Play continued today on Moray GC New course as the 120 strong field of competitors jockeyed for position at the 97^th Scottish Student Golf Championships.

The ladies were first out into the stiff morning breeze for what proved to be an absorbing day of golf. Stirling University’s Penny Brown continued her very useful form from day one, with birdies at the 6^th, 9^th and 12^th on her way to a very healthy 73 and a leading 36-hole total of +4.

This placed her just ahead of compatriot and overnight leader Chloe Goadby (Stirling), who never quite found the same form as yesterday and stuttered slightly to a +4 round of 75, with only a solitary birdie at the 13^th to smile about. Nevertheless she remains only one shot back and with everything very much to play for over 36 holes on Tuesday.

The top three at the half-way stage is rounded out by Lorna McClymont from SRUC, who posted a very impressive -1 round of 70 to spring up the leaderboard and finish the day two off the lead on +6. McClymont had an up and down day but showed great tenacity to fire three birdies in her closing five holes, including a 3 at the last that was set up by a wonderfully controlled approach shot to six feet.

Also making the cut, amongst others, are Alexa Hammer (St A), Caitlin Boa (UHI) and Susan Woodhouse (Strathclyde) meaning that six institutions will be represented across the top ten.

Play continues tomorrow over the New and then the Old Course, in pursuit of the Scottish Students title and the much coveted Smith-Murray Cup.

James Blyth of St Andrews (pictured) leads the field at the half-way mark of the men’s competition, thanks to a swashbuckling round of 67. James’ colourful card featured an eagle at the par 5 third, plus five birdies – including a hat-trick starting at the 13^th. James thus posted the joint best round of the tournament to enjoy a three stroke lead with two rounds to go.

Riccardo Cellerino (UHI) accelerated up the leaderboard early on thanks to a flawless front nine of 31 that included birdies at the 1^st, 3^rd, 6^th and 9^th holes. However he was to suffer a series of unfortunate events over the next six holes, during which 7 shots were lost to par. He finished the day six shots off the pace at +7.

Stirling’s Alasdair MacDougall showed some great fighting spirit after a double bogey six at the first took him to +10 for the tournament. Undeterred, he kicked back with an eagle at the third and would go on to post a further three birdies without reply, finishing the day on +5 thanks to a very accomplished round of 67 (-3).

Macdougall finds himself just one shot behind first round leader Oliver Bailey, who had a topsy-turvy round – including just a solitary par on the front nine – to finish the day in third place on a total of +4. Stirling stablemates Michael Lawrie and Matthew Bell round out the men’s top five, but they will all be chasing the man from St Andrews when play resumes tomorrow morning.

The top half of the men’s field will play the last two rounds over the Old Course tomorrow, with their sights set on securing the Jack Allan Cup for the champion student golfer of the year.

You can follow live updates on GolfBox.

Top five leaderboards (after 36 holes):

Women

Penny Brown, Stirling                                     +4

Chloe Goadby, Stirling                                    +5

Lorna McClymont, SRUC                               +6

Jasmine Mackintosh, RGU                            +9

Alexa Hammer, St Andrews                         +11

Men

James Blyth, St Andrews                               +1

Oliver Bailey, Stirling                                       +4

Alasdair MacDougall, Stirling                       +5

Michael Lawrie, Stirling                                  +5

Matthew Bell, Stirling                                     +6

The 97^th Scottish Student Golf Championships got off to a testing, blustery start at Moray GC today, as around 130 of the finest College and University players began three days of strokeplay competition.

Play got underway for the men at 0900 at which time the westerly wind was only in the thirties mph. However, by mid-morning the players were contending with very strong gales indeed, making it treacherously difficult to navigate the tight layout of the New Course.

Stirling Uni’s Michael Lawrie held the clubhouse lead at +3 for a spell, weathering a double bogey at the 5^th and finishing neatly with birdies at 14 and 17.

Indeed the concept of weather was an ever present concern for the plucky student golfers, with intermittent hailstorms adding yet more piquancy to an already testing day. Play was suspended for a time mid-morning while a brutal hailstorm briefly took hold – and further squally showers were to be a feature of the day. Thankfully though the strong winds would ensure that even the worst conditions were only of a fleeting nature.

Despite the testing conditions there was impressive shooting from Oliver Bailey (Stirling), who birdied the seventh to help him get to the turn in an improbable score of level par. This imperious form was to continue well into the back nine, the highlight of which was a magnificent eagle at the par five fourteenth that came courtesy of a tap in after almost holing out for an albatross.

Oliver might be forgiven for being a little disappointed with three bogeys in the last four holes, as the opportunity for a really special round faded slightly. Nevertheless a +2 round of 72 represented an excellent day’s work and Oliver will be one to watch closely tomorrow afternoon.

The winner of the recent West of Scotland Trophy student event Jordan Sundborg (Stirling) amazingly carded no bogeys at all on route to a +5 round. Having absorbed double bogeys at the 1^st, 6^th, 12^th and 13^th he dug in extremely well and finished with three birdies over the last five holes to post 76.

He would finish the day in a tie for fourth with St Andrews’ Peter Kerr, each one shot ahead of James Blyth (St Andrews), who tidily carded fourteen pars on his way to a plus four round of 74.

The Women’s Championship began on the Old Course at mid-day, with the eighteen-strong field each setting out with dreams of success.

In the first group Stirling’s Chloe Goadby got her tournament off to a strong start… In conditions that would trouble even the hardiest campaigners she made it to the turn in +3 before accelerating on the back nine to eventually post a commendable +1 total of 76, thanks to birdies at the 11^th and 16^th.

Team mate Penny Brown had to tough it out after a difficult start, falling to plus four after the first five holes. However, a birdie 2 at the 6^th provided some relief and from there she held firm to recover to a total of +2, featuring back-to-back birdies at 13 and 14.

Meanwhile Jasmine Mackintosh of Robert Gordon University showed great resilience when, having slumped to +7 after the first five holes, she rallied hard to play the following thirteen holes in level par. She would therefore post 82, alongside Emily Laws and just behind Mirren Fraser (both Stirling) – all of whose rounds followed a similar trajectory of gritting teeth after a tough start.

Play continues tomorrow from 0730 as the full field of men and women take to the New Course, harbouring ambitions of making the cut ahead of the final 36 holes on Tuesday. This week represents the last chance for the students to qualify for the BUCS Tour Finals so making the cut takes on extra importance to those close to the cut off mark in the Rob MacPherson Order of Merit

For up to date tournament information please stay tuned to @ScotStuGolf on facebook and for tee times and scores check out GolfBox.

The 14^th West of Scotland Trophy came to a close today with two wire-to-wire winners in Stirling’s Penny Brown and Jordan Sundborg.

Once again Western Gailes was beset by atrocious conditions, the final day proving possibly even windier than the first two. This brought to a close the perfect storm of weather throughout the competition and in which every players’ performance was to be commended.

Brown started the day with a 6 shot lead over teammate Hazel MacGarvie and extended that lead with a par at the first. However, a double bogey 6 at the 4^th, coupled with MacGarvie’s birdie at the 6^th cut the gap to 4.

That would prove to be as close as Hazel got as back-to-back bogeys saw both players turn in 41. Two birdies on the back nine from Penny closed the door on the competition and only a double bogey on 18 prevented her from being the only player to shoot in the 70s each day, a back nine of 39 seeing her sign for an 80. Her final score of 235 gave her an eight shot winning margin.

Behind the two leaders Mirren Fraser (Stirling) rounded out the top three, an 82 to match her first round concluding a very solid week of performances.

In the women’s team competition, Stirling I were the runaway victors, beating their own third team by 33 shots.

In the men’s competition, overnight leader Sundborg was defending a three shot lead over West of Scotland’s Kieran Quinn. However, it was the men who started the day in 3^rd place who were the early challengers. With Jordan starting double-triple, his lead on the 3^rd day was down to one as Ali MacDougall (Stirling), along with Colin Edgar (Stirling) and Conor Rochon (St Andrews) tried to put pressure on the leader.

A par at the 3^rd for Sundborg steadied his round, and he would not drop another shot until the 11^th, by which time he added a birdie to 7 pars. This saw his lead stretch to 5 shots, a lead he would not relinquish despite 5 dropped shots over the closing 4 holes.

The big mover of the day was Stirling’s Matt Bell, who made 4 birdies in his fantastic round of 75. This saw him leapfrog MacDougall and Edgar into second place, just two strokes behind the eventual winner.

In the men’s team competition Stirling I were again victorious, 5 strokes clear of their 2^nd team.

The Tour next moves to Lossiemouth and Moray GC, for the Scottish Student Championships from the 24^th-26^th March.

Full results from the 14^th West of Scotland Trophy are available on GolfBox.

Jordan Sundborg & Penny Brown (both Stirling) are the overnight leaders after the second round of the 14^th West of Scotland Trophy.

The weather at Western Gailes once again precluded any low scoring and it was a challenge just to stay on your feet, let alone tame the very challenging course.

Brown once again used the back nine to shoot a best of the day round, a 77 one shot better than her first day performance and the only round under 80 in the field. Despite a triple bogey on the par 3 7^th that owed more to the weather and soft conditions than her golf, Penny picked up two birdies on the way in for a level par final 10 holes.

Chasing Brown down on the final day will be two Stirling team mates as Hazel MacGarvie (+19) and Fraser Mirren (+25) are her two closest competitors. MacGarvie found the going tougher than yesterday with seven dropped shots on her front nine not being offset with the birdies of the first day. Fraser was seven over through the first five holes before a birdie at 6 steadied the ship. While she continued to drop shots over the remainder of her round, her battling performance left her one shot ahead of St Andrew’s Kirsten Brown.

In the men’s competition, Sundborg has opened up a 3 stroke lead over Kieran Quinn (West of Scotland) with a trio of golfers a further two strokes back. As in the women’s competition, the aim of the day was to merely avoid too many high scores, knowing that the conditions would take care of the opposition. While only recording one birdie, at 8, Jordan only recorded one score worse than bogey in his 78 to leave him at a scarcely believable +8 for the tournament.

Quinn backed up his solid first round with a six over 77 to sit three back from the lead. A birdie at 10 was the highlight of a back nine that only featured two bogeys, a tremendous effort in the weather.

Amongst the trio in 3^rd, the big movers were Colin Edgar (Stirling) and Conor Rochon (St Andrews) who shot field-best 75s (matched by Edgar’s team mate Daniel Morris) to sit level with Alasdair McDougal (Stirling) at +13.

The highlight from the field though came from Yaseen Le Falher (Durham) who defied the golfing gods in following up a birdie at 8 with a 100 yard hole out for eagle at 9!

In the team competitions, both Stirling 1^st teams are comfortably clear of nearest competitors heading into the final round, the men holding an eight shots clear and the women 24.

The final round starts from 0900 with full scores and tee times available from GolfBox.

Three players sit at the top of the leaderboard in the women’s competition at the 14^th West of Scotland Trophy after Penny Brown, Hazel MacGarvie (both Stirling), and Kirsten Brown (St Andrews) all shot +7 78s in their first round. In the men’s competition a superlative +1 72 from Jordan Sundborg (Stirling) leads by 2 from team mate Scott MacPherson.

The women’s competition got underway in the worst of the competition with high winds and heavy rain creating very difficult conditions. Further hindering performance was the fact the first holes were all into the wind and indeed the first 5 holes would prove to the toughest throughout the day.

This difficult front nine saw MacGarvie’s +5 giving her a 3 stroke lead at the halfway point. However, with slightly improving weather, the two Browns were able to reel her in, both coming back in one under par to share that first round lead.

The round of the day came in the men’s competition from Sundborg. Going out in one under 35 was impressive and indeed only a bogey-bogey finish prevented him from recording the only under par round of the day.

His teammate MacPherson had early struggles, dropping three shots in his first five holes. A birdie at the 6^th stopped that run and although he dropped another two shots, a birdie at 16 meant led to a round of 74. Sharing third are a couple of the later starters from the day – Kieran Quinn (West of Scotland) and Ethan Campbell (Stirling) shooting 76 apiece to lie only 4 back from the leader.

Kudos must go to the man lying one back from Quinn and Campbell, Matt Bell (Stirling) the only man to record an eagle over the course of the day – his 3 at 14 helping him to stay in contention with the leaders.

With further bad weather scheduled for day two the challenge will be for the leaders to back up their solid play while those further back will be hoping to make moves of their own and at least find themselves on the right side of the cut line at the end of the second round.

Full results and tee times for Thursday’s second round are available on GolfBox

The 14^th Fife Tournament came to a conclusion with a playoff needed for Chloe Goadby (Stirling) to claim her first victory of the 2018/19 season in the women’s competition and a fantastic performance from Caolan Rafferty (Maynooth) sealing victory in the men’s event.

Chloe started the day three strokes behind her teammate Hazel MacGarvie, in a share for 3^rd place. Playing a group in front of Hazel, Goadby shot a very steady outward one under, her one birdie on the par 5 fourth hole. She repeated that consistency over her back nine, a birdie at 15 guiding her to a two under par 72 and level par for the tournament.

Hazel, meanwhile, started very strongly with two birdies in her first 3 holes taking her to four under for the competition. However, a tough stretch from the 5^th to the 8^th saw her drop 5 strokes and into a tie with Goadby at one over. Coming back was equally up and down with two birdie taking her a shot clear standing on the 17^th tee. A double bogey 6 meant that she needed her birdie on 18 to take the tournament to a playoff.

The playoff saw the two golfers go back down the first. MacGarvie’s tee shot went left and, despite best efforts, resulted in a lost ball. Going back to the tee, Hazel drilled a huge drive to at least keep herself alive. Goadby, meanwhile, had found the middle of the fairway and played her second to the front of the green. Advantage was very much with Chloe after Hazel’s approach left her with a putt of over 40ft for her par. This pressure only increased as Chloe’s chip left her with a 5ft putt for birdie. That putt, however, became a lot harder when Hazel drained her par putt to prove her competitive instinct! Goadby was up to the task, sinking the birdie putt to take victory, her first of the student season.

In third place, Jasmine MacKintosh took the honours by way of countback from Nicola Slater, both golfers going  76-73, but Jasmine’s back 37 trumped Nicola’s by one shot.

In the team competition, with both leading golfers representing Stirling I it was no surprise that they took the victory, finishing 25 strokes ahead of St Andrews II, who were 3 strokes ahead of Stirling III.

Stirling University Women’s Team – Fife Tournament Winner 2018

The men’s competition saw conditions improving all day, moving the odds for the late starters – including overnight leader Caolan Rafferty – were very much improvd. With a one stroke lead heading into the round, Caolan was determined to make it as hard as possible for his rivals and a run of three birdies from three to five took him out to four under for the tournament at the turn.

Caolan Rafferty (Maynooth University) – Fife Tournament Winner 2018

Hoping to put him under pressure in the group in front was Laird Shepherd (Stirling), who picked up 5 birdies in his first nine holes, closing the gap to Rafferty to only two strokes.

However, the birdies just kept coming for the Irishman, with the first two holes stretching his lead. A dropped shot at the 12^th may have provided some light for the rest of the field, but closest competitor Laird couldn’t keep up his run, dropping 4 shots on the way home to sign for a one under 70.

Rafferty, meanwhile, wasn’t finished, with one final birdie at the 14^th helping him to a round of 66 and victory by 7 shots.

Shepherd’s dropped shots allowed Raffery’s teammate Eanna Griffin to pip him for second place, a very solid round of 70 matching Laird’s, but in coming back in level par he was able to take the runners up spot.

In the team competition, Maynooth (-1) repeated their victory from the Stirling International, beating Durham I by 23 strokes with Stirling I a further 2 strokes back.

Maynooth University – Fife Tournament Winners 2018

The BUCS Tour now moves to Little Aston for the final event of the first semester with the Scottish Student Golf portion of the Tour resuming at Western Gailes for the West of Scotland Trophy in March.

For full results please see GolfBox.

Shocking weather characterised the first day of the 14^thFife Tournament as play got under way on the Kittocks Course of Fairmont, St Andrews.

While it seemed tough for the early groups with very strong gusting winds, as soon as that died down the later groups were exposed to rain of biblical proportions, making the course almost unplayable.

The golfers to escape unscathed were few and far between and had to show a very high level of skill and patience to do so.

In the men’s competition, no one did this better than Maynooth’s Caolan Rafferty. He added 3 birdies to 13 pars to shoot a one under par round of 70. Going out in the middle of the field this was all the more impressive as not only did he start with the high winds but he finished in the monsoon, hugely impressive from a very talented golfer.

Chasing Caolan are a couple of golfers he grew familiar with over the Stirling International tournament earlier in the season – James Glenn (Durham) and Scott Macpherson (Stirling).

It would not be a stretch to say that Scott has been the revelation of the autumn competition with solid round after solid round seeing him feature in early round leaderboards across all of the competitions. Here, three birdies in an up and down front nine saw him turn level and his only blemish on the back nine was a bogey on the last for a 73.

That was matched by James, who already has a win and a runners up spot from the two Scottish tournaments this season and is clearly looking to complete the podium sweep. Glenn utilised a lot of up and downs from short of the green to card 15 pars on his way to his one over 73, a solitary birdie at 14 his only reward for the day’s work.

In the men’s competition, the individual leaderboard is reflected in the team competition, with Maynooth I (+5) leading by 10 strokes from Durham I (+15), with Stirling I a further stroke back.

The women’s individual competition was dominated by a player playing her first Scottish student event of the season – reigning Scottish Student Golf Champion Hazel MacGarvie (Stirling). Hazel was the only golfer to break par, as she picked up 5 birdies across her round to finish at two under.

Perhaps more impressive a performance was that of Georgina Hirst (St Andrews) who belied her handicap of 4 to shoot a one over round of 75. A one under front nine was at risk of being undone when she doubled the par 4 12^th, but two birdies in the final 4 holes left her right in the hunt after day one.

It is a hunt though as there are 5 golfer sharing 3^rdspot at +2, all of whom will fancy their chances of making an impression into the weekend.

In the team competition, the individual performances are again matched for the team, with Stirling I (Par) leading St Andrews I (+10) with St Andrews II a further 3 strokes back.

Full results and tee times for round two are available on GolfBox

James Glenn (Durham) gained his first Tour event victory of the year while Mirren Fraser (Stirling) claimed her maiden Tour title on an exciting final day’s play at the Autumn Trophy. Meanwhile, in the team competitions there were wins for the University of St Andrews women’s team and the men’s team from the University of the Highlands & Islands.

The men’s competition was finely poised heading into the final day with the final group of three separated by only one shot. While Michael Schinkel (UHI) struggled to replicate his form of the first two days (a 75 meaning he finished tied for 4^th), Alistair McNaughton (UHI) and Glenn were at the start of an epic battle, McNaughton’s outward 32 bettered by James by one shot to see them tied at -5 for the tournament.

Glenn then put the foot down with three birdies in the next 6 holes, the third of which came one hole after McNaughton had made only his second bogey of the day, to take a 4 stroke lead and put one hand on the trophy. That was, however, without counting on McNaughton making back-to-back-to-back birdies to finish his round and get to -7. Having seen a three stroke lead evaporate earlier in the season at the Stirling International, it would have been fair to wonder about James’ mindset but a solid par put all of those thoughts to rest, securing his first title of the 2018/19 season with a round of the day six under 64.

Claiming the third spot in the competition was Robert Watson from the University of Strathclyde. Watson put together a hugely consistent set of rounds, two 71s with a 70 giving him third position by one stroke.

In the men’s team event, a fantastic performance from the team from the University of Highlands & Islands saw them race to a huge 23 stroke victory. The team of Alistair McNaughton, Michael Schinkel, Riccardo Cellerino, and Graham Minton recorded a team total of -6, with Stirling I and Stirling III coming second and third respectively.

In the women’s competition there was an equally close contest going on with Fraser taking a single shot lead over Alexa Hammer (St Andrews) into the final day. Two dropped shots over the first four holes from Fraser opened the door but Hammer was unable to take advantage and over the front nine it was Mirren who extended her lead to 3 shots. Alexa fought back, shooting two under on the back nine, but Fraser was able to match her total to secure a three stroke victory.

Further back, there was a real tussle for the final podium position. Fern Clark (St Andrews) continued her return to form, a two over 73 leaving her at +12 for the tournament. Jasmine McKintosh (RGU) could only shoot 74 and, when Georgian Hirst (St Andrews) came in with a 75, there was a three way tie for third place. For overall Order of Merit points the position was shared although the competition saw countback award Clark the position.

In the team competition, it was St Andrews who took the win, Hammer, Clark, and Kirsten Brown finishing seven stokes clear of Stirling I.

UHI (Graham Minton, Riccardo Cellerino, Michael Schinkel, Alistair McNaughton) Men’s Team Winners

St Andrews (Alexa Hammer, Fern Clark, Kirsten Brown [not pictured]) Women’s Team Winners

Full results from the Autumn Trophy are available on GolfBox.

Moving day of the 13^thAutumn Trophy saw both the men’s and women’s fields tighten up heading into tomorrow’s concluding round with high winds adding a new challenge to the competition.

In the women’s competition, Mirren Fraser (Stirling) was rewarded for her round of the day with a one stroke lead heading into Wednesday. A solid three over on day one was slowly being undone as three bogeys marred her front nine. However, Mirren started the back nine with a birdie and that helped her to a two over 73 for the round, and a 147 two day total.

Overnight leader Alexa Hammer (St Andrews) didn’t have it all her own way today with four dropped shots over the opening four holes threatening to derail her challenge. However, she showed some strong fight to make 3 birdies over the next 7 holes and ensure that her round of 77 left her one back from Fraser and very much in the hunt.

Maintaining her spot in 3^rdplace is Hammer’s St Andrews team mate Georgina Hirst. Much like Alexa, Georgina had a tough start to her round in the worst of the wind and this saw her drop 6 shots over the opening nine holes. However, three birdies coming home arrested the slide and ensured she ended the day where she started, in third place, and ready to challenge for her maiden Tour victory on Wednesday.

On a day where birdies were hard to come by, both Fern Clark (St Andrews) and Emily Mollard (Exeter) were able to make moves up the leaderboard, both recording 4 birdies or better, including an eagle 2 for Mollard at the par 4 8^thhole. Both players will be looking to repeat today’s performance and move onto the podium.

In the team competition, St Andrews I (+13) stretched their lead to four strokes over St Andrews II, with Stirling I three strokes further back at +20.

In the men’s competition, it was a case of consolidation for the two UHI men at the top, with both leader Alistair McNaughton and Michael Schinkel carding level par 70s.

Indeed, having played cat and mouse over the preceding 16 holes with 7 birdies between them to go with 6 bogeys, it seemed as though they would go into the final round level after both bogeyed the par 3 17^th. However, McNaughton made sure that it was he that takes the slender lead after sinking a long putt at the last for birdie and a 137 two round total.

Joining the two UHI students at the top of the leaderboard is perennial Tour winner James Glenn (Durham). Displaying his usual style of solid goal, the wind didn’t seem to affect him with a solitary bogey on 3 the only blip of his front nine. Coming back was a lot more interesting as birdies at 11 and 14, coupled with an eagle at 16, helped him to a one under round of 69, and a share of second place with Schinkel.

Although those three are the only golfers under par after Tuesday’s play, there are a host of familiar names chasing them and they will be looking to set a solid clubhouse total ahead of the final group coming in.

In the men’s team competition, UHI I (-3) have taken a commanding 15 stroke lead over Stirling I, with Stirling III (+15) the surprise package in 3^rdplace.

Play starts from 9am tomorrow morning and you can see the full scoreboard, along with tee times for tomorrow on GolfBox. Live scores through nine will start mid morning tomorrow.

Scott MacPherson (Stirling University) carried on his good early season form as he shares the lead of the 14^thAutumn Trophy after round one at Alyth Golf Club.

Although cold, the early starters definitely had the better of the day at Alyth GC, new home of the Autumn Trophy, with heavy rain coming in over the course of the afternoon to make scoring more and more difficult.

MacPherson was one of those early starters and he used a bogey free front 9 to get to 3 under on the 11^th. After dropping a shot on the par 3 14^th, the hardest hole of the day, he was able to get back to 3 under with a birdie on the final par 3, the 17^th, to shoot a 67.

Joining Scott at the top of the leaderboard is host institution the University of the Highlands and Islands’ Alistair McNaughton. McNaugton birdied both par 3s on the front nine to help him to two under, one more birdie at the 12^thtaking him to his three under total.

Completing the podium places after day one is McNaughton’s teammate Michael Schinkel (UHI). Schinkel had a more up and down day than the two leaders, combining 5 birdies with 3 bogeys on his way to a two under 68. With the top ten all at level or better two day is going to be crucial in setting players up for the final day.

In the team event, UHI’s strong presence at the top of the leaderboard is reflected with a four stroke lead over Stirling I (-1), with St Andrews I and Durham 1 a further six strokes back at +5.

In the women’s competition it was last year’s Autumn Trophy 3^rdplaced golfer Alexa Hammer (St Andrews) who leads the way after a solid round of level par. With a birdie and a bogey on the front and the back nines, it was a great display of consistent golf from Alexa.

One stroke back from the leader is RGU’s Jasmine MacKintosh, who after finding herself at +3 after six holes, turned her round around with a birdie on the ninth contributing to her getting back to one over for the day.

St  Andrew’s Georgina Hirst completes the top three at two over par. Hirst’s start was even tougher than Jasmine’s as she dropped five shots in the first four holes. However, a birdie at 5 arrested the slide and although she gave that shot back on the 9^th, she started the back nine birdie-eagle-birdie to get back to one over. A dropped shot at the 16 did little to sour a very strong first round of 73.

In the team event, St Andrews I (+4) lead their second team by one stroke with Stirling I four strokes adrift.

Round two starts from 8.30am tomorrow and a full tee sheet, along with results from day one can be found HERE.