SEAN LAWRIE CLOSE-UP THIRD AT HOBBS, TEXAS

Sean Lawrie, nephew of Paul, finished joint third at the Ronnie Black Collegiate Invitational over the Lovington Country Club course at Hobbs, Texas this past week.
Portlethen GC member Lawrie, pictured, a student at Midland College, Texas had rounds of 72, 72 and 76 over a long course (7,467) with a surprisingly low par of 71.
Lawrie's total of 220 saw him finish only one shot behind the joint winners, also Midland College students, David Ryan (78-70-71) and Russell Lara (73-72-74). 
Midland ran away with the team title, finishing 34 shots ahead of runners-up New Mexico with the New Mexico Military Institute third.

GAVIN HAY JT 2ND IN NORTH CAROLINA

Gavin Hay from Glasgow, a fourth (final) year student at Carson-Newman College, Jefferson City, Tennessee, finished joint second in the Richard Rendleman Invitational at the Country Club of Salisbury, North Carolina.
Hay, pictured left, had rounds of 73 and 69 for a total of 142 - one shot behind the English-born winner, Adam Hedges (Belmont Abbey) from Bromley with rounds of 74 and 67.    
Kyle Godsman (South Carolina-Aiken). a third-year student from Hopeman, Morayshire, compiled a total of 148 with rounds of 71-77 and finished joint 17th in a field of 90 players.
Mark Dickson from Glasgow, in his last year at South Carolina-Aiken came joint 32nd on 150 with scores of 76-74.
Matt Foster (Belmont Abbey) from Oxford finished T45 on 153 (76-77) while team-mate Matthew Reid from Dundee finished T60 on 156 (79-77).
Belmont Abbey (583) won the team title ahead of runners-up South Carolina-Aiken (590) in a field of 17 teams.    

BEN TAYLOR  3rd AT AUSTIN, TEXAS
 
Calum Hill (Western New Mexico), a freshman from Perth finished joint 25th in a field of 85 players at the St Edwards Invitational at Grey Rock Golf Club, Austin Texas.
Hill started well with a 68 but sagged to a 76, then an 82 for a total of 226 over a par-72 course of 6,809yd.
Winner with an aggregate of 213 was Alex Carpenter (Abilene Christian) with scores of 66-71-76.
Ben Taylor (pictured right) from Leatherhead, a student at Nova Southeastern, finished third on 216 (77-70-69).
Team-mate Mitch Farrer from West Sussex shot 73-72-77 for joint 19th position on 222.    
Nova Southeastern (874) won the team title by six shots from runners-up Barry in a field of 16 teams. 







MATT O'NEIL THIRD AT TURKEY CREEK
 

Matt O'Neil (Bethany College, Kansas) finished third in a field of 38 players for the Swede Spring Invitational at Turkey Creek GC, McPherson in Kansas.
Matt, pictured left, a second-year student from Warrington, scored 77-71 for 148 - four shots behind the joint winners from Garden City, Trey Fankhouser (72-72) and Zach Dunlap (72-72).
James Tisdale (Bethany), a junior student from Liverpool, tied for fifth place on 150 (73-77).
Bethany (597) won the team title ahead of Garden City (604) in a field of five teams.   

MARK GEDDES JT 6TH IN CALIFORNIA

 
Mark Geddes and Liam Brace, both students at Grand Canyon University, Arizona, finished joint sixth and T25 respectively in the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout at Hiddenbrooke Golf Club, Vallejo, California.
Geddes, pictured, from Cheshire, shot 73-79-77 for a total of 229 - 14 shots behind the winner, Matt Lee (East Bay) (70-71-74 for 215) over a par-72 course of 6,718yd.  
Brace, from Suffolk, had scores of 78-82-83 for 243.
Grand Canyon (1-2) won the team title ahead of Sonoma State (921) in a field of 12 teams.

RUTHERFORD, BASEY jt 6th AT SEBRING
 
Webber Internatioanl students were well to the fore in the Warner Invitational at Sun Lakes Golf Club, Sebring, Florida.
Over a par-72 course of 7,027yd, Bryan Rutherford , a third-year student from Sevenoaks, finished joint sixth of 50 with scores of 76-74 for 150.
On the same mark was team-mate Matt Basey, a freshman from Bristol, with scores of 82-68. A 14-shot improvement between rounds!
Connor O'Dell, a final-year student from Taunton, finished T14 on 156 (81-75) and Greg Hughes, a senior from Surrey, shared 24th place on 161 (83-78).     
Webber International (601) finished runners-up to Northwood (590) in a field of seven teams. 

NEALE BARNES 3rd IN S CAROLINA

 
Aberdeen-born Neale Barnes (Savannah) finished third individually in a South Carolina-Beaufort v SCAD Savannah match at Oldfield Golf Club, Okatie, South Carolina.
Barnes, pictured, had a round of 74 over a par-72 course of 6,797yd. He finished three shots behind the winner, Brian Langley (South Carolina-Beaufort).  
Savannah team-mates Tom Mather, a sophomore from Liverpool, and Taylor Sargeant, a freshman from Northants, finished T9 and T11 respectively.
Mather had a round of 79, one better than Sargeant.  
South Carolina-Beaufort won the match 297-316

JANE TURNER, LISA SHERVILL ADD QUALITY TO EDINBURGH DOUBLE-HEADER ON PAUL LAWRIE LADIES TOUR

FROM COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com  
Good news for the Paul Lawrie Scottish Ladies Open Tour that two quality performers, one amateur - Jane Turner - and one professional, Lisa Shervill, have signed up to play on the 14-event circuit which tees off next month at Marriott Dalmahoy and Ratho Park, both Edinburgh venues, if you are not familiar with the geography of Scottish golf courses.

Beaten by Laura Murray (now a pro and also playing on the PLGC SLOT) in last year's Scottish women's amateur championship final at Tain, Jane (pictured left) will be one of the favourites to win that title this May because she will be playing on familiar ground, Longniddry, a Lothians links.
Turner is the second highest rated Scottish player in the RandA Women's World Amateur Rankings. The only player above her is Sally Watson, who comes to the end of her four years at Stanford University, California in a couple of months or so.
Sally is No 120 in the WAGR, Jane Turner No 139 and Kelsey MacDonald No 214, Gemma Dryburgh No 279, Rachael Watton No 292, Eilidh Briggs No 299, Jess Meek No 359, Gabrielle MacDonald No 455 and Hannah McCook No 483 - these are the only Scots in the WAGR top 500.  
Jane Turner has not announced any plans to turn pro. She graduated from Robert Gordon's University, Aberdeen with a degree in graphic design and stepped into a job - though a job where she is given leave in the summer months to compete in the season's key tournaments.

"I do plan to play on the new Paul Lawrie Scottish Ladies Open Tour - as an amateur - and I have entered the opening double-header at Dalmahoy and Ratho Park on April 18 and 19," said Jane.

English-born Lisa Shervill's (pictured right) maiden name was Lisa Walters and she won the 1997 English schoolgirls championship and the 1998 English U18 girls title. She also played for England in the 1998 Women's Home Internationals. She lived at Darley Abbey, Derbyshire and was a member at Lee Westwood's home club, Worksop.  Let Lisa take up the story:

"I am more than willing to help out in any way I can with the Paul Lawrie Ladies Tour and i am very excited for the year to start. 

"My maiden name was Walters and I lived in England until 2009. I  represented England from the age of 13 and GB and I from the age of 16. I was the English champion and 3rd in Europe in my best year as an amateur.
"I had a son in 2000 so took three years out of the game, then turned pro and went on tour until 2008. We moved to Scotland as my husband was on the men's tour coaching and wanted a base for him to go back to his passion which is junior youth developement so we are now living in West Kilbride.
"We had a little girl in 2010 so this is my really my first year back in competition, I played in two events last year, the ladies' United Pro Tour Srixon Match-play which I won and Tour School in December when I missed out.
"I will push the PLGC SLOT as much as possible and try to get you some more girls. I think back-to-back competition days is a great idea and the money is fine for the local girls.
"To go from no tour to having something to play in is a real delight. If you are wanting the girls to travel then the money may have to go up slightly but not by a massive amount.
"Giving it time is also the key. As word spreads it will get bigger and more popular and for the future girls in Scotland to develop and have a goal to play on this tour is vital."

REMEMBER YOU CAN ENTER EVERY ONE OF THE 14 PLGC SLOT TOURNAMENTS NOW AND WON'T HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING UNTIL THE DRAW FOR EACH TOURNAMENT IS PUBLISHED ON THIS WEBSITE OR www.scottishladiestour.co.uk
IF YOU ARE A LADY PRO, ENTERING NOW GUARANTEES YOU A PLACE IN THE FIELDS FROM APRIL THROUGH TO OCTOBER.
ONLY TEN AMATEURS PER FIELD IS THE MAXIMUM AND THEIR HANDICAPS WILL DECIDE THE TEN CHOSEN IF THAT NUMBER IS EXCEEDED.

SUZANN PETTERSEN ON INBEE PARK'S TAIL IN WORLD LADIES CHAMPIONSHIP

FROM THE LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
World No 4 Inbee Park of South Korea took the edge after a hotly contested third round at the Mission Hills World Ladies Championship in Haikou, southern China today
Park began the day with a one-stroke lead but lost it to Ciganda after three holes.  However, the 24-year-old from Seoul regained her lead after four birdies on the back nine, firing a third round 69 to end 14 under and take a two-shot lead into the final round.
Park said: “I had a really bad start today, I bogeyed two of the first four holes but I’m happy with the way I finished today with five birdies after the two bogies.
"That’s very good momentum going into tomorrow. I’m just a little bit disappointed with my ball striking; it wasn’t as good as yesterday but my putting was getting much better.
“The golf course is playing a bit firmer today – I think because it was in the afternoon and was a bit drier so it was a little bit different condition for putting and I think that worked out a little bit better for me.”
Meanwhile, Norway’s World No.8 Suzann Pettersen shot a second successive 67 and lies in second position on 12 under par.
Pettersen said: “I played decent golf today but a bit disappointing not finishing stronger on the last hole. I have a lot of faith in my game, I’m playing good golf and excited that I have one more round.”
South Korea’s Soo Jin Yang lies in third on 10 under, while Ciganda dropped to fourth on eight under after taking a triple bogey seven on the 17^th hole.
Ciganda, who fired a course record 63 on Friday, made a great start with two birdies in her first five holes and was leading for most of the day, but was disappointed to have slipped six shots back from the lead after her triple bogey on the penultimate hole.
A battle of the future superstars is set for Sunday’s final round with 17-year-old rookies Ariya Jutanugarn and Hyo-Joo Kim, who are locked in a share of fifth place on seven under par, playing together. 
They are tied with Italian Veronica Zorzi and South Korea’s Bo-Mi Suh.
Jutanugarn is a rookie on the Ladies European Tour this season while Kim is in her rookie year on the China LPGA Tour. Jutanugarn has twice finished runner-up in four starts in professional tournaments this season, while Kim already has two wins on the KLPGA, one of which was co-sanctioned with the China LPGA and one on the LPGA of Japan.
Fellow 17-year-old LET rookie Xiyu Lin is the best placed Chinese player in a share of ninth place on six under with Frenchwoman Gwladys Nocera and Dewi-Claire Schreefel of the Netherlands, while the defending champion Shanshan Feng is a shot further behind in 12^th place. Interestingly, Feng and Lin will fight to finish as the top Chinese player whilst they play together in the same group.
With a combined aggregate score of 18 under par 414, the South Korean pair of Park and Na Heul Kim continues to dominate the team event, with a 10 stroke lead over next placed Norway and Thailand a shot further back in third.
France is in fourth place, followed by England, Spain and Australia, tied with the second Chinese team of Xiyu Lin and Jia Yun Li.
There will be a tight final round duel for the leading Chinese team honours in the final round on Sunday, with the defending team Shanshan Feng and Li Ying Ye just one stroke behind.

LEADING THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
202 Inbee Park (S Korea) 68 65 69
204 Suzann Pettersen (Norway) 70 67 67
206 Soo Jin Yang (S Korea) 69 69 68
208 Carlota Ciganda (Spain) 75 63 74
209 Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand) 69 71 69, Hyo-Joo Kim (S Korea) 68 70 71, Veronica Zorzi (Italy) 70 67 72

SELECTED SCORES    
212 Sophie Walker (England) 67 75 70 (T13)
213 Trish Johnson (England) 70 69 74 (T18)
215 Holly Aitchison (England) 68 73 73 (T24)
216 Kylie Walker (Scotland)  71 70 75 (T27)
217 Elizabeth Bennett (England) 73 72 72, Laura Davies (England) 70 74 73, Melissa Reid (England) 72 72 73 (T31).
219 Becky Brewerton (Wales) 72 72 75, Felicity Johnson (England) 72 72 75 (T40).
220 Florentyna Parker (England) 71 74 76, Carly Booth (Scotland)  74 72 74 (T49).   

SCROLL DOWN FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF
THE THIRD-ROUND INDIVIDUAL SCORES

TEAM 54-HOLE TOTALS
416 South Korea
424 Norway
425 Thailand
429 France
430 England
431 Spain
431 Spain
432 Australia, China 2
433 China 1, United States
435 South Africa
436 Scotland  
437 Netherlands
443 Finland
451 Germany
455 Sweden
457 Japan        

ALL THE THIRD ROUND SCORES

202 - Inbee Park (KOR)  68 65 69

204 - Suzann Pettersen (NOR)  70 67 67

206 - Soo Jin Yang (KOR)  69 69 68

208 - Carlota Ciganda (ESP)  71 63 74

209 - Hyo-Joo Kim (KOR)  68 70 71, Bo-Mi Suh (KOR)  68 69 72, Veronica Zorzi (ITA)  70 67 72, Ariya Jutanugarn (THA)  69 71 69

210 - Xi Yu Lin (CHN)  72 67 71, Gwladys Nocera (FRA)  67 74 69, Dewi Claire Schreefel (NLD)  71 71 68

211 - Shanshan Feng (CHN)  70 69 72

212 - Beth Allen (USA)  72 73 67, Ha-Neul Kim (KOR)  69 72 71, Simin Feng (CHN)  72 71 69, Sophie Walker (ENG)  67 75 70, Stefania Croce (ITA)  70 75 67

213 - Bree Arthur (AUS)  70 74 69, Trish Johnson (ENG)  70 69 74, Karen Lunn (AUS)  72 71 70

214 - Mikaela Parmlid (SWE)  74 67 73, Kristie Smith (AUS)  69 70 75, Sophie Giquel-bettan (FRA)  73 69 72

215 - Holly Aitchison (ENG)  69 73 73, Linda Wessberg (SWE)  67 77 71, Yoon Kyung Heo (KOR)  73 70 72

216 - Stacy Lee Bregman (ZAF)  70 72 74, Jaruporn Palakawong Na Ayutthaya (THA)  70 71 75, Kylie Walker (SCO)  71 70 75, Nontaya Srisawang (THA)  74 69 73

217 - Elizabeth Bennett (ENG)  73 72 72, Na Zhang (CHN)  74 70 73, Stephanie Na (AUS)  70 72 75, Melissa Reid (ENG)  72 72 73, Laura Davies (ENG)  70 74 73, Nikki Campbell (AUS)  72 72 73

218 - Klara Spilkova (CZE)  71 71 76, Joanna Klatten (FRA)  76 69 73, Michelle Cheung (HKG)  72 73 73

219 - Lee-Anne Pace (ZAF)  72 72 75, Anne-Lise Caudal (FRA)  72 71 76, Stacey Keating (AUS)  73 72 74, Valentine Derrey (FRA)  68 72 79, Becky Brewerton (WAL)  72 72 75, Caroline Afonso (FRA)  72 73 74, Felicity Johnson (ENG)  72 72 75

220 - Russamee Gulyanamitta (THA)  72 70 78, Pernilla Lindberg (SWE)  76 71 73, Carly Booth (SCO)  74 72 74, Marianne Skarpnord (NOR)  72 72 76

221 - Florentyna Parker (ENG)  71 74 76, Minea Blomqvist (FIN)  76 75 70, Hannah Jun (USA)  71 76 74

222 - Jia Yun Li (CHN)  76 69 77, Ursula Wikstrom (FIN)  79 73 70, Li Ying Ye (CHN)  73 71 78, Yue Xia Lu (CHN)  73 72 77

223 - Tania Elosegui (ESP)  70 77 76, Narisara Kerdrit (THA)  69 74 80, Lydia Hall (WAL)  73 72 78

225 - Leigh Whittaker (GER)  74 77 74

226 - Steffi Kirchmayr (GER)  78 75 73

227 - Marjet Van Der Graaff (NLD)  74 81 72

228 - Miyari Honda (JPN)  75 77 76

229 - Mikado Kanemiya (JPN)  76 73 80

233 - Diana Luna (ITA)  78 79 76

235 - Carin Koch (SWE)  81 79 75

LETAS JOINS WORLD GOLF RANKINGS SET-UP

NEWS RELEASE
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – For the first time since the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings was launched in 2006, the official women’s golf rankings system is adding two global tours. 
The China LPGA Tour and LET Access Series will now be incorporated in efforts to reflect the ever-expanding state of women’s golf around the world. 
The addition will also create more opportunity for professional golfers worldwide to qualify for the 2016 Olympics.
Both tours will begin accumulating points this month as their tournament schedules commence.
The LET Access Series (LETAS) is the official developmental tour of the Ladies European Tour with 325 active members. Traveling to seven different countries across Europe, the LETAS tournament schedule features 12 tournaments and € 342,500 (euros) in total prize money.
“We are delighted to be invited to join the Rolex Women’s World Rankings,” said Di Barnard, LETAS Tour Director. “It is an important step for LETAS and a great opportunity for the players to be recognized on the global golf stage, which could set them on the path to the Olympic Games at Rio de Janeiro in 2016.”

GOLF AUSTRALIA SHOWS THE WAY WITH ROOKIE FUNDING PROGRAM

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfview.com

Australia can teach the UK a thing or two about making it easier for rookie golf professionals to find their feet.
The Golf Australia Rookie Program recently named its squad of 12 players - six men and six women - for 2013. They are:
Rebecca Artis, Julia Boland, Nick Cullen, Breanna Elliott, Jake Higginbottom, Whitney Hillier (pictured), Stacey Keating, Bryden Macpherson, Kieran Pratt, Jason Scrivener, Matt Stieger and Alison Whitaker.The Golf Australia website says: "The scheme offers a way of assisting professional golfers as they enter the most exciting yet challenging time of their careers; finding and establishing themselves on an international tour and understanding the demands of travelling to different parts of the world whilst at the same time trying to compete against the best players in the world.
"Successful applicants each receive a rookie scholarship that is offered for a period of one year with a review after six months. The scholarship holder can be part of the program until their fifth year of professional golf."There are two streams of funding within the scholarship.
The Training and Preparation funding offers support to access to coaching, strength and conditioning, biomechanics, sports psychology, physiotherapy and advice from nutritionists.
"The Competition and Travel Funding helps cover a range of player expenses including airfares, accommodation, entry fees and caddy fees."
Golf Australia High Performance Director Brad James said the 2013 squad represented a good mix of professionals who have played on various tours already and those new professionals who have made the transition from the State High Performance programs to Golf Australia’s National Squad program.
“Last year was a fantastic one for our program with some terrific individual successes from the rookies. It is proving to be a key part of our athlete development program. It's important that athletes continue to track towards top 100 world ranking status in order to be considered for the program in the future,” James said.
“The rookies enjoy their association with the program and realise that this opportunity allows them to focus more closely on their Tour golf without having to spend as much time worrying about the cost of travelling or opportunities to meet with service providers that they may not otherwise be able to consider.”
Perhaps easier for Golf Australia, which is the governing body for amateurs AND professionals, males AND females in their country, than for say the Scottish Golf Union, the Scottish Ladies Golfing Association and PGA Scotland, all separate bodies in this country, to fund an enterprising scheme like this on its own.

COMMENTS 

FROM JANE TURNER
Jane Turner (Craigielaw), beaten finalist in last year's Scottish women's amateur championship at Tain, commented:
"Whitney Hillier, who is on that Golf Australia list, is a friend of mine.  I spent a couple of months practising with her out in Australia two years ago.
"Opportunities like this (funding for rookie pros) are hard to come by for Scottish golfers (unlike some other countries -- another that comes straight to mind is Sweden), and this makes our transition from amateur to professional more challenging and puts added pressure on your finishes in your rookie year."  

Jane has not announced any plans to turn pro. She graduated from Robert Gordon's University with a degree in graphic design and stepped into a job - though a job where she is given leave in the summer months to compete in the season's key tournaments.  

"I do plan to play on the new Paul Lawrie Scottish Ladies Open Tour - as an amateur - and I will be entering the opening double-header at Dalmahoy and Ratho Park on April 18 and 19," said Jane.