and the 6th gave up six of them into a headwind. The 5th also into the wind gave up 5 birdies. The two trophies on offer were for the Best scratch score and the best nett score and the standard of the golf was certainly keeping pace with the quality of the course. The Division two golfers found the going a bit tough and only managed 6 birdies, notably one at the long 4th hole for David Lyall the Thurso Captain before he surrendered to the course. Thurso Golfer E.Ferrier birdied the 18th and Callum Mackenzie of Reay birdied the 7th but both suffered a nil return. Ricky Eunson (Thurso) made a nice birdie at the 13th and Bob Black the Thurso Secretary managed a nice two on his card at the 5th. Mike Browne from Reay was sweating nervously as a hole in one nearly fell for him at the 5th which would have been expensive but he managed the return putt for his two. John Disbury (Reay) with a tidy set of figures 90-20-70 picked up third place and stable mate David R.Craig showed some style for 93-24-69 to make par for the eighteen holes. With the lowest gross in the Division and the only man to break par young Steven Lowe of Thurso romped home with first place on 84-17-67. There were numerous birdies in Division one and some outstanding golf played with 5 finishing on nett par and nine breaking par. Sandy Wright of Thurso had a nice birdie at the 11th in his round of 81-12-69, Club mate Innes Mitchell produced 78-9-69. Old Timer Bob Earnshaw of Reay had a steady 81-12-69 and also from Reay we had Alistair Gunn with 77-8-69 and Steve Lucas on 81-12-69. There were four tied on nett 68 and leader of the pack was Reay Club Champion David Dunbar notching up birdies at the 15th and the 17th for 74-6-68. John O'Brien (Reay) only managed one birdie at the difficult 17th in his 74-6-68. Richard McDonald who had a good Ulbster Cup for Reay had a nice brace of birdies at the 6th and 13th to return 75-7-68. Last but not least with back to back birdies at the 5th and the 6th was the flamboyant Lee Parnell with another stylish outfit scoring 73-5-68. Gary Calder of Thurso was on his own in 5th place on 73-6-67 and bagged two birdies with fine putts at the 5th and the 13th. Three tied on nett 65 led by Gavin Sutherland of Reay with a superb tally of four birdies and an excellent gross 70. Gavin's birdies came at the 8th, 10th, 14th and 16th for a wonderful back 9 of only 33 shots to end up 70-5-65 and claim second. Third on countback from Thurso was the irrepressible Alan Swanson managing three birdies at the 6th, 11th and the testy 17th to return an outstanding 68-3-65 and relegated to fourth was Andy Mackay of Reay with a determined effort suffering with broken ribs and still finding birdies at the 9th and 17th to finish with 77-12-65. The Trophy for the best nett score went to ex Reay Member Murray McGlasson now playing out of the Thurso Club. Using his wealth of local knowledge big Murray played an excellent round and found back to back birdies with a two at the 5th and a birdie 4 at the great 6th hole both into the breeze and is an immensely popular winner with a fantastic score of 73-11-62. Murray had halves of 37 and 36 and an untidy double bogey at the 2nd otherwise a prize winning card. The winner of the Donald Campbell Memorial Scratch trophy was of course Alan Swanson of Thurso Golf Club and we are delighted that the first winner of the trophy recorded a one under par score of 68 and hope that this now attracts more next year to attempt to beat this par breaking score. Alan playing off a 3 handicap had equal halves of 34 with one bogey at the 2nd and cancelling it out with a birdie at the 6th to match the par of 34 for the front nine. The back nine started well with a birdie at the 11th and got even better with another birdie at the challenging 17th which was particularly sweet as Alan does not relish playing this difficult hole. Sadly the grandstand finish was a bogey on the 18th but the card read 34 and that was an outstanding back nine score of one under par. Congratulations to Alan who has had a wonderful 7 days at Reay starting with winning the Ulbster Cup last weekend and finishing this weekend as the best golfer to pick up the Donald Campbell Memorial Trophy setting a great standard and target for next year.
Tueday Medal (2) -
30 August 05
The last Tuesday Medal saw most of the field make heavy weather of reasonable conditions with the CSS dropping out to 70. The course was making it tough to score and only gave up 8 birdies with the notorious 17th the hardest hole severely damaging most cards. With the nights drawing in the last two ball came home in the dark as the season appears to be disappearing rapidly with only one month of competition left. In division two Brian Davidson had putts drop nicely with birdies at the 13th and 18th. Our hole in one expert very nearly did it again at the 18th and wasn't far off his second ace of the season timed nicely as the camera arrived. Sadly Brian had already had a no return at the 7th. In 3rd place was George MacDonald with 109-20-89 which showed the scoring was high. Second was Ian Thomson with 98-20-78. With the lowest gross of 94 was Bill McIntosh in first place on 94-17-77 which included a bad triple bogey at the 16th and a dreadful 9 on the infamous 17th. It was not pretty golf and being charitable the best that can be said was at least they finished the round. Meanwhile in Division one scoring was not great either and Bruce Mackay snapped up a birdie at the 4th before the course snapped him up and he didn't make the back 9. John O'Brien and Steve Efemey both managed birdies at the 6th. Peter McCartney battled well and was able to return a score of 83-12-71 for third spot. Coming into good form and celebrating his selection in the Reay A Team for the Ulbster Cup was Lee Parnell with a treble birdie haul at the 3rd, 7th and 14th and the lowest gross of 75 for second with 75-5-70. Making par and the winning score was Cammie Ross enjoying an Indian Summer with a bit of good form for a score of 78-9-69.
Tueday Medal (1) -
23 August 05
This turned out to be an interesting day with breezy conditions in the morning and most of the evening field retiring complaining of monster midges. Nevertheless a few worthies survived to contest the medal. The course analysis showed the CSS to be 69 with only seven birdies all day and the 16th giving up three of them. The hardest hole was the treacherous 17th. Division two golfers only managed one birdie and that was courtesy of Willie Williamson who made a nice birdie four at the par five 14th before succumbing with a no return. Danny O'Hagan had the lowest gross in Division two with a 92 and came in third with 92-15-77. In second place with a great effort was Keith Buxton on 93-19-74. Topping the tree was young Ian Mackintosh from the West with 95-26-69 and the only man to make par to win Division Two. Gavin Sutherland celebrating selection for the Ulbster Cup had a nice brace of birdies and the lowest gross of 76. Gavin's birdies came at the 6th and the 13th. David Mackay was snapping away at his heels also with a brace of birdies at the 11th and the 16th to pick up third place with a nice 77-7-70. Also on nett 70 was Bruce Mackay with a birdie at the 16th but having the better inward half pushed David out on the count back to take second with 80-10-70. The top man winning Division One with a cool birdie at the 16th was the veteran Bob Earnshaw who carded figures of 78-11-67 and the only man in the field to break par on the day. Matchplay Quaich -
21 August 05
The Match Play Quaich started back in April and is a singles knockout competition played off full handicap allowance. The Finalists were Peter McCartney and Willie Young. On the way to the final Peter had eliminated Steve Lucas, Gavin Gunn, Kenny Farmer and Bob Earnshaw in the Semi Final. Willie en route to the final disposed of Eric Fram-Taylor, Cammy Ross, Jock Eunson and in the Semi Final overcame the challenge of Bill Budding. The Final was played in ideal golfing conditions on a perfect summer evening and a very slight breeze. First Blood went to Willie Young using his handicap allowance of eleven shots well taking the first hole and off to a good start. Willie took the second hole comfortably and had a nice two hole cushion. Peter woke up quickly and started to come onto his game after a very sluggish start and retaliated by winning the 3rd, 4th and 5th as it was now Willie's turn to struggle as Peter nosed ahead and was 1up. At the 6th hole Braid's choice Willie made a nice par and didn't need his shot to win the hole and got back to all square. At 7 it was Peter's turn to make par as Willie found trouble and wasted his extra shot letting Peter once again take the initiative to go 1 up. A tidy par at the 8th with a shot advantage saw Willie get back into the game and with the 9th halved it was all square standing on the 10th tee. Willie had a good run of three wins in a row at 10th, 11th and 12th to get a comfortable lead and a real advantage on the back 9 to go three up, but in Matchplay anything can happen and nothing is taken for granted. Peter got back on track again and reduced the deficit with a steady four at the 13th. The 14th and 15th were halved and Peter once again clawed back a hole at the 16th to put the pressure on Willie with the intimidating 17th tee looming. Peter won the 17th with a very comfortable par and the match was now all square setting up an exciting climax on the 18th hole with the winner claiming the Title. Both missed the green and were scrambling to get down in five but Willie by virtue of the extra shot won the hole and won the Match Play Quaich by the narrowest of margins with a 1 up victory in a nail biting finish on the last hole. This had been an excellent final with congratulations to Willie Young the victor.
Hospital Bus Open (Thurso) - 21 August 05 There was some first class scoring in both categories of this tournament, sponsored by John Barry & Associates. The male section was a triumph for Harvey Cowe, who earned a two shot handicap cut after his return of 43 stableford points whic won the higher handicap trophy. Alistair Simpson, who has enjoyed a fine season, took second place on 40 points with George Mitchell a point further back in third place. Murray McGlasson was top man in the lower handicap section with 41 points, with Jim Meiklejohn a point behind. Willie Shearer (38) completed the prize list in the category and Bob Robertson, playing as well as ever, was the best scratch player with 35 points. Julie Murray scored 39 points to relegate visitor Alison Stevenson (St Andrews) into the runner-up spot in the Ladies' section. Alison Campbell just lost out on countback with 38 points. Safari Open (36) Teams of Four -
20 August 05 The Safari Open is a hugely popular event and golfers travelled from all over Scotland and up from England to play in the near capacity field. We were only one team short of the maximum. Indeed two visitors were so impressed with the quality of the course that they joined the Club. The weather was extremely kind and it was a beautiful day for golfing with a gentle cooling sea breeze. Mention needs to be made of Evan Sutherland who got up at 5.30am to cut the greens accompanied by Club President Alf Mackay who raked all the bunkers to present a tough challenge for the Safari.
The Course analysis for the morning round made interesting reading with the CSS standing at 69. We had two eagles courtesy of Steven Williamson of Thurso and Lee Parnell of Reay both at the 14th. There were a grand total of 58 birdies with the 5th and the 15th both giving up 8 birdies each and the 13th yielded 6 birdies. The par 3 holes took a thumping with 25 two's dropping. Notably Sandy Chisholm of Reay with three two's at the 5th, 7th and 15th. Also with three was Steven Williamson of Thurso at the 7th, 9th and 15th. Managing two birdie two's was Barry Cann of Torvean one of our Sponsors at the 5th and the 15th. Worthy of note was the three ball of Barry Cann, Graeme Dunnett and Steve Spargo who all made a birdie two at the 5th. This was a team event with teams of four playing and the best three scores from the four counting in each round towards the team prizes. Tradition has it that all the teams are named for a bit of fun. The Best round of the morning was shared by Tony Wilson of Wick playing for the Imposters with 84-19-65 and Terry Grace of Reay representing Albadross with 87-22-65. Barry Cann of Orion Select had a tidy 82-14-68. Gavin Sutherland of Reay playing for Gunns and Roses managed 73-6-67. Beyond the Split Stone and it was the quiet man of Reay John O'Brien carding 74-6-68. Ken Lorimer playing for the Brora Bandits was keeping pace for his team with 76-8-68. The lowest gross score of the morning fittingly went to the Reay Club Captain Graeme Dunnett of the Irish Rovers who had three birdies in his round of 69 at the 5th, 12th and the 16th for an impressive 69-1-68. Mention has to be made of Steven Williamson of Thurso in great form with his eagle and four birdies falling for him at the 2nd, 7th, 9th and 15th for 74-6-68 to get the Bright Sparks off to a good start. Alistair Bell of Thurso birdied the 1st for the Thurso Lads and an 80-12-68. Andrew Crawford of Reay back from University to be the Yosser in the Old Salts + 1 (The ex Navy Team) had three birdies at 10th, 12th and 14th for 74-5-69. Further down the Field Richard McDonald of Reay, Furry Boots E Baw, also slotted home three birdies at the 4th, 9th and 10th. The nearest the pin at the 18th in the morning was won by Evan Sutherland with the very last tee shot of the morning with a great shot flying to 17 inches at this 162 yard par three. The teams were massing at the top of the leader board and not much in it at the end of the morning. Albadross were not living up to their name with the best nett score thanks to Terry Grace with his 65. Peter McCartney threw in a 71 and Alec Anderson a 72 for the team total of 208. One shot behind was Gunns & Roses and scoring was Gavin Sutherland (67), Andy Bain (70) and Gavin Gunn (72) giving them 209. The Much fancied pre tournament favourites the Fab 4 (aka the dream Team) were having a nightmare and considering changing to the Drab 4 with only Colin Paterson (70) getting a decent score. Two shots adrift of the leaders were the Bright Sparks of Thurso and carding scores were Steven Williamson (68) Jim McLeod (70) and Steve Spargo 72 for a grand 210. Lurking with intent as they always do was the grandly named Furry Boots E Baw (a play on words using the Aberdeen Doric which translates to Where's the ball) also on 210 and producing the goods was Steve Efemey, Richard McDonald and Lee Parnell all with a nett 70. All fed and watered the field was out quickly to contest the second round and the course analysis saw the CSS drop to 70 as the gentle breeze produced a bit more bite. No eagles and the birdie tally fell to 39 birdies. The par five 14th took a battering giving up 10 birdies and the par 3's fought back only surrendering 7 birdies. Gavin Sutherland with three birdies at the 3rd 5th and 18th had the best second round nett with 72-6-66 and matched by Ian Ritchie of Reay with a birdie at the 2nd for 75-9-66. The lowest gross score of the afternoon went to Paul Savage of the Inverness GC matching the 69 Graeme Dunnett produced in the morning. Paul however had a haul of 5 birdies with putts dropping for him at the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 10th and the 17th to card 69-2-67. John Hunter the Wick Club Captain a regular and welcome visitor to the Links providing the on course comedy had a nice birdie two at the 5th for a 74-5-69. Stuart Busby of Wick had a steady 87-19-68 and on nett 69 we had Tom Sinclair and Alec Anderson of Reay and Tony Wilson of Wick. With a definite birdie two Billy Dunbar of Reay grabbed the nearest the pin at the 18th in the afternoon and improved on Evan Sutherland's morning shot going closer with 15 inches. With the early evening sun throwing wonderful shadows across the course the links were looking spectacular and very picturesque in Sandside bay, it was time for results. We had four teams tied on 435 and the fourth team members score now counted to separate them. The Bright Sparks of Thurso lost out as one member of their team had a no return, and the Orion Select played with one member who had a lapsed handicap so whilst their three scores counted they had no fourth card. Some individual prizes were awarded to players out with the team winners and went to Graeme Dunnett and Paul Savage for the lowest gross scores of 69 in each round. Tony Wilson of Wick had the best morning nett of 65 and John Hunter of Wick the best afternoon nett of 69. Steven Williamson of Thurso for his Eagle and 4 birdies and Sandy Chisholm for his three two's in the morning round. The most popular award went to Andy Bain for his 17 at the 17th; at least he won a prize and got an important fourth score returned for his team. In fifth place in the Safari was the team of Albadross of Alec Anderson, Steve Lucas, Peter McCartney and Terry Grace for 435 and Peter McCartney (80) getting the important 4th score in the count back. Fourth place went to the team of the Loan Arrangers also on 435 of Ian Ross, Tom Sinclair, Stuart Busby (Wick) and Kevin McLaughlin (Hopeman) with the all important fourth score of 74. In third place was the ever present team of Gunns and Roses represented by father and son Alistair Gunn and Gavin Gunn and the roses Andy Bain and Gavin Sutherland with a final team total of 430. In second place we had the men from the Wild West as Beyond the Split Stone on 427 and in the team were Ian Mackintosh, John O'Brien, Bruce Mackay and Ian Ritchie. The Winners of the 2005 Reay Safari and clear winners with a magnificent 423 were the team with the great name of Furry Boots E Baw. They certainly knew where the ball was all day and combining well was big Murray McGlasson of Thurso playing with Reay Members Steve Efemey, Richard McDonald and Lee Parnell for an excellent victory. All in all a wonderfully successful day and thanks to our Sponsors Abbot Risk Consultants and Orion - D.Gow and Son who both confirmed in their speeches their delight at being associated with Reay Golf Club, the quality and presentation of the course and the Safari and most importantly for Reay their continued Sponsorship for the 2006 Safari.
Pilkington Cup -
13 August 05
The Course was playing at its best and with the wind unusually blowing from the east it was quite tricky. The Course has certainly been protecting itself in recent weeks and not giving up birdies or scores easily with the CSS running at 69. The set up of the course is akin to the USPGA with unforgiving rough if you stray and rewarding good play with birdie opportunities on fast running greens if you find the fairways. Good steady play from tee to green is paramount to a good score. The Division two certainly found the course tough and there was only one birdie and that fell nicely for Willie Williamson with a birdie two at the scenic 9th hole. In third place was Tom Sinclair making a rare appearance with 92-18-74. Bill McIntosh struggling off the tee did enough for second place scrambling well for 89-16-73 and relying on single putts. Also making a rare appearance was Ian Thomson with the best gross of 88 and securing first in the Division with a card of 88-20-68 being the only man under par and the runner up for the Pilkington Cup. In Division one life was also tough with the course bearing its teeth however George Prince slotted home two birdies at the 11th and the 13th and there were also two birdies for Club Captain Graeme Dunnett at the 4th and the 16th getting ready for his defence of the Club Championship. Grandstand birdie two's fell nicely for Jock Eunson and Sandy Chisholm at the 18th as both returned reasonable scores. Evan Sutherland warming up for the Senior Club Championship next weekend laid down his challenge as he birdied the 14th for 80-9-71 and third place. Playing steadily Andy Mackay birdied the 16th for second place and neat figures of 82-12-70. Playing against Evan in the Senior Club Championship shortly is Fred Groves setting out his stall with the lowest gross of 72 showing he means business birdying the long 4th to romp home and collect the Pilkington Cup carding 72-6-66. A seasoned campaigner at Reay Fred was delighted to pick up the trophy and more importantly come into some good form at the right time.
Thurso Open -
13 August 05
Caithness Golf Week (Thurso Scramble) - 05 August 05 Seventeen teams contested the Caithness Golf Week Texas Scramble in Thurso. The Lybster team showed up well with Alex Calder, George Calder and Linda MacMillan returning nett 59.2 and David Nicolson, Alistair Young and Eric Larnach fractionally better on nett 59. They were denied victory, however, when Steve Efemy and Richard MacDonald (Reay) teamed with Thurso's Julie Murray and also returned nett 59 and won with the best last six holes.
Caithness Golf Week (Reay) -
01 August 05 Concerns for the success of the Caithness Golf week evaporated as over 70 golfers turned up to play in the Inaugural Event hosted by Reay Golf Club. The event was off to a better than expected start with the weather holding up and the Competition held under Stableford rules proving that co-operation between the Clubs in Caithness could hold a great weeks golf for ladies, gents and juniors and generate visitors from south of the County.
The Ladies were from Reay, Thurso and Wick and Christina Oag from the Stamford GC in Lincolnshire. Courtesy of the better back nine Anne Simmonite (Thurso GC) claimed third place on countback over Helen Williamson (Reay GC) with a total of 34 points and a tidy birdie two on the 18th. Isobel Kirkpatrick (Thurso GC) had a very tidy round and held second place with 35 points. The winner of the Ladies section was Lynne Whitelaw (Reay GC) playing well round her home track and scoring 36 points with nice par figures. In Division one scoring was very close and five golfers were tied on level par 36 points. Some notable achievements came from Stuart Donn of Thurso GC who recorded four birdies at the 4th, 5th, 14th and 15th. John Owens also of Thurso GC claimed three birdies at the 5th, 13th and 17th with Thurso stablemate Sandy Stewart birdying the 6th and the 11th. Not to be left out Eric Larnach from Lybster GC also had a double at the 6th and the 16th. John Hunter the Wick GC Captain didn't score so well but managed a nice birdie at the 12th. Lee Parnell from Reay chipped in with a treble birdie haul at the 5th, 8th and 13th as did Club mate Richard McDonald going under par at the 6th, 7th and 10th. All the way from Kings Hill GC in Kent came A.Byron with a birdie at the 5th and from Nairn D.McCartney with a birdie at the 13th. Single Birdies went to A.Larnach of Lybster (5th), John O'Brien, Reay (13th), Bruce McKay, Reay (5th), Steve Spargo, Thurso (12th), Chris Hobson, Reay (13th), Fred Groves, Reay (13th), S.Cowie, Thurso (15th) and Willie Shearer, Thurso (8th). We need to mention J.McLaren from King James VIth GC in Perth who travelled up to play in the Golf Week. Gavin Souter, Thurso with a birdie at the 18th, A.Forbes of Wick with an impressive eagle at the 14th and a birdie at the 12th, John O'Brien from Reay and Willie Shearer, Thurso all tied in fourth place with 37 points. Murray McGlasson having been a member at Reay and now playing at Thurso used his local knowledge to birdie the 13th and claim second place with 38 points pushing Steve Efemey with a birdie on the 6th also on 38 points into third place. The winner of Division One with a birdie at the 14th was D.Sutherland of Thurso GC with a very creditable 39 points. In Division Two C.Davidson of Wick had three birdies at the 8th, 9th and 18th but only 29 points and also from Wick G.Davidson bagged a double at the 6th and 14th and a double at 4th and 13th for C.Shearer also of Wick. David Irvine from Thurso notched a birdie at the 15th. W.Rutherford, Thurso with a birdie at the 14th shared fourth place with Andy Whitelaw of Reay both on 36 points. The top three places were a lot clearer in Division Two as we had M.Wakelin all the way from Woodhall Spa to birdie the 6th and claim third with 38 points. From Lochwinnoch GC near Glasgow came A.Buchan with a birdie at the 5th and 39 points to make his mark in second place. Pride of place and a runaway winner of the Caithness Golf Week Reay Stableford with three birdies at the 9th, 14th and 16th from the Wick Golf Club and a massive haul of 43 points was J.Durrand (Jnr) playing off a 15 handicap. We hope all the visitors enjoyed Reay and come back next year and bring some friends with them to help promote the Caithness Golf Week near and far.
Presidents Prize -
30 July 05
There was a good turn out to support the President's prize on Saturday again producing a CSS of 69 and a splendid day's golf. Once again birdies proved to be a rare commodity in Division Two with only two on the day. Terry Grace had a nice birdie at the 10th and Danny O'Hagan with his customary birdie two at the short fifteenth which was very nearly an expensive ace. The lowest gross was 84 and shared by Peter McCartney and Kenny Farmer. Becoming a permanent fixture in the sweep money was the veteran Danny O'Hagan with a steady 85-15-70 for third place. Picking up some cash was Kenny Farmer with a rare visit to the podium fresh from the Mediterranean sporting a sun tan and showing how it's done for an 84-14-70 getting the nod for second place. The only man under par in the Division was the sprightly George MacDonald with 88-20-68 setting an early target for the late starters to aim at. Division One produced the better scores and a few birdies. Jock Eunson at the 11th, Colin Stewart at the 16th, Bill Budding also at the 11th, Stephen Lucas at the 14th, a nice two for Andy Whitelaw at the 15th, John O'Brien at the 10th and Bruce Mackay at the 17th for a neat 79-10-69. Tied with Bruce was George Prince carding 80-11-69. Andy Mackay back from his summer break in Italy was clearly rejuvenated knocking in three birdies at the 13th and a brace back to back at the 17th and 18th for a grandstand finish and good form running up to the Seniors Open returning 80-12-68. Another veteran campaigner and a dark horse worth a flutter for the Club Championship was the evergreen Ian Ritchie on 76-9-67 for second and dropping in birdies at the 3rd and a birdie two at the 15th. In a class of his own however was the youthful Lee Parnell recording the best gross of the day with a fine 72 and a card showing birdies at the 6th, 13th and the awkward 17th. Lee finished with figures of 72-6-66 to comfortably win the President's Prize and is delighted to get his handicap back to 5 as he too hits form in time for the Club Championship finals.
Lybster Open -
30 July 05
Margaret Larnach presented the prizes on behalf of the Lybster branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Wick Gala Open -
28 July 05 Another successful Wick Gala Open Golf Tournament was played yesterday at Wick Golf Course. Some Americans touring northern golf courses were surprised and delighted to be able to take part in the competition. They had played at a number of courses including Dornoch and Nairn and one of them, B Field won the open handicap competition.
Thurso Gala Open (Thurso) -
24 July 05 Stephen Fiddler, the 15 handicap player was only two over par at the turn and didn't do too much wrong on the inward half to return an excellent nett 64, two clear of half a dozen players, to lift the 'We-Frame-It' sponsored trophy. Michael Forbes, Stephen King and Jim Youngson finished in that order behind Fiddler, in the higher handicap category, while Angus Cameron's inward nine of 36 was good enough to relegate Reay's, Gavin Gunn and Stuart Donn into second and third places, respectively - in the lower handicap category.. Raymond Taylor, Reay managed to win the scratch with an inward half of 36, jsut good enough to beat George Munro, with both returning 74's. It was a good day for junior coaches as Reay's, Lyn Whitelaw added to Angus Cameron's win by leading the ladies section with a nett 73. Junior player Rebecca Meiklejohn claimed second place with a nett 76.
Stuart Campbell Open (Thurso) -
23 July 05 The first open trophy of the weekend, sponsored by Ashley Ann, was grabbed in spectacular fashion by Ron Mowat who survived a 10 at the fourth hole on his way to a nett 65. Mowat's good effort also won first place in the higher handicap category by a stroke from Alan 'Skins' Mackenzie who must have rued the sevens on his first and final holes. Peter McCann, Torvean completed the prize list in this category with a nett 67. Colin Chessor managed to win the lower handicap category with a steady round and nett 66. Graeme Cameron and Willie Shearer both had nett 67's finishing second and third, respectively. The scratch award went to a very much inform, Dougie Thorburn. Who although, bogeying the 14th, wracked up a serious of birdies for a 68.
US Navcommsta Open (Thurso) -
17 July 05 His finest performance came in this tournament on the Sunday. With equal halves recording a gross 72 for a superb nett of 62, three shots ahead of regular visitor from the south of England, Andy Prater. Another regular supporter, Alistair Gunn claimed third spot in the lower handicap category with nett 67. Walter Rutherford was top man in the other category with a nett 66, two clear of Reay's, Bill Mcleod and three from Richie Campbell. The day's low round came from Dougie Thorburn who had seven three's on his card, including the first and 11th, on his way to a one over par 70.
Corrie Open -
16 July 05
The Corrie Open on Saturday sponsored by Corrie Plumbing and Heating began with good weather conditions for most of the field but late starters caught some pretty unpleasant rain. The story of the day belonged to Gavin Sutherland going out of bounds at the second and losing a ball at the 4th and as his ball was still rising as it cleared the 5th green the mists of despair descended and the blood boiled over as self control evaporated. Calm again on the 6th tee a monstrous drive saw a very short iron flicked into the green to set up an eagle opportunity however a birdie sufficed to get back on track. This was followed by a brace of two's going under par at the 9th and the 15th and 'smartening up the card' to quote the revered Peter Alliss to produce the best gross score of the day and the best haul of three birdies. The birdie two at the 15th was the closest you could get without dropping in for a hole in one. The moral of the story is never give up. Andy Bain bagged a birdie at the 5th and David Mackay at the 13th but both failed to go to the same school as Gavin and signed for their scores with the alias Norman Roberts, and there were a few more of them on the day too. Colin Stewart out of sorts and struggling nevertheless had a birdie double with putts dropping at the 13th and the 16th. Thurso Member Jim Youngson got in on the act with a birdie two at the 15th. Donald Mowat (Mojo) had two 2's with birdies at the 5th and the 15th, and there were further birdies for Gavin Gunn at the 12th and John O'Brien at the 6th. It was nice to see Robin Wilson come up from Brora to compete having heard about the quality of the course and nicer to hear his favourable comments having played the course and returned a score unlike most of our other visitors with the initials NR.
At the top end of the leaderboard we had two players on nett par in Ian Ritchie and Sandy Chisholm who had a cheeky two on the 5th. Cammie Ross with 79-11-68 and Alistair Gunn with 77-9-68 had nice steady rounds and both notched up birdies at the par 5 fourteenth hole which was once again proving a favourite hole for giving up birdies on the day. Davy Swanson making a rare competitive appearance slotting a cool birdie at the Braid's Choice 6th hole had a 91-24-67 but lost third place on countback to George MacDonald making his shots count to return 88-21-67. Nice to see Davy play so well as he is the man responsible for our excellent web site on ebigh where you will find all the match reports, photos and lots of interesting features on the Club. There is a link to ebigh from the club site www.reaygolfclub.co.uk which is well worth a look as is the link to www.howdidido.co.uk . In second place was Danny O'Hagan our steady Eddie who doesn't seem to miss a fairway and with a birdie at the 14th produced neat figures for 82-16-66 for the runner up spot. Also with a stunning birdie at the 14th the man who has just discovered if you keep it on the fairway you create the scoring chances was Grant Coghill to comfortably win the Corrie Open with a superb 77-13-64. Grant had just invested in a new Ping Driver and used it to great effect splitting the fairways and setting up a two shot victory margin over the field and claim the title of Corrie Open Champion.
Reid & Fraser Open -
09 July 05 Billy Sutherland's stoneworking skills at Thurso Golf Club have been much admired as he made a wall for the first tee last year and recently completed a pair of lovely bridges on the second and fourth holes. On Saturday, however, the admiration was for his building a superb winning golf score. Sutherland played his best ever round of 82 for a nett 61 which turned out to be just good enough to keep second placed Michael Henderson at bay after the Caithness rugby stalwart produced a gross 73, nett 62. Needless to say both performances won the two handicap categories. The lower handicap places went to Doug McCowan, Willie Shearer and Ronald Mackay with nett scores of 65, 65 and 66 respectively. The nett score situation in the higher category was exactly the same with Stephen King, Harvey Cowe and Richie Campbell finishing in that order.
A & A Mackay Open -
03 July 05
Extremely windy conditions affected the size of the field and the level of scoring in Sunday's Open at Thurso Golf Club, with the winning handicap and scratch scores return by the late starters. This should not detract from the quality of Trevor Henderson's victory, however, as his gross score was third best of the day in returning a nett 64 to win by two shots from Walter Rutherford and by three from Graeme Reid, who is doing well in his first competitive golf season. Jim Sangster had comfortably the day's best scratch score of 72, followed by a 77 from Sandy Stewart which earned him first nett in the lower handicap category. Graeme Cameron claimed the second scratch prize, with Andy MacGregor and Reay's, David Mowat finishing second and third, respectively in the lower handicap section. Tennent's Cup Greensome -
25 June 05 The Tennents Cup Greensome was played on Saturday and hotly contested with the result hanging finely in the balance. Greensomes format is a bit easier than the traditional foursomes format as both players get to tee off and the best drive from two is selected before alternate shots are played until holing out. The partnership of Alf Mackay and Sandy Chisholm started well and scored a nice birdie at the 3rd but then fell well out of contention. John Stewart and John Disbury also managed a birdie at the 16th and Andrew Crawford and Wayne Mowat got an excellent two at the par 3 eighteenth but ended up well down the field. Gelling well together were Andy Mackay and David Gray scoring steadily and with two birdies at Braid's choice the 6th and the short Vikings Grave the 15th held third place with 78 - 12 - 66. In second place with three birdies at the 5th and back to back at the 16th and 17th came the dynamic duo of David Mackay and Donald Mowat producing superb figures with equal halves of 36 to return 72 - 7- 65. The Husband and wife team of Lynne Whitelaw and Andy Whitelaw clearly in harmony as patience and a good understanding is needed in this format finished with a birdie on the 18th and had a tidy card to return 84 - 19 - 65 and win the trophy by the narrowest of margins on the count back.
JGC Open (Thurso) -
19 June 05 Stephen Spargo was the star man in this years JGC Open, at Thurso Golf Club and landed top of the field with 100 entries. Stevie had four birdies in his superb one under par round of 68, three better than Stevie Cowie, Alan Swanson and John Gunn (Lybster). He also claimed the JGC trophy for the lowest nett round, two ahead of Stevie Cowie and Michael MacDougall (Wick), who were the winners of the lower and higher handicap categories, respectively.
George Coupar Challenge - 18
June 05
The postponed George Coupar Challenge Shield was played for on Saturday over the Reay Links in pleasant golfing conditions under Stableford rules producing a CSS of 68 which meant good scoring. Division two golfers however struggled to break the par of 36 points with only one birdie in the Division all day by Colin Earnshaw at the par 5 14th. Indeed Colin on 36 points with a very tidy card was the best golfer and emerged in pole position. Runner up was Andy Whitelaw on 35 points who managed to beat John Disbury also on 35 points on the count back over the back 9 holes. The rest of the field struggled but not a surprise as they had played in the Pentland Open at Thurso in the morning and there were creaking bones and stiff backs and loads of other excuses coming out of the woodwork for simply poor golf. Division One fared a lot better and produced a mass of good birdies with the star man being the fashionable Raymond Taylor who bagged four with two nice 2's. Birdies for Raymond came at the 5th, 10th, 12th and 15th. John O'Brien also notched up two 2's at the 5th and the 9th for 36 points. Matching the two 2's at 5th and 9th was Colin Stewart but sadly his points total wasn't quite up to scratch. Donald Mowat also came in with 36 points and a birdie at the intimidating 17th. Evan Sutherland playing well just now and hitting a consistent vein of good form shot 37 points equalled by David Mackay who had a nice brace of birdies at the difficult 2nd and the 17th. Sandy Chisholm further down the field birdied the 13th and Ian Ritchie also got into the birdie feast with a stylish grandstand 2 at the 18th for the gallery.
We had two players on 38 points with Raymond Taylor and David Mowat sharing the honours and third place but Raymond getting the edge on the count back. David Mowat had a very consistent round with a very tidy card and three birdies coming at the 3rd, 13th and also the 17th which it would appear was not showing its teeth today. We had a real dog fight for the trophy between Murdo MacDonald and Andy Mackay who both shot a spectacular 40 points each and both had good birdies. Andy Mackay had a great birdie 2 at the 7th the hardest hole on the course and Murdo left his birdie till late in the round but made a 3 at the 16th. The count back on the back 9 holes saw the veteran campaigner Murdo MacDonald emerge as the winner of the George Coupar Challenge Shield and a fine victory to show there's plenty life in the old dog yet. Straight hitting and tidy course management saw the experienced Murdo plot his way successfully round the links.
Pentland Open (Thurso) -
18 June 05 This stableford event setup by Thurso's, Pentland Hotel for three men trios brought together an entry of 22.
Peter O'Hare, Graeme Reid and Ronald Mackay claimed the awards for the best scores outwith the winning teams.
Reay Gala Open -
12 June 05
Reay Golf Club was delighted to welcome so many Golfers and friends from Thurso Golf Club and Wick Golf Club on Saturday to the Links to contest the Reay Gala Open. Thanks for an excellent show of support to everybody and thanks for all the kind comments on the presentation and condition of the course which James Macadie had done a great job in preparing. Thanks also to our Tournament Sponsors Ritchie's for sponsoring the day and if they can attract such a big field we hope they will come back next year. The course was in good nick so what about the Golf? The Competition scratch score was 69 with a field of 81. To the Ladies first and Julie Murray of Thurso GC recorded a fine 104-22-82 to claim third place. The lowest gross of the day for the Ladies went to Lorna MacMillan of Lybster with 96. Lorna grabbed second place with 96-19-77 a super effort. Out in front by one shot was Angela Williamson from Thurso GC with 109-33-76 to win the Ladies section. Division two from the Gents was hotly contested with scoring tightly packed and Wick Golf Club members dominating the best scores. The Wick handicap surgeon will be waiting in the wings. The lowest gross score came from Reay's Kenny Farmer with a sound 83. David Brims of Wick scored 92-23-69 for a level par score. Steady rounds from Alec Mackay 85-17-68 and Jim Youngson 89-21-68 both from Reay and using their handicaps well saved home blushes for joint 4th spot. Third pace went to Graham Doull of Wick making good use of his handicap and plotting his way round to 88-21-67. John Young also of Wick held it together on the back nine to secure second with 85-18-67 pushing Doull into third on the count back. Top spot and winning Division 2 by one shot from his stable mates at Wick came Brian Cassie with an excellent 87-21-66 an effort to be proud of.
Division 1 saw the home players feature strongly with Don MacKay (Jnr) and Dougie Thorburn of Thurso GC sharing the lowest gross score of 72. Dougie managed two birdies with a 2 at the 5th and a birdie 3 at the 13th. Don matched the birdie at the 13th and struck with a second at the 16th. Sharing third place with nett 69 was four competitors led by John Hunter the Wick Club Captain 76-7-69 who had birdies at the 16th and a grandstand finish with a birdie 2 at the 18th to play the back 9 in an impressive one under par. David Mowat of Reay making a rare appearance this year brought home 79-10-69 a fine steady round. Dougie Thorburn 72-3-69 and Murray McGlasson 81-12-69 both of Thurso made up the quartet on 69. Second Place was shared by three players and all from the home club. Pipping the other two on count back was Old Don or DC Mackay showing young Don DA Mackay that the old man still cuts the mustard with the best producing 75-7-68 to claim second. Third spot went to David Dunbar cruising consistently to 74-6-68 and edging out seasoned campaigner Raymond Taylor 73-5-68 who had a nice birdie 2 at the 5th. On his own and a clear winner in Division 1 was Gavin Gunn of Reay who has been in good form recently notching a birdie at the 8th for 78-12-66 and a very strong back 9 saw Gavin win the Tournament on a count back with B.Cassie of Wick on the closest of margins.
Hole-In-One Brian Davidson, Reay Golf Club scores a hole in one at the 7th at Reay. This is the most difficult hole on the course (Stroke Index 1) and is a par three named "Pilkington" at 196 yards. Brian aced the 7th using a four iron. This is the second hole in one from Brian having previously holed out in one at the 5th in 2002. Congratulations to Brian and best wishes as he now works on the remaining 4 par threes.
RNLI Open (Wick) -
05 June 05
Bank of Scotland Open (Wick) -
22 May 05 This Open tournament attracted a good field of players with weather being the best this season, so far.
The scratch prize was won by Nicky Klimas (Wick) with a round of 70. A
fine short game on the outward half kept him in contention and a steady inward
half finished off the round in style. The handicap prize in category one was won by Alan Young with a nett 67 and in categories two and three by William Taylor and William Wydmuch respectively, each with nett 64.
Reay School PTA Open -
21 May 05
The Reay School PTA Open held on Saturday with a tricky breeze blowing and excellent course conditions with slick greens brought out some amazing results and scoring and some unusual coincidences with home players taking all the honours. Donald C. Mowat 'Mojo' retained the trophy with a sparkling 64 (9) but scored two birdies less than last year and couldn't quite match his magnificent 62 of last year. Nevertheless a good steady round kept a firm grip on the Trophy. The Ladies competition also produced another stunning coincidence in that Lynn Whitelaw also retained the title that she won last year returning a 71 (28) giving Lynn a comfortable win and improving on her 74 of last year. This has to be some kind of record with warmest congratulations to both Lynn and Mojo and we hope they will both go for a hat trick of wins next year. Best round of the day has to go to Graeme Dunnett the Club Captain who was chasing records and produced a terrific 66-1-65 to take second place. Equal halves of 33 made up a quality round. Graeme bogeyed the first but made up with two birdies at the 6th and 7th. Three birdies at 11th, 15th and 17th and a dropped shot at the 14th completed the round. Graeme held the lead for most of the day until 'Mojo' weaved his magic with a late round in the evening. Partnering Mojo was Dav Mackay very much an in form player at the moment 'snapping' at his heels with an incredible seven birdies at 4th, 5th, 6th, 9th, 10th, 15th and 18th and which saw him record four 2's but sadly two triple bogeys also and still return an excellent 65 (6). This truly was a veritable feast of birdies over the Reay Links and 'Snapper' must be regretting those two bad holes and a possible course record. There was a three way tie for fourth with Kevin Chalmers of Thurso 68 (12), John Hunter the Wick Club Captain 68 (6) and John O'Brien also 68 (5) completing the Division 1 top scores. They chalked up a few birdies between them as well. Division 2 could not quite match the quality scoring of the birdie blitzes in Division 1 but still managed some worthy returns. Alf Mackay produced the best gross score of 83 in the Division to come in with a 70 (13). Peter McCartney a new member at Reay this year produced a very steady round to win the Division on count-back with a 67 (19), the highlight of his round being a nice birdie 2 at the 5th. An ugly 9 at Braid's Choice the 6th stopped his chance of collecting the main trophy. Willie Young another relative newcomer to Competitive Golf produced a creditable 68 (26) but was pushed into third place by another late round this time from Callum Mackenzie on count-back who also scored 68 (21) to challenge the lead. Fourth place fell to Bill McIntosh with a steady 69 (19) with a disappointing triple bogey at the 4th and also at the 13th blotting the card, another tale of woe.
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