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Johnston leads pack in Thurso eclectic


By SPP Reporter

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Jack Johnstone retains his lead on nett 64 after a three-shot improvement.
Jack Johnstone retains his lead on nett 64 after a three-shot improvement.

ROUND 14 of the Thurso Golf Club Newsbeat Summer League was played last Thursday and Friday.

Scoring was good on Thursday with countback required to separate the top four players who all amassed 39 points.

Despite two eights on his card Darren Oag still managed to win due to an inward nine holes for 20 points. W.J. Shearer took second spot due to a better last six holes over Alan Swanson.

Swanson was two under par for his round after the 14th but bogeys at the next two holes meant he finished on level par.

Fourth was Willie Shearer who managed 21 points on the first half despite a no-score at the eighth.

Andrew Lannon beat Iain Dunnett on countback after both scored 38 points. Dunnett was out in 22 points and going well on the back nine holes but a triple bogey at the 15th reduced his final tally. Bryan Ronald had five birdies on his card for 37 points and beat Steven Fidler on the better inward half.

On the Friday, Colin Chessor scored at every hole for a total of 37 to win by three points.

Three players, Trevor Henderson, Malcolm Morrison and Lenny Murray, all scored 34 points and were placed in the same order after countback. Murray, after starting with a par four at the first, had everything from a three to a nine, barring the eight, in a round of highs and lows. Kevin Morris was a point further back.

Two excellent rounds were produced on Saturday when the competition was the July Medal.

Oag returned an impressive nett 62 but was pipped for the medal by Nicky Doherty’s best-of-the-day gross 68, nett 61.

Doherty was out in level par with a bogey at the fifth cancelled out by a birdie at the fourth. Five threes in six holes from the ninth to the 14th helped to contribute to an inward nine of one-under-par 33.

Keith Dreaves was third with nett 67 due largely to an inward nine holes of three over par. A birdie on the last hole enabled Clark Grant to take fourth spot with a nett 68. Two players, Stanley Ross and Davie Dunbar, were a shot further adrift.

The E.&.M. Engineering Open was played on Sunday as a two-man Texas Scramble.

Bryan Ronald and Angus Cameron teamed up to produce a gross 64, nett 61.2 for first place. An outward nine of 31, including four birdies in five holes from the fourth hole to the eighth, was followed by an inward nine of 33.

Second spot went to the father-and-son pairing of Donald and Danny Jack with a gross 67, nett 62. The Lybster combination of D. Miller and J. Mackay had a gross 67, nett 63 to finish third. Miller and Mackay had a four-birdie opening nine holes of 31 but a couple of bogeys on the inward half were costly.

Lachie Sutherland and Davie Dunbar had an eagle two at the eighth in a steady round of 67, nett 63.2, for fourth. The Reay pairing of Grant Maxwell and Willie Mackay were next best on nett 63.7.

The heavy rain predicted for Tuesday morning thankfully failed to materialise and the senior players showed their appreciation with some fine scoring in the third round of the EGGS Summer Eclectic.

Pride of place went to Pat Valentine, the winner with a 41-point round. After a very good front nine of 19 points, where his only dropped point was at the ninth hole, Valentine covered the back nine in level par for 22 more points. His only bogey was at the long 16th but that was compensated for with a birdie at the short 14th.

Ian Fraser also scored 22 points on his inward nine and must have rued his blank at the fourth hole that kept his outward nine down to 18 points, but his 40-point total earned second place.

Sandy Reid made his effort on the front nine with 22 points and claimed third place with 38 points, one ahead of Jim Buchan who also had a good front nine. John Morrison also beat the 36-point mark by a point.

Valentine’s efforts got his eclectic score down to nett 65 but Jack Johnstone retains his lead on nett 64 after a three-shot improvement.

On Tuesday evening the ladies played a greensome for the Kilearnan Cup. Jean Clasper and Jane Grant scored a nett 70.2 to take the honours from Eileen Manson and Isobel Kirkpatrick who finished on nett 71.4.


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