Mary Smith (Tain), left, and Fiona de Vries (St Rule), double winners for Scotland on first day of Senior Women's Home Internationals.
Scotland seniors start off with a win - now they must

beat England to have title chance at Newport

Scotland teed off their bid to win the Senior Women's Home Amateur Golf Internationals for the first time by beating Ireland 5 ½-2 ½ in heatwave conditions at Newport Golf Club, Wales today.
Wales crashed 6-2 to England, the only other country to have won the title since the over-50s tournament started six years ago.
Tomorrow, Scotland face England – whom they have never beaten at this level. Scotland beat Ireland 5 ½-2 ½ - exactly the same scoreline as 12 months ago – after taking the foursomes 2-1 and the singles 3 ½-1 ½. Top Scots on the opening day were Tain's Mary Smith and St Andrews hotelier Fiona De Vries who won twice.
Noreen Fenton (Dunbar) did not play in the singles after partnering De Vries to victory in the morning foursomes while Kathleen Sutherland (Royal Montrose), who was not used in the foursomes, had a big win when introduced to the singles line-up.
The top singles between Scotland's Heather Anderson (Alyth) and Ireland's Helen Jones ended all square after the Irish player, two down with four to play, won both the 15^th and 18^th to salvage half a point.

Anderson had lost the first but won three holes in a row from the third, to take a lead she did not relinquish until the last green. The Scot had been two up after five, two up after 10 and two up after 14 – but could never shake off her dogged opponent.
Kathleen Sutherland, called into the Scotland team last week as a replacement for Lorna Bennett, celebrated with a 7 and 5 win over Marilyn Henderson. Neither player had been used in the morning foursomes.
Sutherland lost only one hole, the eighth, and was four up after seven holes, having won the third, the fourth, the sixth and the seventh with a birdie. She continued to dominate the proceedings by winning the ninth, 10^th, 12^th and 13.
Fiona De Vries was a 3 and 2 winner for Scotland over Phil O'Gorman after winning the first three holes. After O'Gorman had stopped the slide by winning the fourth, De Vries went four up by winning the sixth and eighth.
O'Gorman got a winning run going by taking the ninth, 12^th and 13^th to be only one down on the 14^th tee. But De Vries won the 14^th with a birdie and then the 15^th with a par to regain a three-hole lead.
Highlander Mary Smith clinched victory for Scotland with a 2 and 1 win over Pat Doran. Smith, who had birdied the first hole and halved the fifth in birdies, was four up after nine holes.
In a quality match, the 10^th hole was halved in birdies. Doran won the 11^th and 12^th to clash her deficit to two holes and then won the 15^th to be one down with three to play.
Smith won the 16^th to go back to two up and a half at the 17^th ended the match in her favour.
Ireland's only victory in the singles came from Sheena McElroy who finished one up on Moira Thomson (Gullane Ladies).
Thomson won the second but McElroy had the better of the remainder of the outward half. The Irish player won the fourth, the fifth with a birdie, the seventh and the ninth to be three up at the turn. Thomson won back the 14^th and the 17^th to be one down on the 18^th tee but a half at the last was good enough for McElroy to win by one hole.