Left to right:  Gillian Simpson , Rachel Hanlon, Alison Goodwin and Kate McIntosh

Rachel wins East of Scotland girls' championship for a second time

Rachel Hanlon from the St Andrews club, St Regulus, in her last year as a junior successfully defended the East of Scotland girls' championship by beating Alison Goodwin (Glenbervie) 2 and 1  in a very closely contested final at Haddington Golf Club, East Lothian this past week.

Fresh from winning the Janice Moodie Trophy at Windyhill, Rachel crossed swords with a fierce competitor in Alison who is also on form this season. She won the Scottish leg of the Nick Faldo Series, qualifying for the Grand Final in Northern Ireland.
On a very blustery afternoon the standard of golf was very high and was enjoyed by a gallery of spectators.
Rachel got up in the match quickly but Alison fought back with a great putt for a birdie 2 at the tricky eighth before she squared the match at the ninth.
Rachel's putter was on form and after a few good putts Rachel managed to find herself in the driving seat again. An eagle 3 at the long 15th, gave Rachel a three-hole lead. Alison won the 16th to take the match to the 17th where they halved the hole to give Rachel the championship title.
The first of the semi-finals saw Alison beat Gillian Simpson (Murrayfield) by 3 and 2. In the other semi, Rachel and Kate McIntosh (Broomieknowe) had a very close game which ended on the 18th where Kate missed a short putt giving Rachel a place in the final.
First round match-play results:
Gillian Simpson bt Keren Ward 1 hole.
Alison Goodwin bt Lauren Whyte 1 hole
Rachel Hanlon bt Clara Young 2 and 2.
Kate McIntosh bt Gabrielle MacDonald 4 and 3.