SAMMY LESLIE REGAINS ABERDEENSHIRE TITLE WITH COMMANDING FORM

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.comTop seed Sammy Leslie beat Aberdeen Ladies clubmate Sheena Wood, the defending champion and No 2 qualifier, by 6 and 4 in the final of the Aberdeenshire women's county golf championship at sunny Kemnay Golf Club today.
It was Sammy's second win in four years and she did it with  roughly one-under-par figures against Sheena who must have been feeling the strain of having had  to go to the 26th hole to take the measure of teenager Kimberley Beveridge (Aboyne) in the semi-finals.
With only about half an hour to grab a sandwich, Sheena was back out on the first tee but she was unable to produce the quality of golf required to meet her younger, fresher opponent's challenge.
Leslie was five up at the turn and lost only two holes in the entire match, one of them to a birdie.
Leslie won the first but was pulled back to square by a birdie from Wood at the second.
Leslie took command after that with wins at the fourth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth to be five up at the turn.
Wood stemmed the tide temporarily by winning the 12th but was still four down with six to play.
The new champion finished in style with birdies at the 13th and 14th.
Leslie did not have to play the last four holes in any of her ties.
Since she last won the title in 2010, when the championship was hosted by Portlethen Golf Club, Sammy Leslie has fought and overcome cancer. She is now fighting fit, as all her opponents at Kemnay would testify.
"The 26-hole semi-final against Kimberley Beveridge was the longest match-play tie I have ever played," said Sheena, a former Scotland international who was bidding to win the county title for a sixth time since 1996.
"I was one down playing the 18th and holed an 8ft birdie putt to go into extra holes. But I'm pretty tired now after the final."
Karen Stalker, the organising county secretary, is fairly certain that 26 holes is the longest every match-play tie in the tournament's history.
"I could have won it if I had not three-putted," said Kimberley who will not be 18 until next month.  
The handicap final, contested by two Kemnay players, was won by at the 23rd by Caroline Gordon against Yvonne Moir.

Semi-finalists Susan Murray (left) and Kimberley Beveridge (right) flank the new champion Sammy Leslie and beaten finalist Sheena Wood. Picture by Cal Carson Golf Agency.RESULTS

FIRST ROUND

Sammy Leslie (Aberdeen Ladies) bt Kelly Guthrie (Oldmeldrum) 6 and 5.

Linda Urquhart (Banchory) bt Carol Wilson (Murcar Links) 5 and 4.

Susan Murray (Cruden Bay) bt Karen Stalker (Cruden Bay) 4 and 3.

Shannon McWilliam (Aboyne) bt Donna Pocock (Murcar Links) 5 and 3.

Kimberley Beveridge (Aboyne) bt Gail Christie (Banchory) 8 and 6.

Vikki Riddell (Kemnay) bt Tegan Seivwright (Deeside) 3 and 2.

Sara Mathieson (Murcar Links) bt Jill Harrison (Cruden Bay) 4 and 3.

Sheena Wood (Aberdeen Ladies) bt Claire Prouse (Murcar Links) 4 and 3. 

QUARTER-FINALS

Leslie bt Urquhart 5 and 4.

Murray bt McWilliam 1 hole.

Beveridge bt Riddell 4 and 3

Wood bt Mathieson 3 and 2.    

SEMI-FINALS

Leslie bt Murray 5 and 4
Wood bt Beveridge at 26th

FINAL

Leslie bt Wood 6 and 4

HANDICAP CHAMPIONSHIP

QUARTER-FINALS

Sally Collin son (Westhill) (10) bt Yvonne Richal (Peterculter) (9) at 21st.

Yvonne Moir (Kemnay) (11) bt Lauren Whyte (Aberdeen Ladies) (9) 2 and 1.

Georgette Hollingsworth (Aboyne) (13) bt Pam Fraser (Peterculter) (12) 4 and 3.

Caroline Gordon (Kemnay) (14) bt Nita Dervish-Uman (Kemnay) (20) at 19th.   

SEMI-FINALS
Moir bt Collinson 7 and 6 

Gordon bt Hollingsworth 1 hole.

FINAL
Gordon bt Moir at 23rd