CHRIS AND EMMA ARE WINNERS AT SCOTTISH UNIVERSITIES' EVENT

    Chris Harkins (Strathclyde University) and Swedish visitor Emma Henrickson from Vellinge University pictured with the men's and women's trophies after their individual victories and the 2nd Scottish universities Order of Merit stroke-play competition at a windy Fairmont St Andrews at the weekend.
Image courtesy of Dr Rob Macpherson.

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfview.com 

Chris Harkins (Strathclyde) and Jack McDonald (Stirling) produced a 1-2 finish - and a tight one it was - of Ayrshiremen in the Scottish universities' men's Order of Merit stroke-play competition No. 2 at Fairmont St Andrews at the weekend.

Ayr Belleisle member Harkins and McDonald, the 2009 Scottish boys' stroke-play champion from Kilmarnock Barassie, were locked in the lead at four-under-par 140 after the opening rounds over the Torrance and Kittocks courses.

In even windier conditions for the third round, over a Torrance course stretched by well over 1,000 yards by using the blue tees which are usually reserved for Open qualifying competitions, Harkins' 76 to McDonald's 77 gave Chris victory by a single shot on level par 216.

So tough were the conditions that the CSS for the final round was 76, four over par.  

Harkins, winner of the Belleisle Cup and other Ayrshire county events, last hit the golf headlines when he was the leading Scot at the halfway stage of the 2010 Scottish open amateur stroke-play championship won by Frenchman Romain Wattel at Glasgow Gailes in 2010.

Mike Howard (Stirling) and Aberdeen's Nick McAndrew finished third and fourth on 218 and 219 respectively.

McAndrew's par-matching 72 was the best third round over the Torrance course. The women's competition was won by Sweden's Emma Henrickson from Vellinge University.

A prolific winner of open events in her native land, Emma had scores of 73 over Kittocks and 74 at Torrance in the half-gale for a very good total of one-under-par 147 (both courses have an LGU par of 74). The CSS was 78 for Kittocks and 76 for the Torrance.

Surging five shots clear of the field with her Kittocks' sub-par 73 despite the wind, Henrickson won by five shots from joint runners-up Eilidh Briggs (Stirling), the Scottish Under-18 girls champion from Kilmacolm, and Welsh international Gemma Bradbury (St Andrews).

Eilidh scored 79 at Kittocks and 73 at Torrance for 152, while Gemma had rounds of 78 and 74.

Fourth-placed on 153, Susan Jackson (Edinburgh) from the Ladybank club had the best Torrance round of two-under 72, nine shots fewer than she had taken for the opening round over Kittocks.

 FINAL TOTALS

MEN

Torrance course (par 72) scores first and third below; Kittocks (par 70) second scores listed. CSS 73 74 76

216 Chris Harkins (Strathclyde) 70 70 76. 

217 Jack McDonald (Stirling) 68 72 77

218 Mike Howard (Stirling) 70 72 76.

219 Nick McAndrew (Aberdeen) 69 78 72.

222 Zander Culverwell (Stirling) 74 74 74.

226 David Booth (Stirling) 78 71 77.

227 Freddie Edmunds (St Andrews) 77 73 77, Mathias Eggenberger (Stirling) 69 79 79, Danny Kirk (Elmwood) 76 72 79.

228 Patrick Spraggs (Stirling) 74 75 79, Darren Timms (Stirling) 71 77 80.

230 Callum McNeill (Highlands & Islands) 77 74 79.

232 Vincent Blom (St Andrews) 77 76 79, Jason Loughlin (Elmwood) 74 78 80.

234 Ollie Roberts (Stirling) 74 80 80. Euan Brown (Strathclyde) 79 75 80, Filip Brattse (Vellinge) 79 75 80, David Curtis (Glasgow) 72 78 84.

235 Dewi Merkx (Stirling) 72 84 79, Kit Holmes (Stirling) 73 82 80.

236 Ally MacDonald (Strathclyde) 76 78 82.

239 Conor Gask (St Andrews) 80 76 83.

242 Colin Sutherland (Dundee) 75 79 88.

No Show - Finlay White (Stirling) 77 73 DNS.

MISSED THE CUT

156 Varun Varadharajan (Heriot Watt) 76 80

157 Cameron Marr (Elmwood) 81 76, Chris Low (Elmwood) 76 81, Craig Telfer (Edinburgh) 70 87, James Morrison (Stirling) 75 82, Stuart Cochrane (Stirling) 79 78

158 Alex Purdom (St Andrews) 81 77, Callum Beveridge (Elmwood) 80 78, Danny Sommerville (Dundee) 81 77, Donald McAndrew (Robert Gordon) 80 78, Joe Marchbank (St Andrews) 84 74

159 Andrew Cunningham (Strathclyde) 80 79, Conor Finlay (Dundee) 79 80, Duncan Douglas (Stirling) 79 80, Elliot Dodds (St Andrews) 81 78, Malko Schraner (Stirling) 83 76, Steven Kinnaird (Highlands & Islands) 84 75

160 Mike McCarthy (St Andrews) 80 80

161 Angus Carrick (Stirling) 77 84, Donnchadh Dodd (Heriot Watt) 81 80, Euan Paterson (Heriot Watt) 80 81,Gordon Munro (Robert Gordon) 79 82, John Drummond (Aberdeen) 74 87, Sixten Malmberg (Vellinge) 79 82

162 Gavin Bissett (Aberdeen) 80 82

164 Mike Thelwell Jones (Stirling) 82 82

166 Alexander Sward (Heriot Watt) 80 86

173 Dave Fanthorpe (Robert Gordon) 82 91, Joel Nilsson (Vellinge) 90 83

176 Oscar Tallgren (Vellinge) 89 87

178 Richie Tidman (Stirling) 91 87

180 Mark Pearson (Stirling) 89 91

NRs Adrian Malwhinney (Dundee) 87 NR, Ally Leith (Glasgow) 89 NR, Ben Gibson (Strathclyde) NR, Christopher Thewlis (Napier) 85 NR, John Innes (Edinburgh) 79 NR, Scott Webster (Dundee) NR 84.

DQ Mike Ewen (Aberdeen) 87 86.

 

WOMEN

First round over Kittocks course (par 74), second round over Torrance course (par 74). CSS 78 76.

147 Emma Henrikson (Vellinge) 73 74

152 Eilidh Briggs (Stirling) 79 73, Gemma Bradbury (St Andrews) 78 74.

153 Susan Jackson (Edinburgh) 81 72.

156 Gabrielle Macdonald (St Andrews) 83 73.

159 Hannah Beasley (Stirling) 80 79.

161 Becca Wilson (Stirling) 80 81.

169 Franzisca Benze (St Andrews) 82 87.

MISSED THE CUT

86 Ashley Smith (St Andrews), Alisa Theunis (St Andrews)

88 Zhanna Tarasko (St Andrews)

90 Jordana Graham (Stirling), Sam Munro (Highlands and Islands)

95 Kirsty MacDonald (Edinburgh), Laura Grant (Dundee)

FULL RESULTS AND STORY WILL BE DISPLAYED LATER TODAY