SCOTS GIRLS FINISH ON A WINNING NOTE
AS SWEDES COLLECT THREE EURO TITLES

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
If any team can end the week on a high with an official finish of 17th in a field of 19 teams, then Scotland did in the European girls’ team golf championship at Murcar Links on Saturday.
The Scots, whose start-of-the-week stroke-play total was so poor they failed to make either Flight 1 or 2 of the match-play, followed up their Friday win over Latvia by beating Iceland just as convincingly 4 ½- ½ on another day of high winds and rain.
Carly Booth (Comrie) and Kelsey MacDonald (Nairn Dunbar) started the ball rolling with a 4 and 3 win in the foursomes and Sammy Vass (Tain) and Rebecca Wilson (Monifieth) made it 2-0 by winning their foursome 4 and 3.
In the singles Booth (6 and 4) and MacDonald (5-4) were clear-cut winners while Wilson halved her tie.
Sweden, by beating England 4 ½- 1/2 in the final, took the European girls' team championship for the third year in a row.
It was a good week for Swedish amateur golf. On Saturday, they also won the European boys’ title in Slovenia and the European women’s team championship on home turf in Sweden.
England were handicapped in the girls’ final at Murcar Links after one of their players, Alex Peters, woke up on Saturday morning with a very stiff neck which ruled her out of the singles.
In the European women’s team championship at Stenungsund Golf Club, Sweden, Scotland won the seventh place play-0ff against Austria 4-1.
Louise Kenney (Pitreavie) and Pamela Pretswell (Bothwell Castle) won the only foursomes tie by 2 and 1.
Krystle Caithness (St Regulus) (4 and 3), Laura Murray (Alford) (2 holes) and Kylie Walker (Buchanan Castle) ( 2 holes) won the first three singles to extend the lead to a decisive 4-0 before Scottish champion Michele Thomson (McDonald Ellon) lost the last singles by 4 and 3.
Collated results:
EUROPEAN WOMEN’S TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Stenungsund GC, Sweden.
Championship Flight
Final: Sweden 5 ½, Netherlands 1 ½.
3rd place: Spain 6, England 1.
5th place: Denmark 4, France 3.
7th place: Scotland 4, Austria 1.
Flight 2
9th place: Germany 4, Norway 1.
11th place: Wales 4, Switzerland 1.
13th place: Italy 3, Belgium 2.
15th place: Ireland 3, Finland 2.

EUROPEAN GIRLS’ TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Murcar Links, Aberdeen
Championship Flight

Final: Sweden 4 ½, England ½.
3rd place: Netherlands 4, Switzerland 1.
5th place: Denmark 4 ½, Germany ½.
7th place: Czech Republic 3, Ireland 2.
Flight 2
9th place: France 3 ½, Spain 1 ½.
11th place: Finland 3, Italy 2.
13th place: Belgium 4, Austria 1.
15th place: Norway 3, Wales 3.
Flight 3
17th place: Scotland 4 ½, Iceland 1 /2.
19th place: Latvia.

EUROPEAN BOYS’ TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Bled GC, Slovenia
Championship Flight
Final: Sweden 4 ½, Norway 2 ½.
3rd place: England 5, Portugal 0.
5th place: Denmark 3 ½, Italy 1 ½.
7th place: Ireland 4, Germany 1.
Flight 2
9th place: France 3 ½, Switzerland 1 ½.
11th place: Netherlands 3 ½, Scotland 1 ½.
13th place: Spain 3, Wales 3.
15th place: Belgium 3, Finland 2.
Flight 3:
17th place: Slovenia 5, Poland 0.
19th place Austria 3, Iceland 2.