JEN SAXTON LEADS WOMEN'S FIELD BY NINE AT BLAIRGOWRIE

By Ben Philip

Jen Saxton (Stirling University), pictured above, shot the best round of the day over the Lansdowne course at Blairgowrie Golf Club to take a commanding nine-shot lead over the women's field at the Autumn Trophy students' tournament.

In the men’s competition, level par 72s from Matthew Myers (St Andrews) and Chris Kulukundis (St Andrews) saw them move into first and second place respectively.
After fighting over the first 18 holes to be three shots back from the leader overnight, Saxton showed all of her class in Round 2 as three birdies helped her to a one under par 72, and a two-round total of 149 (+3).
A trio of St Andrews’ golfers lead the chasing pack with overnight leader Lieve van Veggel dropping one place to second at +12, and Alexa Hammer and Marie Danielsson both coming home in 37 (+1) to sit one stroke further back.

With such a substantial lead for Saxton, it appears the final round interest will be who from St Andrews can finish in the runner up position.

This strong cohort of St Andrews players leaves their first team comfortably clear at the top of the team competition, +19 giving them a seven-stroke lead over the Jen-led Stirling first team, and the St Andrews IIs a further 15 shots further back.
In the men’s competition, it is St Andrews who are dominating the top of the leaderboard with Myers one stroke clear of Kulukundis, who himself is level with overnight leader, and defending champion, Bjorn Bojesen (St Andrews).
The competition is a lot closer than it had one stage looked like it was going to be, Bojesen having moved to -2 at the turn after another high class front nine. However, a run of three bogeys from 10-12 saw the field come back to him with Myers coming home in 35 to take a one-stroke lead.
It is most certainly all to play for with only four shots covering the top seven as golfers from SRUC, Stirling, and UHI are all queueing up behind the St Andrews trio and looking to make a final day charge.
At the other end of the field it was a case of what might have been when it came to the cut with no less than 3 individuals bogeying the last to miss out on what would have been an absorbing playoff to make the top 27.
Much as in the individual competition, the men’s team competition is dominated by St Andrews with their first, third, and fifth team making up a very dominant podium. The St Andrew Is are in a very strong position, however, with their collective 446 giving them a 22-stroke advantage over their institutional rivals, who are tied for second.
With plenty of intrigue in both competition, tomorrow looks set to be a grand finish to the 12th Autumn Trophy; play is set to start from 0910 with the leading women teeing off at 1030 and the final men’s group going out at 11.15.

LEADING SECOND-ROUND SCORES
MEN
Par 144 (2x72) CSS 74 72
146 Matthew Myers (St Andrews) 74 72
147 Christopher Kulukundis (St Andrews) 75 72, Bjorn Bojesen (St Andrews) 71 76
147 Graeme Greer (SRUC) 72 75
149 David Nagiev (Stirling) 73 76, Riccardo Cellerino (UHI) 73 76
150 Mark Napier (Stirling) 74 76
152 Alexander Wilson (St Andrews) 76 76, Niall Young (RGU) 75 77, Finlay Asher (St Andrews) 74 78.
WOMEN
par 146 (2x73) CSS 74 76
149 Jennifer Saxton (Stirling) 77 72
158 Lieve Van Veggel (St Andrews) 74 84
159 Alexa Hammer (St Andrews) 81 78, Marie Danielsson (St Andrews) 81 78
165 Michaela Patzeltova (SRUC) 82 83
167 Cassie Kneen (St Andrews) 84 83
169 Katie Malcolm (Stirling) 87 82, Fern Clark (St Andrews) 82 87
172 Georgia Holden (St Andrews) 80 81
172 Kirsten Brown (St Andrews) 81 91.

TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES
CLICK HERE

ENGLAND SET FOR DEFENCE OF SENIOR TITLE

Felicity-Christine
Photo courtesy Leaderboard Photography.

England will begin their defence of the Senior Women’s Home International title on Tuesday at Newport Golf Club, Wales.
The six players who won the silver medal at last month’s European team championship are all in the side, together with Surrey’s Felicity Christine.
The full team, captained by Debbie Richards of Surrey, is: Caroline Berry of Cheshire, Julie Brown of Staffordshire, Felicity Christine of Surrey, Fiona Edmond of Suffolk, Jackie Foster of Hertfordshire, Aileen Greenfield of Sussex and Lulu Housman of Middlesex.

England have dominated the Senior Women’s Home Internationals since it started in 2003, winning the Sue Johnson Trophy 10 times, with consecutive wins in the last three years. The round robin competition against Scotland, Ireland and Wales continues until Thursday, 5 October.

The players:

Caroline Berry (Bromborough) was fifth in the British senior championship, is a past English senior champion and reached the semi-finals of this year’s event, having been top qualifier.

Julie Brown (Trentham) won the 2015 British senior championship, was runner-up last year and fourth this season. She won the English senior title in 2014 and has represented England every year since then.

Felicity Christine (Woking) is a past winner of the British senior title and had a top 20 finish last month. She was a quarter finalist in the English senior championship and fifth in the English senior stroke play. (Pictured copyright Leaderbord Photography).

Fiona Edmond (Ipswich) was an England and GB&I international before a break of 25 years. She won the English senior title at her first attempt in May.

Jackie Foster (Bishop’s Stortford) has won back-to-back English senior stroke play titles and had a top 20 finish in the British seniors.

Aileen Greenfield (Pyecombe) is playing only her second full season of senior golf and has been runner-up three times in English championships.

Lulu Housman (Wyke Green) won the English senior stroke play title in 2015. She was a semi-finalist in this year’s senior amateur and tied 11th in the stroke play.

MEMORIES FROM THE SENIOR HOME INTERNATIONALS AT ELIE IN 2012

Ireland - 2012 Senior home International Champions

The Senior Home Internationals begin this week at Newport. Scotland was the host in  2016 when it was held in Alyth  and in 2012 at Elie Golf Course. 
The winning team in 2012 and 2013 was Ireland. England have won the event for the last 3 years. 
Can Scotland, Ireland or Wales break England's fantastic run ?  
Apart from the serious golf matches the players also enjoy the camaraderie of the event and there is much enjoyment had by all -- including the spectators 


--- CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINKS TO RELIVE SOME GREAT MEMORIES FROM 2012

OPENING CEREMONY AND RECEPTION
SCOTLAND v WALES 
SCOTLAND v ENGLAND
SCOTLAND v IRELAND
CLOSING CEREMONY, PRESENTATION AND DINNER


THERE ARE 11 VIDEOS FROM THE CLOSING CEREMONY AND DINNER (WHERE THERE IS PLENTY OF ENTERTAINMENT FROM THE TEAMS) 

CLICK HERE to go to the playlist -- 

Or looking for any other (fun mainly) golf videos -- CLICK HERE

THE 2017 TEAM PLAYERS -- CLICK HERE TO ENLARGE THE LIST

NICOLA ROBERTSON FINISHES SECOND AT BRISTOL, TENNESSEE

Nicola Robertson from Dunblane, a student at King University, Bristol in Tennessee, finished second in a field of 45 players at the King University Invitational college golf tournament at the Country Club of Bristol, Tennessee.
Nicola had scores of 72 and 77 for a total of 149 over a par-71 curse of 5,852yd.
She fnished three strokes behind the winner, Elizabeth England (Carson Newman University)who had scores of 72 and 74 for 146.
Samantha Taylor from Newcastle, a team-mate of Robertson at King University, scored 74 and 78 for 152.
King (641) finished third in a field of eight teams. Carson Newman (616) were the winners, ahead of Converse College (637)

CANADIAN SCOT WINS BROOKE HENDERSON WINS NZ WOMENS OPEN BY FIVE

Brooke Mackenzie Henderson Captures
Fifth Career Win at New Zealand Women's Open

Brooke Henderson battled through the elements all week long and emerged with a five-shot victory for her fifth career LPGA title on Sunday at Windross Farm Golf Course in New Zealand.
The 20-year-old Canadian, who is proud of her Scottish ancestry and likes to use her middle name of Mackenzie, played her first six holes at 3-under par on Sunday before play was ultimately suspended due to weather and the tournament finish was pushed on to Monday. Brooke went on to play her remaining 12 holes at even par and secured her second win of the season.

“That is the toughest conditions I have played in terms of winds, rain and delays – and how long it took to play a round of golf,” Henderson said. “I feel mentally drained by it but running on adrenaline to know this trophy is mine.”
The result was Henderson’s first win outside of the United States, which makes her the only player with multiple victories in both 2016 and 2017. She noted that her sister and caddie, Brittany, was particularly helpful in judging how to play shots in the tough conditions.
“I really depended on her today and she was awesome today. On 17 she called me off, and then I was able to hit it to 20 feet – that hardest hole on the golf course today. She was awesome with wind direction, how hard I had to hit it.”

Finishing in solo second was China’s Jing Yan, who locked up her best career result on the LPGA this week. Hee Young Park of the Republic of Korea climbed up the leaderboard to finish in solo third and American Jennifer Song shot a final round 68 to capture solo fourth.
Third round leader Belen Mozo of Spain finished in a tie for fifth alongside fellow countrywomen Beatriz Recari and Australian Su Oh.

Amy Boulden from Wales finished tied 13th on 7 under par and Scot Catriona Matthew 1 shot behind tied in 17th place on 6 under.

Tournament host Lydia Ko tied for 22nd place at 5-under par.

CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE SCORES

CONNIE JAFFREY SHARING NINTH PLACE AT WEST POINT, MISSISSIPPI

Scottish women's amateur champion Connie Jaffrey from Kilwinning, a student at Kansas State University, is in T9 position in a field of 63 players at the end of the first roumd of the Magnolia Invitational women's college tournament at Old Waverly Golf Club, West Point, Mississippi.

She shot a level par 72 with birdies at the sixth, ninth and 15th, offset by bogeys at the seventh, 12th and 14th.

Anna Newell (Tennessee) leads by one with a five-under-par 67.

Kansas State freshman Niamh McSherry from Northern Ireland also returned a 72 but a third member of the team, Chloe Weir from Belfast could do no better than a round of 81 for a share of 55th place.

Lydia Hall wins WPGA International Challenge

Lydia Hal  --photo courtesy of Adrian Milledge

PGA Assistant prevails in a play-off at Stoke by Nayland
Lydia Hall completed a wire to wire victory in the WPGA International Challenge at Stoke by Nayland but there were a few unplanned diversions en route.
Not least the sudden-death play-off with France’s Ines Escudier following a two shot swing on the par-three final hole on the Gainsborough course at the Suffolk resort.

Escudier, who began the day four shots behind Hall, birdied it for a six-under par round of 66 and complete the tournament’s 54-holes in nine-under.
Hall, by contrast, bogeyed it in a scenario that was reminiscent of her visit to the hole in the first round.
On both occasions the ball flirted with the cup before refusing to drop.

For anyone conversant with Monopoly, this was a golfing example of ‘do not pass go and do not collect £200’ or, in this case, the €5,000 that goes to the winner of the penultimate event in the LET Access Series (LETAS).

Back up the 18th the pair went but it was the 29-year-old from Wales who appeared least fazed by the drama.
While the PGA Assistant deposited her tee shot eight foot from the pin, her opponent overcooked hers and cleared the green.
Two chips later and a tap-in saw her down in four leaving Hall with two putts to claim the cut-glass trophy and winner’s cheque.
Both were needed. She sent the first scooting past the hole and was left to sink a six-foot putt for victory.
Curiously the putting shenanigans on the 18th were at odds with what Hall, a Ladies European Tour winner, cites as key to her first victory in a LETAS tournament.

“The win was down to my putting again,” said Hall, who recently spent time in Abu Dhabi concentrating on honing that side of her game and making a couple of changes.
“It was good in the first round and again today. I’m playing a lot better now that I’ve sorted it out. I must say, though, the tense finish wasn’t in my plans. Ines made me work hard for my win – so did the three girls immediately behind us.”

That trio (pictured above) comprising Scotland’s Michele Thomson, Emma Nilsson of Sweden, and Spain’s Luna Sobron finished two shots behind Hall and Escudier on seven-under to win €1650 apiece.
Escudier, who turned pro in 2015, earned just over twice that sum for achieving what is the best result of her short career. However, it would be no surprise if the 25-year-old was left pondering what might have been.
Not the wayward tee shot in the play-off, nor the miscued chip that followed but her second round display.
Escudier began and ended the tournament with six-under par rounds of 66. These bookended a three-over par 75 that clearly sabotaged her chances of winning.
Hall also went off the boil in the second round, following up her seven-under par opener with one of level par to allow Noemi Jimenez and Thomson to draw level.
Unlike Escudier, it was an unplanned diversion she was able to negotiate.

FINAL RESULTS -- CLICK HERE