Megan Briggs with the Renfrewshire county championship trophy once again (image by courtesy of Carol Fell).

Megan Briggs wins Renfrewshire title

for fourth year in a row

Kilmacolm's 19-year-old Scotland international player Megan Briggs won the Renfrewshire women's county golf championship for the fourth year in a row at Whitecraigs Golf Club today.
The No 1 seed, Megan beat second best qualifier Clare-Marie Carlton (Fereneze), the 2003 title-winner and beaten finalist in 2007, by 3 and 2 in the final.
In difficult conditions, putting was the key factor. One down at the turn Carlton squared the match with a birdie 4 at the 10th. Briggs regained a one-hole lead at the 12th where her opponent three-putted and doubled it with a birdie at the 14th.
Another Briggs birdie at the 15th put her three up and virtually sealed Carlton's fate. A half at the short 16th made Briggs the Renfrewshire centenary county champion.
Both players were out in 38 and Briggs was two under par for her inward holes.
Carlton had been in sparkling three-under-par form in the morning semi-finals in which she swept aside the challenge of 10 times champion Donna Jackson (Cochrane Castle), beating her 8 and 7.
The Briggs sisters had a real tussle in the other semi-final before Megan won by two holes over 15-year-old Eilidh. Last year they met in the final.The last player to win the Renfrewshire title four years in a row was Donna Jackson from 1989 to 1992. Before that it was Shirley Lawson, before she became Mrs Huggan, from 1985 to 1988.
Megan Briggs' target must now be to equal the five successive county title achieved by Wilma Aitken (later Mrs Leburn) from 1978 to 1982.
Today's results:
Semi-finals
Megan Briggs (Kilmacolm) bt Eilidh Briggs (Kilmacolm) 2 holes.
Clare-Marie Carlton (Fereneze) bt Donna Jackson (Cochrane Castle) 8 and 7.
Final
Megan Briggs bt Carlton 3 and 2.
ends