Double Trophy Success for Royal Dornoch.

Back row left to right - the Golspie women who were runners up to both trophies, Lesley Cranna, Sheila Robertson, Anne Macrae, Noelle MacKay, fiona More, Caroline Logie and Mairi Orr. Front Row -  left to right, the Royal Dornoch winners - Irene Hart, Lisa Dickenson, Trish Weekes, Alison Bartlett, Claire Riddell, Sandy Jackson Ashley Rose.  Missing from the line ups were Dornoch’s Pam Moscati and Golspie’s Helen Ewan.

By ROBIN WILSON

Represented by four teams of four ladies travelling to Golspie Golf Club for the Caithness and Sutherland women's inter-club competition, it was no surprise that Royal Dornoch repeated their double trophy haul of ten years ago.
Seven clubs were in attendance, putting forward 13 teams, only Durness from Sutherland and Lybster from Caithness were missing, and the biggest club of them all, Royal Dornoch, were able to field a first team composed of four Northern Counties Association team members, spearheaded by one- handicapper Ashley Rose.
She was joined by three-handicapper Alison Bartlett and four-handicappers Sandy Jackson and Claire Riddell. This strong team posted the winning scratch total of 239 from their three best cards to win the Ord Salver for the eighth time since 1981, leaving runners-up Golspie trailing by 27 shots.
The Golspie rough has been troublesome to everyone this year but it was a bunker at the 13th hole that raised Dornoch's non-counting score to 82 from Ashley Rose while Bartlett returned a 79 (39-40). Two 80s came from Jackson (42-38) and Riddell (42-38) for their winning total.
Golspie's second scratch place was confirmed over the Thurso number one team on a countback of the fourth scores. The host club's second place total of 266 came from Anne Macrae 81, Sheila Robertson 91, and Noelle MacKay 94. Fourth team member Helen Ewan scrambled round in 110 but this was 12 better than the 120 that came from Thurso's Moira McBeath that relegated to third place clubmates Eileen Manson 84, Laura Durrand 89 and Angela Williamson 93.
Royal Dornoch's handicap victory for the Beatrice Trophy came from their third team, made up of Trish Weekes (20) 73, Pam Moscati (22) 70 and Irene Hart (23) 78 for 221. The fourth non-counting score was posted by a late substitute into the team, Lisa Dickenson.
Hosts Golspie's second team of Lesley Cranna's (24) 69, Fiona More (21) 74, and Caroline Logie (19) 83 for 226 also finished with a runners up position behind Royal Dornoch (3). Golspie's fourth and discounted card came from team member Mairi Orr.
Next year's competition will be hosted by Wick Golf Club and who is to say that Royal Dornoch will not triumph again if they can hold the marvellous four teenage girls that made up their fourth team at Golspie, Caitlin Boa (18), Ceitidh Aitchison (15) and the Riddell sisters, Rebecca (18) and Hannah (14), who, with 277, were only 11 shots behind their first team's total.