SLGA Tournament Officer Fiona Farquharson, at work on her laptop at last week's Scottish girls championship at Alyth GC, shows Clare-Marie Carlton how it's done (Cal Carson Golf Agency image, all rights reserved).

Clare-Marie Carlton joins SLGA

staff as tournament assistant

Scotland junior golf international Clare-Marie Carlton has completed her first week as tournament assistant on the staff of the Scottish Ladies Golfing Association.
The 21-year-old from Paisley and a member of Fereneze Golf Club had completed a four-year course at Stirling University and was keen to obtain a golf-related job.
It was her good luck that the SLGA were advertising for an assistant to help Tournament Officer Fiona Farquharson and she was chosen to fill the vacancy.
“It’s a great break for me and I aim to make the most of it. It will mean travelling round the country, helping to run SLGA tournaments but I should still be able to play in the Order of Merit 36-hole events at the weekends,” said Clare-Marie.
She has played for Scotland at Under-21 and girls’ internationals level and won the Scottish schoolgirls’ championship at Murrayshall, Perth in 2004.
Clare-Marie was runner-up to Louise Fleming in the Scottish Under-21 stroke-play championship at West Kilbride in 2005.
In 2003, at the age of 16, she became one of the youngest winners of the Renfrewshire county championship. She was beaten finalist in 2007.
Miss Carlton’s first week in her new job coincided with the Scottish Under-18 girls’ championship at Alyth Golf Club, Perthshire so Fiona Farquharson was able to start her assistant’s on-job training without delay.
The SLGA headquarters are in Perth and Clare-Marie intends to travel daily from her home in Paisley for the time being.

Michelle Wie only one shot off
the pace in LPGA Tour event

Michelle Wie shot her best round for many a long day - a 65 - to move to 12 under par for the LPGA Tour's State Farm Classic.
Christina Kim had a second-round 68 after opening with a 63.
She leads by one from Wie and three others. under for the tournament.
Wie, who has never won an LPGA tournament, is playing only part time this year after enrolling at Stanford University, Tiger Woods' alma mater.
“I've had two solid rounds but I'm still a shot behind. I need to go lower over the weekend,” said the 18-year-old from Hawaii.
“There's a lot of birdie opportunities out there today that I missed. So tomorrow and Sunday I just need to get the rest.”
SECOND-ROUND LEADERBOARD
Panther Creek Country Club, Springfield, Illinois.
Par 144 (2 x 72) 6608yd.
1. Christina Kim 63-68--131
2. Sherri Turner 66-66--132
2. Ji Young Oh 66-66--132
2. Yani Tseng 66-66--1322-12
2. Michelle Wie 67-65--132
6. Sun Young Yoo 64-69--133
7. Katie Futcher 70-64--134
7. Na Yeon Choi 67-67--134
9. Wendy Doolan 67-68--135
9. Jee Young Lee 65-70--135
9. Kyeong Bae 68-67--135
9. Stacy Prammanasudh 69-66--135
9. Eva Dahllof 68-67--135
OTHER SCORES
38. Becky Morgan 70-69--139
MISSED THE CUT
94. Mhairi McKay 71-72--143
100. Johanna Head 73-71--144
139. Nancy Lopez 76-78--154

Clare Queen in top 20 with one

round to go in Italian Open

FROM THE LADIES' EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
With additonal information from Colin Farquharson

Clare Queen will be rueing a triple bogey and a double bogey, both in her first-round 76, as she moves into Sunday's final round in joint 19th place at the BMW Ladies Italian Open in Tuscany.

The Scot, playing out of The Carrick at Cameron House, has climbed up the leaderboard with subsequent rounds of 71 and 70, her third round including four birdies, for a running total of 217.

Clare, picture right by Cal Carson Golf Agency (all rights reserved), starts the final day 11 shots behind Germany's Martina Eberl who shot a four-under-par 67 in tricky conditions to seize the third round lead.
The 26-year-old from Munich finished the day two ahead of the field on a total of seven-under-par 206. Overnight leader Gwladys Nocera from France shared second with Denmark’s Lisa-Holm Sorensen on five-under-par while first round leader Maria Hjorth from Sweden and Becky Brewerton from Wales were a shot further back in a share of fourth.
Hot and humid conditions, combined with a swirling wind at Argentario Golf and Spa Resort, tested Eberl’s persistence. “It was all about patience today,” said Eberl. “Today was a totally different golf course because the wind came from the other direction and I think it was a tougher wind.”
Last year’s Madrid Ladies Masters champion posted six birdies and two bogeys in total, with three birdies in her opening four holes. “I was very fortunate with my start. I just tried to stay calm. I didn’t hit the ball well but I somehow managed to stay on the green and I putted really well today,” she added.
“The wind is tricky because it swirls in the trees and you think it’s one way but then it’s downwind. It is rarely a straight wind so you always have to judge it a little bit and I think that’s what makes it tough.”
Nocera, the current European number one, struggled to find the correct yardage in the wind and shot a two-over 73. “I played well but with the wind I was too long, too short, too much left and too much right,” said the seven-time LET winner.
“It was a different wind again so it was hard to figure out how strong it was.”
As one of the most experienced players in the field, Nocera was looking forward to the challenge of trying to secure a third LET title this season. “I have nothing to lose. I’m playing well so I can shoot low tomorrow,” she said.
Sorensen, whose sole LET victory came in the 2005 Finnish Masters, shot a one-under 70 but also struggled with her distance control. “I hit it close to the pin at times but I also struggled with my length. I think the key was my short game and my putting,” said Sorensen.
Having been in contention on a number of occasions, Sorensen was keeping her emotions in check.
“I’m going to take it as it comes, just go out there and focus on the pars. I think a par is a good score,” she said.

SCOREBOARD

THIRD ROUND TOTALS

Par 213 (3 x 71)

206 M Eberl (Ger) 65 74 67.

208 L H Sorensen (Den) 68 70 70, G Nocera (Fra) 65 70 73.

209 B Brewerton (Wal) 66 71 72, M Hjorth (Swe) 64 73 72.

210 G Simpson (Eng) 70 69 71.

213 T Elosegui (Spa) 70 68 65, S Corce (Ita) 69 73 71, C Hallstrom (Swe) 70 71 72, L Fairclough (Eng) 70 70 73.

Other scores:

215 S Head Eng) 74 70 71 (jt 13th).

217 C Queen (The Carrick at Cameron House) 76 71 70 (jt 19th).

218 L Hall (Eng) 72 76 70 (jt 21st).

219 T Johnson (Eng) 71 71 77 (jt 31stl;

221 J Wilson (Strathaven) 74 75 72, K Matharu (Eng) 73 73 75 (jt 42nd).

222 N C Booth (Eng) 72 74 76 (jt 49th.

224 E Pilgrim (Wal) 72 78 74, R Coakley (Ire) 71 76 77 (jt 57th).

Stephanie Meadow's disappointing finish
in Betsy Rawls championship in USA

US-based Stephanie Meadow from Jordanstown, Northern Ireland finished 25th in a field of 77 players at the McDonald's Betsy Rawls girls' championship at White Manor Country Club, Malvern in Pennsylvania.
Stephanie scored 72, 78 and 78 for a 15-over-par total of 228 over the 6,186yd, par-71 course.
Irish girls champion in 2006 and beaten finalist last year, Miss Meadow had a triple bogey 7 at the 18th in her last round, having birdied the long sixth and short 14th prior to that.
Stephanie is a member of the Ireland team for next month's Girls Home Internationals at Panmure Golf Club.
She is a resident student at the International Junior Golf Academy on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
LEADING TOTALS
Par 213 (3 x 71)
212 Jessica Korda (Bradenton, Florida) 72 71 69.
213 Alison Lee (Valencia, California) 68 71 74.
217 Ginger Howard (Bradenton, Florida) 77 68 72.
Other total:
228 Stephanie Meadow (Jordanstown, Northern Ireland) 72 78 78.

Futures Tour event at Syracuse, New York State

Vikki (71) and Pamela (72) make solid start

while temperatures goes into the 90s

PRESS RELEASE FROM DURAMED FUTURES TOUR
SYRACUSE, N.Y., July 18, 2008 - Lisa Meldrum of Montreal, Quebec, paced the field with a bogey-free round of 5-under-par 66 in first-round play at the $90,000 Alliance Bank Golf Classic presented by BILL RAPP SUPERSTORE on Friday.
Meldrum fended off an afternoon flurry by Jin Young Pak (67) of Kang Leung, South Korea, Mo Martin (67) of Altadena, Calif., and Gerina Mendoza (67) of Roswell, N.M., who are one stroke back at 4-under par.
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SCOTSWATCH: Vikki Laing is sharing 17th place on 71 and Pamela Feggans is joint 32nd on 72. Not a Scot but sure you would like to know that Brenda McLarnon from Belfast had a 75.
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Thirty-one players finished their first round on the 6,206-yard, par-71 lay-out at The Links at Erie Village at even par or better, battling a stifling heat that reached into the lower 90s throughout the day.
The afternoon trio of Pak, Martin and Mendoza threatened Meldrum's morning total, but she retained the lead throughout the day after scattering five birdies on her scorecard. Meldrum, a third-year Duramed FUTURES Tour pro, is pursuing her second professional victory after winning the CN Canadian Women's Open Championship in 2006.
"It was just a pretty solid round," Meldrum said. "I was just able to roll the ball a little bit better today and get some putts to drop."
The soft-spoken Meldrum converted a 30-foot putt to save par on her ninth hole after clipping the flagstick out of the bunker. She followed with another key par save on the 11th hole and attributed putting as a critical factor to getting her round off to a good start.
"The greens really liked me today, which was nice for a change," said Meldrum, who had 27 putts. "Hopefully they will like me tomorrow."
Meldrum said her season has been one of ups and downs, but recent results from The Duramed Championship (T17) in Mason, Ohio, and the CIGNA Golf Classic (T42) in Bloomfield, Conn., signify a reversal of fortune.
"I had a rough start to the season, but the last two events have been my best tournaments of the year," Meldrum said.
Pak, a 2005 Duramed FUTURES Tour winner, started out with four birdies in her first five holes. Mendoza carded her first bogey-free round of the year, posting back-to-back birdies on No. 6 and 7 on her back nine. Martin, the 2007 El Paso Golf Classic champion, registered five birdies and one bogey that came on the par-5, 17th hole.
Second-round play begins Saturday morning at 8 a.m. off the first and 10th tees. The leading group of Meldrum, Pak and Martin tee off at 2:30 p.m.
For real-time scoring and more information, visit www.duramedfuturestour.com.
Weather: A mix of sun and clouds with temperatures reaching 91 degrees and winds blowing southwest from 10-20 mph.

Duramed Futures Tour Scoreboard
$90,000 ALLIANCE BANK CLASSIC
The Links at Erie Village, Syracuse, New York State
FIRST ROUND
Par 71 (36-35). 6,206yd.
1 Lisa Meldrum (Montreal, Quebec) 34-32 - 66
2 Jin Young Pak (Kang Leung, South Korea) 31-36 - 67
2 Mo Martin (Altadena, Calif.) 33-34 - 67
2 Gerina Mendoza (Roswell, New Mexico) 33-34 - 67
5 Leah Whiting (Hilo, Hawaii) 33-35 - 68
5 Lisa Ferrero (Lodi, Calif.) 35-33 - 68
5 Lynn Valentine (East Lyme, Conn.) 35-33 - 68
8 Carling Coffing (Middletown, Ohio) 34-35 - 69
8 Courtney Erdman (Altadena, Calif.) 36-33 - 69
10 Rebecka Heinmert (San Jose, Calif.) 39-31 - 70
10 Chella Choi (Seoul, South Korea) 35-35 - 70
10 Song Yi Choi (Seoul, South Korea) 36-34 - 70
10 Kim Welch (Sacramento, Calif.) 38-32 - 70
10 LeAnna Wicks (Brighton, Mich.) 35-35 - 70
10 Haeji Kang (Seoul, South Korea) 35-35 - 70
10 Whitney Myers (York, Pa.) 38-32 - 70
17 Samantha Richdale (Kelowna, Br Columbia) 35-36 - 71
17 Noon Huachai (Bangkok, Thailand) 35-36 - 71
17 Stephanie George (Myerstown, Pa.) 35-36 - 71
17 Stacey Tate (Auckland, New Zealand) 37-34 - 71
17 Kelly Froelich (Raizeux, France) 36-35 - 71
17 Christi Cano (San Antonio, Texas) 37-34 - 71
17 Jenny Suh (Fairfax, Va.) 36-35 - 71
17 M. J. Hur (Seoul, South Korea) 36-35 - 71
17 Annie Young (Highland, Utah) 36-35 - 71
17 Christine Boucher (Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec) 35-36 - 71
17 Kylene Pulley (Kokomo, Ind.) 35-36 - 71
17 Vikki Laing (Musselburgh, Scotland) 36-35 - 71
17 Mandi McConnell (Grand Blanc, Mich.) 38-33 - 71
17 Moah Chang (Los Angeles, Calif.) 36-35 - 71
17 Ashley Grier (Hagerstown, Maryland) 35-36 - 71
32 Christine Cho (Kent, Wash.) 37-35 - 72
32 Nicole Jeray (Berwyn, Ill.) 37-35 - 72
32 Carol Green-Robertson (Tazewell, Va.) 36-36 - 72
32 Kim Augusta (Rumford, Rhode Island) 36-36 - 72
32 Jessica Steward (Mystic, Conn.) 37-35 - 72
32 Angela Buzminski (Oshawa, Ontario) 38-34 - 72
32 Cindy Lee-Pridgen (Sabah, Malaysia) 37-35 - 72
32 Kelly Lagedrost (Brooksville, Fla.) 34-38 - 72
32 Jennifer Ackerson (Dallas, Texas) 36-36 - 72
32 Alissa Kuczka (Phoenix, Ariz.) 38-34 - 72
32 Maru Martinez (Maracaibo, Venezuela) 37-35 - 72
32 Pamela Feggans (Patna, Scotland) 35-37 - 72
32 Andrea Werner (Evansville, Ind.) 36-36 - 72
32 Kellee Booth (McKinney, Texas) 38-34 - 72
32 Katrina Leckovic (Burnaby, Br Columbia) 37-35 - 72
32 Sohi Moon (Seoul, South Korea) 36-36 - 72
32 Whitney Wade (Glasgow, Kentucky) 38-34 - 72
32 Lindsey Edmunds (London, Alberta) 37-35 - 72
50 Stephanie Otteson (Wilson, N.C.) 40-33 - 73
50 Lorraine Ballerano (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) 37-36 - 73
50 Michelle Jarman (Wilmington, N.C.) 38-35 - 73
50 Sofie Andersson (Angelholm, Sweden) 37-36 - 73
50 Sin Ah Ham (Torrance, Calif.) 36-37 - 73
50 Janell Howland (Boise, Idaho) 35-38 - 73
50 Lori Atsedes (Ithaca, N.Y.) 35-38 - 73
50 Misun Cho (Cheongju, South Korea) 35-38 - 73
50 Julia Huh (Pasadena, Md.) 38-35 - 73
50 Juli Erekson (Mapleton, Utah) 36-37 - 73
50 Katie Fraley (Brandenburg, Ky.) 36-37 - 73
50 Brandi Jackson (Greenville, S.C.) 37-36 - 73
50 Danah Ford (Indianapolis, Ind.) 36-37 - 73
50 Libby Smith (Essex Junction, Vt.) 37-36 - 73
50 Katie Allison (Little River, S.C.) 36-37 - 73
50 Megan Godfrey (Homewood, Ill.) 38-35 - 73
66 Jessica Carafiello (Coral Springs, Fla.) 36-38 - 74
66 Amanda Mathis (Opelousas, La.) 38-36 - 74
66 Jaclyn Burch (Satellite Beach, Fla.) 39-35 - 74
66 Hannah Yun (a) (Bradenton, Fla.) 37-37 - 74
66 Leah Wigger (Louisville, Ky.) 39-35 - 74
66 Amanda McCurdy (Little Rock, Ark.) 40-34 - 74
66 Kristina Tucker (Stockholm, Sweden) 38-36 - 74
66 Mindy Kim (Diamond Bar, Calif.) 39-35 - 74
66 Meghan Little (Sturgis, S.D.) 35-39 - 74
74 Jean Reynolds (Newnan, Ga.) 39-35 - 74
74 Jill Frantz (Iowa City, Iowa) 40-34 - 74
74 Sam White (Potomac, Md.) 40-34 - 74
74 Alejandra Shaw (Vina Del Mar, Chile) 38-36 - 74
74 Alexandra Braga (Los Angeles, Calif.) 40-34 - 74
74 Caroline Larsson (Stockholm, Sweden) 40-34 - 74
74 Sophia Sheridan (Guadalajara, Mexico) 39-35 - 74
74 Marcela Leon (Monterrey, Mexico) 35-39 - 74
74 Jessica Shepley (Oakville, Ontario) 36-38 - 74
74 Lauren Todd (Phoenix, Ariz.) 39-35 - 74
74 Taya Battistella (Portland, Ore.) 37-37 - 74
86 Sarah Olsen (Grosse Ile, Mich.) 39-36 - 75
86 Courtney Mahon (Lee's Summit, Mo.) 38-37 - 75
86 Ashley Knoll (The Woodlands, Texas) 40-35 - 75
86 Jillian Wyne (Calgary, Alberta) 35-40 - 75
86 Gina Umeck (Redlands, Calif.) 39-36 - 75
86 Jeehae Lee (Seoul, South Korea) 37-38 - 75
86 Sara Brown (Tucson, Ariz.) 41-34 - 75
86 Tiffany Tavee (Tempe, Ariz.) 41-34 - 75
86 Devan Andersen (Guadalajara, Mexico) 38-37 - 75
86 Brenda McLarnon (Belfast, Ireland) 36-39 - 75
86 Sasha Medina (Ponce, Puerto Rico) 37-38 - 75
86 Morgan Olds (Stamford, Conn.) 37-38 - 75
86 Bridget Dwyer (Kailua, Hawaii) 37-38 - 75
86 Tanya Dergal (Durango, Mexico) 40-35 - 75
86 Anastasia Kostina (Nakhabino, Russia) 39-36 - 75
86 Jin Hyun Kim (Seoul, South Korea) 37-38 - 75
102 Y. J. Jin (Seoul, South Korea) 39-37 - 76
102 Molly Birmingham (Cornelius, N.C.) 41-35 - 76
102 Ulrika Ljungman-Smith (Stockholm, Sweden) 38-38 - 76
102 Bing Lim (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) 38-38 - 76
102 Briana Vega (Andover, Mass.) 40-36 - 76
102 Sunny Oh (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) 39-37 - 76
102 Jenny Hansen (Cairo, Neb.) 39-37 - 76
102 Ashley Prange (Noblesville, Ind.) 38-38 - 76
102 Manuela Tarazona (Buenos Aires, Argentina) 36-40 - 76
111 Kate Stepanek (Guilford, Conn.) 41-36 - 77
111 Catherine Matranga (Fort Worth, Texas) 37-40 - 77
111 Susan Choi (Natick, Mass.) 40-37 - 77
111 Kelly Schaub (Greeley, Colo.) 36-41 - 77
111 Haley Gildea (East Greenwich, R.I.) 38-39 - 77
111 Lili Alvarez (Durango, Mexico) 37-40 - 77
111 Cortney Reno (Grosse Ile, Mich.) 39-38 - 77
111 Kyla Jones (Nanuet, N.Y.) 41-36 - 77
111 Heather Angell (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 39-38 - 77
111 Melissa Eaton (Port Shepstone, South Africa) 38-39 - 77
121 Rachel Bailey (Faulconbridge, Australia) 38-40 - 78
121 Jutta Degerman (Helsinki, Finland) 40-38 - 78
121 Jenna Pearson (Wheaton, Ill.) 40-38 - 78
121 Eileen Vargas (Ibague, Colombia) 41-37 - 78
121 Shayna Miyajima (Maui, Hawaii) 42-36 - 78
126 Jessica Schneider (Elgin, Ill.) 42-37 - 79
127 Elin Andersson (Eskilstuna, Sweden) 41-39 - 80
127 Charlotte Campbell (Heathrow, Fla.) 42-38 - 80
129 Carmen Bandea (Atlanta, Ga.) 42-39 - 81
129 Yeon Joo Lee (Seoul, South Korea) 43-38 - 81
129 Mary Moan (New Haven, Conn.) 42-39 - 81
132 Esther Moon (Nashville, Tenn.) 39-43 - 82
132 Michelle Toth (Toronto, Ontario) 40-42 - 82
132 Lehua Wise (Kauai, Hawaii) 42-40 - 82
132 Sae Hee Son (Seoul, South Korea) 43-39 - 82
136 Kimberly Goedecke (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) 43-41 - 84
137 Angel Sze (a) (San Marino, Calif.) 44-42 - 86
--- Missed 18 Hole Cut ---
Brittany Siechen (a) (East Syracuse, N.Y.) 47-47 - 94
Disqualified
Vera Meixner (a) (Seeboden, Austria) DQ