SHEENA WOOD'S FIFTH ABERDEENSHIRE TITLE IN THREE DIFFERENT DECADES

Aberdeenshire county championship prizewinners and officials after Sunday';s scratch and handicap finals at Balgownie. Left to right: Margaret Parkinson (county vice-captain), Kathleen Esslemont (handicap beaten finalist), Linda Urquhart (scratch semi-finalist), Molly Stewart (handicap champion), Carol Wilson (scratch beaten finalist and leading qualifier), Sheena Wood(scratch champion), Samantha Leslie (scratch semi-finalist). Evelyn Cruickshank (county president), Marta Moody (county captain).
Picture by county secretary Karen Stalker.

Annette Laing Shire record-holder with eight titles

Sheena Wood was never behind in her 4 and 3 win over top seed Carol Wilson (Murcar Links) in the the final after winning the second and third holes for a two-hole lead.

The Aberdeen Ladies' member's advantage over her home links improve to three holes when she won the fifth but Wilson won the seventh and eighth to be only one down on the ninth tee.

That was as good as it got for Carol. Sheena won the 11th to go three up and won the 15th also for a 4 and 3 success.

It was Wood's fifth county title and she can now claim to have been champion in three different decades. Her wins have come in 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 and now 2012.

Sheena's fifth win edged her ahead of Elaine Farquharson-Black. The Deeside honorary member was county champion for the first time at the age of 15 in 1983 and won again in 1986, 1987 and 1990.

The all-time record-holder as Aberdeenshire champion is Annette Laing (Aberdeen Ladies) who emigrated to New Zealand after she had scored her eighth county triumph. She had a record-setting run of six titles in a row from 1965 to 1970 inclusive and scored wins No 7 and 8 in 1972 and 1976. Annette was Scottish champion at Dunbar in 1970 when she scored a shock win over Belle Robertson, then in her prime, in the final.

+Sheena Wood is pictured with Murcar Links teenager Molly Stewart who won the handicap championship on Sunday.