DOUBLE BOGEYS DRAG RACHAEL DOWN FROM TOP 15-20 FINISH

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

Colin@scottishgolfview.com Scotland international Rachael Watton ended the first half of her debut season on the US college women's golf tour by finishing joint 27th in the field of 81 players at the Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational tournament over the University of Texas golf course at Austin yesterday. The Mortonhall player, a freshman student at the University of Denver, Colorado, had rounds of 76, 74 and 77 for a total of 227 over the par-72 course of 6,344yd. Rachael, pictured right, had 11 birdies over the 54 holes - almost as many as the winner - but she also had a double bogey in each round (par-5 ninth in Round 1; par-4 sixth in R2 and the short 12th in R3) - which dragged her down out of a top 15-20 final placing. Team-mate Sarah Faller, pictured left, a senior year student from Galway, Ireland, finished T38 with scores of 74, 2 and 74 forf 230. Her final round saw Sarah improved 17 places in the final standings. Watton  was the second highest finisher in the Denver team of five who came seventh of 15 behind winners Texas, playing over their home course. Texas totalled 880 to win by 12 shots from joint runners-up Florida and Pepperdine. Denver totalled 899 No surprise that Texas players - Canadian Nicole Vandermade (214) and Madison Pressel (215), sister of LPGA Tour player Morgan Pressel, finished 1-2. Nicole had rounds of 72-73-69 for two-under 214 and Madison shot 72-71-72 for 215. The unseasonal November temperatures - even for Texas - of 80 degrees with a balmy breeze from the south must have been appreciated by Rachael and Sarah. Scotland or Ireland, for that matter, is hardly that hot in the middle of summer! Rachael Watton and her Denver team-mates now enjoy a winter break until the Arizona Wildcat Invitational on February 4. TIFFANY HEWETSON THIRD AND GRAND CANYON FIRST Tiffany Hewetson from Brighton, a student at Grand Canyon University, Arizona, finished third in a field of 50 for this week's Dennis Rose Invitational women's college tournament at Waikaloa Beach Resort, Hawaii. Tiffany, pictured below, was joint leader with a first-round 68 but followed that two-under-par effort with a pair of 74s for a total of six-over-par 216 over a par-70, 5924yd course. Winner was Courtney Soekland (CSU-Monterey Bay) with scores of 68, 73 and 66 for 207. She won by three shots from Tiffaney Hewetson's team-mate, Charlotte Jaengkit (70-71-69). Tiffany finished six shots adrift of Jaengkit in third place. Grand Canyon did, however, win the team event with a total of 878, five shots ahead of runners-up CSU-Monterey Bay in a field of nine teams.

KIMBERLEY MAKES TOP TEN IN NORTH CAROLINA

 Kimberley Bradbury (Old Dominion University) from Derbyshire finished ninth of 70 in the quaintly-named Fighting Camel Fall Classic this week at Keith Hills County Club, Buies Creek in North Carolina.

Kimberley, pictured, had rounds of 76 81 and 76 for a total of 233 - 18 shots behind the winner by four, Amy Anderson (North Dakota State) with scores of 75-73-67 for oneunder-par 215 over a par-73, 6012yd couerse.

Old Dominion finished fifth of 12 with a total of 950. Campbell University (902) won easily from runners-up Illinois (923) with Georgetown (940) a distant third.