Bravo for Brevard Scots! Grant Carnie (left) and Tom Rennie (right).

Grant Carnie, Tom Rennie tie for N Carolina victory

Two North-east golf scholarship students at a North Carolina college tied for victory in an 18-hole event at the weekend.
Newburgh-on-Ythan Golf Club member Grant Carnie from Ellon, a sophomore (second-year) student at Brevard College, North Carolina and Deeside Golf Club member Tom Rennie from Aberdeen, a freshman (first-year) student, also at Brevard College, both returned one-over-par 73s in the Blue Ridge Mountain Challenge college tournament at Etowah Valley Golf Club, Etowah in North Carolina.
John O'Planick (Catawba University) also had a 73 to make it a triple tie at the head of a field of 29 players.
Three other Scots are students at Brevard College - Myles Johnston from Bo'ness, Craig Galloway from East Calder and Lucy McNulty from Dalmally, who only enrolled in January.
Myles tied for fourth place with a 75 in Blue Ridge Mountain Challenge while Galloway shared 24th place with an 82.
Lucy, 18, came eighth in her recent debut for the Brevard College women's golf team.

PAUL FERRIER 68th IN CALIFORNIA

Former Scottish boys' match-play champion Paul Ferrier (Charlotte Univeristy) finished joint 68th in a field of 80 players at the Callaway Match-play Qualifier at The Farms Golf Club, Rancho Santa Fe in California.

Over a 6,911yd, par-72 course Paul, a Baberton Golf Club member, had rounds of 81 and 78 for 159.

David Eroy (Indiana) won with a total of 137, made up of rounds of 72 and 65. He won by three shots from Bronson Burgoon (Texas A&M) (71-69) and Erik Flores (UCLA) (72-68).

England's Andrew Cooley, a freshman student at San Diego State), shared fourth place with scores of 70 and 74 for 144.

Indiana (585) won the team event ahead of Florida State and San Diego State (both 588) in a field of 16 teams.

PAISLEY AND RENWICK TIED 14th IN GEORGIA

Walker Cup team place contender Chris Paisley (Tennessee) from Newcastle finished joint 14th in a field of 96 for the Schenkel Invitational at Forest Heights Golf Club, Statesboro in the state of Georgia.

Over a 6,947yd course with a par of 72, Chris had steady rounds of 71, 73 and 73 for 217, the same total as fellow English player and University of Tennessee team-mate Darren Renwick who scored 74, 70 and 73.

A third English player in the field, Tom Sherreard (Georgia State) had scores of 70, 77 and 79 for 226, which earned him a share of 62nd place behind the three-shot winner, Matt Hill (North Carolina State) with scores of 71, 69 and 69.

South Carolina (865) won the team event ahead of Tennessee and North Carolina State (both 867) with Florida (870) third of 18 teams.

Jean Reynolds wins Futures Tour play-off

for first win as a professional

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE DURAMED FUTURES TOUR
By LISA D MICKEY
WINTER HAVEN, Florida – It took three extra holes before Jean Reynolds captured the Duramed Futures Tour’s season opener. The 5ft 2in Georgia Peach outlasted Song Yi Choi to win the inaugural $100,000 Florida’s Natural Growers Charity Classic and earn her first professional title.
Reynolds carded rounds of 69-73-70 to win at 212 (-4), edging Choi after three return visits to the 18th tee for a play-off at Lake Region Yacht and Country Club. Choi carded rounds of 64-73-75 to finish second.
“I knew this day was coming, but it feels so awesome,” said Reynolds, 24, of Newnan, Georgia. “It’s been a really bizarre week because I stayed so calm.”
But calm is what wins golf tournaments. And calm is what Reynolds remained even when Choi, last year’s sixth-ranked player -- also intent on earning her first professional title – pushed hard to wrestle the orange-filled crystal trophy out of Reynolds’ hands.
Choi held a one-shot lead going into the final hole. She had bogeyed the 16th, but bounced back with a birdie on No. 17, so the South Korean was ready to close the deal. But throughout the day, stiff winds had kicked up the whitecaps on the surrounding Lake Hamilton and rain clouds had rolled in and out in the late afternoon. Choi held an 8-iron in her hands on a 110-yard approach shot on the par-5 18th hole with wind directly in her face. Seconds later, she watched as that shot fell short and found the water hazard bordering the green.
“It was not a good shot,” said Choi of Seoul, South Korea, who admittedly struggled in the wind and hit only 13 greens and nine fairways in regulation. “I was so sad.”
Meanwhile, Reynolds was not watching the drama unfold, although she knew there could be more golf to play.
“I was just chilling by the practice green and I was fixing to put on my tennis shoes, but then the rules official came and got me and I knew there was more golf to play,” said Reynolds, who played college golf at the University of Georgia.
Nicole Hage of Coral Springs, Florida, also was making a run for her first professional win and like Choi, had birdied the par-3 17th hole to tie Reynolds at four under with one hole to play. But on the 18th, Hage was forced to take an unplayable lie from the bushes for a one-shot penalty, and then she requested a free drop from a dangerous situation (fire ants) on her second shot. When she hit the final green, the second-year pro faced a 10ft birdie putt from above the hole. She left it short to bogey the last.
“Am I ever going to win?” shouted an exasperated Hage as she left the scoring tent in a huff and made a beeline to her car.
Perhaps that was the same question in the minds of both Choi and Reynolds, as they replayed the 18th hole three times to determine the victor.
The two matched pars on the first play-off hole. Choi two-putted for par from 36 feet behind the cup, while Reynolds got up and down for par from a back bunker to 3½ feet. On the second trip, Choi’s approach landed within 10 feet, but she missed making birdie on the high side. Reynolds’ 90-yard approach landed 25 feet from the hole and she two-putted for par.
Finally, on the third extra hole, down the 447yd 18th, Choi again landed on the back fringe, 35 feet from the hole. She burned the right edge and rolled three feet past for her tap-in par. Reynolds stroked a threequarter-swing pitching wedge 88 yards from the right rough to three feet, and then tapped in for the win.
“I’m upset, but it’s OK,” said Choi, a 2009 LPGA Tour member who is flying to Phoenix for Tuesday’s LPGA qualifying round. “I had a chance.”
And so did Reynolds, the pint-sized, sweet-talking Southern woman who made fellow competitor Samantha Richdale’s caddie, Paulie Maggiore, tell her he was going to take her in for "testing" when she pounded 260yd drives all day. When Reynolds got in the playoff, Maggiore volunteered to carry her bag.
“The girl has a ton of heart and she was very focused,” said Maggiore. “She showed a lot of poise.”
Reynolds earned $14,000 for her win and a Bulova watch, but more importantly, she shot to the top of the Tour’s season money list in that infamous 17-tournament race for the 10 LPGA cards offered for 2010. It was a formidable showing for the player who quit the University of Georgia team to “enjoy college and study abroad.”
But as much fun as she had in college, she always knew she had it in her to compete. And when she turned pro and qualified for the 2008 Duramed Futures Tour, she believed she would be successful.
“My coach [Charlie King] calls what I’m doing now the ‘college experience’ I never really got,” said Reynolds. “Maybe so, but I came out here with the intention to win.”
Ashley Prange of Noblesville, Indiana, and former NCAA champion Dewi Claire Schreefel from the Netherlands matched final-round scores of three-under-par 69 to rocket up the leaderboard in today’s final round.
Prange moved from a tie for eighth into a tie for third at 213 (-3) with Hage (75), while Schreefel jumped from a tie for 21st into a tie for fifth with Christine Song (70) of Fullerton, Calif., and Lisa Meldrum (73) of Montreal, Quebec at 215 (-1).
Weather: Partly cloudy with a few afternoon showers and temperatures in the low 70s with wind between 15-20 mph.
SCROLL DOWN FOR ALL THE FINAL TOTALS

Last-hole birdie earns Pat Hurst

victory in Mexico Classic

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
American Pat Hurst birdied the final hole to card a four-under-par 68 and secure a one-stroke victory at the MasterCard Classic in Mexico.
Having started the day a shot off the top of the leaderboard, the 39-year-old made a solid start to the final round by carding three birdies without dropping a shot to reach the turn in 33.
A double bogey on the par-four 10th saw her momentarily drop down the leaderboard before she recovered with two successive birdies from the 11th.
A bogey on the short 14th again threatened to deny Hurst the victory but she birdied the 17th before picking up another shot on the last to snatch the win and the US dollars 195, 000 prize money.
World number one Lorena Ochoa, who had seen her strong start to the tournament undone by a 73 in Saturday's third round, carded six birdies but dropped three shots to finished tied second alongside Chinese Taipei's Yani Tseng (70).
Kim Song-hee of South Korea finished fourth after carding a three under 69 while American Cristie Kerr produced her best round of the tournament with a 67 to claim fifth.
Janice Moodie and Johanna (Head) Mundy each won $5,499 for a 42nd place tie on 221 while Laura Davies earned $3,541 for a share of 57th place on 223.
FINAL TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
206 Pat Hurst 68 70 68
207 Ya-Ni Tseng (Kor) 68 69 70, Lorena Ochoa (Mex) 65 73 69
208 Song-Hee Kim (Kor) 70 69 69
211 Cristie Kerr 72 72 67
213 Ji-Young Oh (Kor) 69 74 70, Na Yeon Choi (Kor) 67 70 76, Eun Hee Ji (Kor) 74 68 71
214 Jee Young Lee (Kor) 73 70 71, Suzann Pettersen (Nor) 69 71 74, Katie Futcher 74 72 68
215 Grace Park (Kor) 69 71 75, Heather Young 74 70 71, Seon Hwa Lee (Kor) 69 74 72, Sun Young Yoo (Kor) 70 70 75
216 Lindsey Wright (Aus) 70 73 73, Teresa Lu (Tai) 72 72 72, Il Mi Chung (Kor) 74 72 70, Se Ri Pak (Kor) 70 69 77, Meena Lee (Kor) 73 72 71, Kristy McPherson 70 73 73
217 Vicky Hurst 72 73 72, Jane Park 71 71 75, Silvia Cavalleri (Ita) 73 73 71, Giulia Sergas (Ita) 75 72 70, Louise Stahle (Swe) 72 72 73, Brittany Lang 68 74 75
218 Mika Miyazato (Jpn) 70 78 70, Carolina Llano 73 74 71, Sandra Gal (Ger) 75 74 69, Kris Tamulis 74 73 71
219 Ji-Yai Shin (Kor) 74 74 71, Eunjung Yi (Kor) 71 74 74, Hee-Won Han (Kor) 72 78 69, Anna Grzebien 76 71 72
220 Paula Creamer 73 74 73, Stacy Prammanasudh 74 75 71, Anja Monke (Ger) 74 74 72, Natalie Gulbis 70 78 72, Meaghan Francella 74 73 73, Erica Blasberg 72 72 76
221 Young Kim (Kor) 74 73 74, Haeji Kang (Kor) 70 76 75, Kim Hall 72 71 78, Johanna Mundy (Eng) 70 76 75, Shiho Oyama (Jpn) 69 78 74, Birdie Kim (Kor) 72 72 77, Janice Moodie (Sco) 70 75 76, Marcy Hart 74 75 72
222 Minea Blomqvist (Fin) 74 76 72, Na On Min (Jpn) 75 75 72, Soo-Yun Kang (Kor) 71 75 76, Alena Sharp (Can) 72 76 74, Sarah-jane Smith (Aus) 73 76 73, Maria Jose Uribe (Col) 73 72 77, Leah Wigger 72 74 76
223 Laura Davies (Eng) 75 74 74, Beth Bader 75 73 75, Lisa Strom 76 74 73, Amy Yang 75 72 76, Sarah Kemp (Aus) 75 74 74
224 Mollie Fankhauser 74 74 76, Becky Morgan (Wal) 75 74 75, Allison Fouch 74 76 74
225 Brittany Lincicome 81 68 76, Candie Kung (Tai) 75 75 75, Kyeong Bae (Kor) 74 76 75
226 Marisa Baena 73 76 77, Jin young Pak (Kor) 73 76 77
227 Jimin Jeong 75 75 77, Charlotte Mayorkas 77 72 78, Russy Gulyanamitta (Tha) 75 73 79
229 Joo Mi Kim (Kor) 74 76 79, Shi Hyun Ahn (Kor) 77 72 80
231 Moira Dunn 76 73 82

Ireland's 14-year-old champion Leona Maguire

wins Woodenbridge Scratch Cup by six strokes

PRESS RELEASE ISSUE BY IRISH LADIES GOLF UNION
Fourteen-year-old Irish champion Leona Maguire led the field of internationals to win the opening Women’s Scratch Cup of the 2009 Irish season at Woodenbridge Golf Club by six strokes on Sunday.
Having trailed halfway leaders Danielle McVeigh (Royal Co. Down Ladies) and Anne McCormack (Roscommon) by one stroke at lunchtime, Maguire fired a bevy of birdies in the afternoon on her way to a course record-equalling, five-under-par 67 and a two-under-par total of 142.
McVeigh had to settle for second place after a second successive 74 while local favourite Louise Mernagh (Woodenbridge) beat Lisa Maguire (Slieve Russell) to third place on countback.
Daryl Conroy (Castlebar) fired an impressive 66 net in the afternoon to win the best net over 36 holes while Anne McCormack (Roscommon) and Carla Reynolds (Seapoint) won the individual 18s.
Woodenbridge was once again in impeccable condition as it prepares to host numerous events in 2009 in celebration of its 125th anniversary. Next up is the ILGU’s Under-18 girls' inter-provincials at Easter.
Sunday's scoreboard
WOODENBRIDGE SCRATCH CUP
Par 144 (2 x 72) CSS 74 73
142 Leona Maguire (Slieve Russell) 75 67.
148 Danielle McVeigh (Royal Co Down Ladies) 74 74.
149 Louise Mernagh (Woodenbridge) 77 72, Lisa Maguire (Slieve Russell) 74 75.
157 Daryl Conroy (Castlebar) 83 74, Sarah Cunningham (Ennis) 78 79, Anne McCormack (Roscommon) 74 83.
158 Aedin Murphy (Carlow) 78 80.
159 Carla Reynolds (Seapoint) 86 73.
160 Sarah Crowe (Tipperary) 83 77, Patrice Delaney (Birr) 79 81.
161 Orla Barry (Galway) 82 79, Laura McCarthy (Muskerry) 77 84.
162 Sarah Murray (Co Louth) 84 78.
163 Nicky King (Enniscorthy) 79 84.
164 Gillian O'Leary (Cork) 84 80.
167 Sarah Helly (Enniscrone) 84 83.
169 Madeleine Brennan (Carlow) 85 84, Jenny Hennessy (Ennis) 84 85.
170 Jennifer King (Enniscorthy) 83 87.
171 Anna Courtney (St. Anne's) 84 87.
172 Julie O'Gara (Roscommon) 91 81.
173 Julie Coyne (Youghal) 92 81, Emma Murphy (Wexford) 86 87, Lauren Murray (Delgany) 86 87.
174 Emily McGuinness (Greenore) 89 85, Laura Dempsey (Enniscorthy) 86 88, Chloe Fitzpatrick (The Heath) 85 89.
176 Ciara Sharkey (Enniscorthy) 87 89, Aisling Hill (Roscomon) 86 90.
177 Jessica Carty (Holywood) 89 88, Michelle McCarthy (Clonmel) 84 93.
178 Vonny Kelly (Powerscourt) 88 90.
180 Edel Coyne (Youghal) 92 88.
181 Eadaoin Cronin (Bantry Bay) 94 87, Terri Byrne (Coollattin) 94 87.
183 Margaret Mooney (Enniscorthy) 90 93.
185 Cora Mernagh (Enniscorthy) 94 91.
189 Sinead Sexton (Spanish Point) 92 97.
195 Bernie Swords-Cox (Carlow) 97 98.
Disqualified: Emma O’Driscoll (Ballybunion) DSQ 75.