HEATHER MACRAE WINS PAUL LAWRIE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

                And the winner is: HEATHER MacRAE

                         Picture by courtesy of Kenny Smith

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com
Dunblane's Heather MacRae broke clear of her nearest rivals over the final round to win the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre Scottish Ladies Open Tour Championship by five strokes at the Marriot Dalmahoy Hotel courses.

The Gleneagles Hotel staff professional, aided and abetted in no small measure by her caddie/boyfriend, Tartan Tour professional Chris Kelly, followed a five-under-par 69 over the East Course with a one-over-par 69 at the shorter but trickier West Course today (Friday) for a four-under aggregate of 138.

A winner on the Ladies European Tour's developmental circuit, LETAS, in Sweden in May, Heather was winning for the first time on the Paul Lawrie Tour in its 14th and last event of its inaugural season.

"I dropped a shot at the very first hole in the final round to fall two behind (overnight leader) Vikki Laing but back to back birdies at the fifth and sixth helped me to take over the lead with nine holes to go," said 30-year-old Heather who was a GB and I international during her amateur golf career when she won the British women's open amateur stroke-play championship at Nairn in 2005.

"It was great to be playing with Vikki and Heather Stirling in the final three. It really did feel like the a national pro championship."

MacRae left her playing partners struggling in her wake as she came home in 35 to Laing's 39 and Stirling's 40.

MacRae's cash prize amounted to £1,200 and she also had the honour of being the first winner of the splendid trophy commissioned for the championship by Aberdeen hotelier Stewart Spence who, apart from being a partner in the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre project, is also Heather MacRae's sponsor.
MacRae is still hoping to follow last year's example by fellow Scot Pamela Pretswell and make it to Ladies European Tour by finishing in the top five of the LETAS Order of Merit table.
"The first three are out of my reach but if I can do well in the last two LETAS events I could catch the players in fourth and fifth positions."

Former English women's champion and past Curtis Cup player Kiran Matharu from Leeds had the best second round of one-under-par 67 at Dalmahoy and that pushed her up the final standings to second place on 143. An outward half of 31 helped her towards the runner up cheque for £850.

Vikki Laing (Musselburgh), who had led by one shot at the start of the day from MacRae and Heather Stirling (Dairsie), tied for third place on 144 and each earned £473. Laing signed off with a 76

A double-bogey 5 at the short ninth, where she had a terrible lie in a greenside bunker, cost Vikki dearly in the final analysis.

Heather Stirling was still very much in the mix with nine holes to play but took 40 shots to come home for a 75.
ORDER OF MERIT WINNER
Big consolation for Stirling was that she won the Tour's Order of Merit (pictured right with Alan Tait, Marriott Dalmahoy Director of Golf).
The prize is free flights to and accommodation at Stage 1 of the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School in Morocco near the end of the year.

"I didn't play golf for six years after a spell on the Futures Tour in America and I've been caddieing full time in Florida in the winter and St Andrews in our summer,"said Heather.

"So the introduction of the Paul Lawrie Tour has brought me back to the playing side of the game and here I am on the verge of going to the Qualifying School. It's been a big year for me."

Katy McNicoll (Carnoustie) finished runner-up in the Order of Merit after leading the table until the last two or three events.

Charlotte Austwick (Fulford) won the leading amateur prize in the Order of Merit - a stay at self-catering accommodation in Gleneagles Village up to the amateur prize value limit of £500.

The leading moneywinners on the PLGC SLOT were:

Katy McNicoll £3,982

Heather Stirling £3,979

Kiran Matharu £2,650

Heather MacRae £2,647

Pamela Feggans £2,356
The leading placings on the PLGC SLOT Order of Merit were:

	Player	Points	Events Played
.	1	Heather Stirling	8649	14
.	2	Katy McNicoll	7000	11
.	3	Heather MacRae	6419	11
.	4	Laura Murray	6364	14
.	5	Lisa Shervill	6192	14
.	6	Pamela Feggans	5982	10
.	7	Jane Turner	5834	12
.	8	Kiran Matharu	5765	10
.	9	Daisy Dyer	5752	14
.	10	Michele Thomson	5505	11
.	11	Martine Pow	5355	14
.	12	Vikki Laing	4875	7
.	13	Gemma Webster	4805	12
.	14	Charlotte Austwick (a)	3877	6
.	15	Jessica Meek (a)	3585	6
.	16	Chrisje De Vries	2975	5
.	17	Nichola Ferguson (a)	2300	9
.	18	Pamela Pretswell	2242	3
.	19	Gabrielle MacDonald (a)	2090	6
.	20	Laura Harvey	1970	7

PAUL LAWRIE GOLF CENTRE SCOTTISH LADIES OPEN TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

Marriott Dalmahoy Hotel courses, Edinburgh

FINAL TOTALS 

          Par 142 (East Course 74, West Course 68)

138 Heather MacRae (Gleneagles) 69 69 (34-35) £1,200.

143 Kiran Matharu (Leeds) 76 67 (31-36) £850

144 Vikki Laing (Musselburgh) 68 76 (37-39), Heather Stirling (Dairsie) 69 75 (35-40) £473 each.

145 Pamela Feggans (Doon Valley) 74 71 (33-38) £250

146 Martine Pow (Selkirk) 75 71 (35-36), Laura Murray (Paul Lawrie Golf Centre) 75 71 (34-37) £150 each

147 Michele Thomson (Ellon) 77 70 (37-33) £75.

148 Lisa Shervill (2doSport) 76 72 (32-40), Daisy Dyer (Essex) 74 74 (36-38), Charlotte Austwick (Fulford) (am) 73 75 (36-39) (two dozen golf balls). 

151 Katy McNicoll (Carnoustie Links) 75 76 (38-38)

154 Laura Harvey (Darlington) 76 78 (41-37)

155 Jane Turner (Penicuik) 82 73 (35-38)

156 Abbey Gittings (Walmley) 84 72 (35-37), Gemma Webster (Elie SC) 80 76 (38-38)