AILSA SUMMERS LEADS ALL THE WAY TO WIN ST RULE TROPHY

AND THE WINNER IS .... Ailsa Summers in the traditional pose with the St Rule Trophy on the Silken Bridge at the Old Course, St Andrews. Picture by Cal Carson Golf Agency.

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com
Ailsa Summers, 19-year-old St Andrews University mathematics student from Carnoustie, scored the biggest golfing win of her life this evening when she captured the St Rule Trophy, one of the most prestigious tournaments on the British amateur women's calendar.
Ailsa shaved a stroke off the St Andrews New Course women's record in the first round on Saturday with an eight-under-par round of 67.
That put her four shots clear of the field going into the final two rounds over the New Course on Sunday.
She covered them in four-under-par 72 both times - halves of 34-38 in Round 2 and 35-37 in Round 3 against a out-in par of 38-38 - for a brilliant 16-under-par total of 211, only two strokes outside the tournament record set by Melissa Reid when she won in 2007.
Summers has dominated Angus golf titles, girls and women's for several years, following in her mother Mary's footsteps.
Father Graham is her caddie. 
But this is the first time she has produced what could even be rated a world-class performance ... not all that many lady pros would be 16 under par after 54 holes at St Andrews!
Ailsa was three shots clear of the World No 22, Celine Boutier from France after two rounds and still that margin ahead with nine holes to play, although another member of the very strong French squad, former British girls champion, Alexandra Bonetti, had improved to within four shots of the lead at that juncture.
Bonetti, like Boutier, plays the US women's college circuit. Her challenge virtually died in a bunker at the 14th where she had the most awkward of stances and ran up a double bogey. She finished with a four-under 72 for 10-under 217.
"I finished birdie-birdie," said Alexandra, "but it was too little too late to catch Ailsa."
Eventually, Boutier, in the last threesome to finish, cut the Scot's winning margin to two shots with a closing five-under-par 71 for 14-under-par 213.
Boutier, the European women's champion from last year, got to 14 under par by birdieing the 16th and 17th. She needed an eagle 3 at the last to force a play-off but had to settle for a par 4.
"Nobody told me I needed an eagle ... but I don't think it would have made any difference if I had known," said Celine with a grin.
Summers, No 938 in the Women's World Amateur Rankings, did not play in the recent Scottish women's championship.
"I have played very little competitive golf because I needed the time for studies and examinations. But I did get in a lot of practice over the week before this championship started.
"Over the three rounds I holed more putts from 10ft than  I have ever done in my life in a tournament. I did hit the ball well but, yes, I was very nervous over the last round, knowing that some very good players were coming up behind me.
"Thank goodness my 30ft birdie putt down the slope on the last green went in the hole. If it hadn't, it could have gone about six to eight feet past!"
Summers' success gives the SLGA selectors a problem. Their squad of six to represent Scotland in the European women's team championship at Fulford Golf Club, Yorkshire in early July is being named at lunchtime Monday. There are more than six Scots ahead of Ailsa in the World Amateur Rankings so there's the dilemma for the selection committee. 
If you think there's no way the selectors could not pick the St Rule Trophy winner, let me cast your mind back to yesteryear when a certain Elaine Farquharson won the Helen Holm Trophy tournament - and was not picked for the Scotland squad for the European team championship that year.
"Well, it's a match-play tournament and Elaine has just won a stroke-play tournament," was the excuse given at the time. 
I have my fingers crossed for Ailsa.
The honour of finishing the second-best Scot was claimed by a St Andrews University team-mate of the winner, Gabrielle Macdonald whose home club is Craigielaw.
Gabrielle finished joint fifth with France's Laure Castelain on seven-under-par 220, scoring 73-76-71 equalling the best score by anyone in the final round. A very good effort by Macdonald in top-class company.
Former Scottish champion Megan Briggs (Kilmacolm) also did well to finish eighth overall on 225 with scores of 75-74-76.
Younger sister Eilidh, a Stirling physical education student, had the misfortune to land in the Road Hole's dreaded cavernous greenside bunker at the 17th in her second round. 
It's so deep you can't see the green above your head and if you could you would see the tarmac road and a 5ft wall waiting for your recovery if it overshoots the narrowest part of the green.
The hole, which is a par-5 for ladies and enough to waken its victims screaming in the middle of the night, cost her an 11.
But give Eilidh her due. She put that behind her and went round the Old Course in three-under-par 73 in the third round (she did improve by five shots with a 6 at the 17th).

 
Emma Harris, pictured right, from Peel Golf Club on the Isle of Man (where there are only eight golf courses), won the Lawson Trophy for Under-18s with a total of one-under-par 226 which tied her ninth overall.
Lianna Bailey (Notts) was runner-up on 227 and joint third were Clara Young (North Berwick) and Samantha Fuller (Roehampton) on 228.
France ran away with the international team title, as they did the last time they sent a squad over to St Andrews. Their winning margin in 2008 was 10 shots. This time it was 18 shots. Put you money on them now to win the European team title at Fulford in early July.
Belgium were runners-up on 446, pipping Scotland (whose team did not include Ailsa Summers) for second place by a single stroke.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 227 (75 New Course; 76 x 2 Old Course) 
CSS 75 76 76
211 Ailsa Summers (Carnoustie Ladies) 67 72 72.
213 Celine Boutier (France) 73 69 71.
216 Manon De Roey (Belgium) 72 71 73.
217 Alexandra Bonetti (France) 74 71 72.
220 Gabrielle Macdonald (Craigielaw) 73 76 71, Laure Castelain (France) 72 74 74
222 Manon Gidali (France) 72 75 75.
225 Megan Briggs (Kilmacolm) 75 74 76
226 Bethany Garton (Royal Lytham) 74 73 79, Sarah-Jane Boyd (Truro) 75 72 79, Emma Harris (Peel) 78 73 75, Lucy Goddard (Royal Liverpool) 75 78 73.
227 Lianna Bailey (Notts) 80 76 71, Emma Taylor (Saunton) 75 75 77, Emma Goddard (Royal Liverpool) 75 73 79.
228 Samantha Fuller (Roehampton) 76 75 77, Clara Young (North Berwick) 75 78 75, Emilee Taylor (Holme Hall) 74 79 75, Ami Storey (Close House) 74 79 75.
229 Lauren Whyte (St Regulus) 76 75 78, Sinead Sexton (Lahinch) 75 74 80, Marion Duvernay (France) 77 77 75, Eilidh Briggs (Kilmacolm) 71 85 73
230 Brogan Townend (Pleasington) 76 77 77, Joelle Van Baarle (Belgium) 78 76 76, Charlotte Thompson (Channels) 78 80 72
231 Nicola Haynes (Gosforth Park) 76 74 81, Gemma Bradbury (Cottrell Park) 76 82 73
232 Alison Knowles (Hickleton) 77 77 78, Ariane Provot (France) 77 77 78, Louise Kenney (Pitreavie) 78 78 76
233 Samantha Birks (Llandrindod Wells) 77 80 76, India Clyburn (Woodhall Spa) 73 80 80, Alyson McKechin (Elderslie) 76 78 79, Jessica Meek (Carnoustie Ladies) 84 75 74.
234 Iona Stephen (Ranfurly Castle) 74 83 77, Gemma Clews (Delamere Forest) 76 79 79, Jane Turner (Craigielaw) 81 76 77
235 Amy Farrell (Moate 76 81 78, Katie Reid (Monifieth) 77 81 77, Jess Wilcox (Blankney) 78 79 78, Bethany Lou Buchner (US) 79 76 80
236 Gemma Batty (St Annes Old Links) 78 81 77
237 Cara Thompson (Royal Dornoch) 81 79 77, Bronwyn Davies (Trentham) 78 83 76
239 Rachel Woodcock (Woodhall Spa) 82 75 82, Clara Teixeira (Brazil) 80 78 81
240 Paula Grant (Lisburn) 78 82 80
241 Rozalyn Adams (Addington Court) 81 78 82, Heather Munro (Monifieth) 75 84 82 
242 Lisa Ball (Matfen Hall) 81 80 81, Susan Jackson (Ladybank) 83 75 84.
243 Kimberley Beveridge (Aboyne) 77 85 81
245 Aedin Murphy (Carlow) 78 81 86, Ivane Helias (France) 87 84 74.
252 Lisa Warrilow (Lilleshall Hall) 83 83 86, Eilidh Watson (Muckhart) 81 84 87
256 Nathalie Rodrigues da Silva (Brazil) 86 88 82.
258 Kathleen Griffith (Australia) 91 79 88.217
270 Ann Colligan (US) 96 88 86.

LAWSON TROPHY (Under-18s)
226 Emma Harris (Peel, Isle of Man).
227 Lianna Bailey (Notts).
228 Clara Young (North Berwick), Samantha Fuller (Roehampton).
229 Lauren Whyte (St Andrews).
231 Nicola Haynes (Gosforth Park).  
233 India Clyburn (Woodhall Spa).
241 Heather Munro (Monifieth).
243 Kimberley Beveridge (Aboyne)
245 Helias Ivane (France) 
252 Eilidh Watson (Muckhart).

 INTERNATIONAL TEAM EVENT
428 France (A Bopnetti, C Boutier, M Gidali).
446 Belgium (M De Roey, J Van Baarle).
447 Scotland (E Briggs, A McKechin, J Meek).
456 England (C Thompson, S-J Boyd).
463 Wales (G Bradbury, S Birks)
464 Ireland (S Sexton, A Murphy, A Farrell).
495 Brazil (C Teizeira, N Rodrigues de Silva).
505 United States (A Colligan, B Buchner)