PRESTWICK LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP - Fourth title for Glass and Boyd Cup goes to McAlpine

David Glass on the left with the Nickson Trophy
& Kenny McAlpine on the right with the Boyd Cup

David Glass (Prestwick St Cuthbert) won the Nickson Trophy and Prestwick Links Championship for the fourth time, at a windy Prestwick Golf Club on Saturday evening, 28th May whilst Kenny McAlpine (Prestwick St Nicholas) took the Boyd Cup and handicap title in extra holes.

2011 Prestwick Links Champion David Glass

Having previously won the Prestwick Links in 1991, 1998 and 2000, David Glass faced 19 year old Sandy Darroch (St Nicholas) in the final, who was not even born when Glass enjoyed his first win in the competition.

With his opponent finding trouble over the opening holes, David Glass' steady start saw him win the  1st, 2nd, 4th 5th and 6th holes to forge a 5 hole lead. Sandy Darroch stemmed the flow by winning the 7th but immediately David Glass restored his five hole lead at the 8th, which he maintained to the turn.

Sandy Darroch reduced the defecit to four again when he won the short 11th holeand in the inward stretch the players halved the 12th and traded holes at the 13th and 14th, which left David Glass four holes ahead with four to play. Securing a half at the 15th hole, David Glass won his fourth Prestwick Links Championship, a surprising 11 years after his previous win.

Boyd Cup winner Kenny McAlpine

In the handicap event for the Boyd Cup, Kenny McAlpine (St Nicholas) faced Andrew Scott (St Cuthbert) in what proved to be a close contest throughout, with the players coming to the final hole of the match all square.

McAlpine, receiving four shots from his lower handicapped opponent during the match, found a tough lie in the rough at the final hole whilst Scott was in the centre of the fairway from the tee. McAlpine produced an excellent recovery shot to the green to set up a solid par which was sufficient to half the hole and take the match to extra holes.

At the first extra hole, McAlpine was short in two whilst Scott had played an excellent second to within 15 feet of the hole. As he had done previously in the match, McAlpine struck an excellent approach putt, from around 50 feet, to within a couple of feet of the hole, which prompted a conceded par four. Despite a good putt, Scott's effort for birdie slipped past the right side of the hole and the players moved on to the 20th.

At the short par three hole, Scott was short of the green from the tee whilst McAlpine was just off the putting surface, pin high on the right. Whilst Scott chipped onto the green around 18 feet past the hole, McAlpine produced another fine approach put to within four feet of the hole.

Scott missed his effort for par leaving McAlpine with a holable putt for the trophy, but his putt struck the back of the hole and spun out, sending the players on to the 21st hole.

With McAlpine receiving a stroke, both players were safely in play from the tee but whilst McAlpine found safety with his second, Scott saw his second drop into the famous Cardinal bunker and come to rest on the grass bank within the hazard. Scott could only play his third out short of the green whilst McAlpine found the green with his third shot, coming to rest at the back of the green around 35 feet from the hole.

Scott's approach, his fourth shot, came to rest near to McAlpine's ball and when Kenny McAlpine produced another excellent approach putt to within 3 feet of the hole to lie four net three, and Scott's attempt from the same distance for a five failed to drop, the St Cuthbert player graciously conceded the hole and the match to Kenny McAlpine.

At the conclusion of the matches prizes were presented to the qualifying round winners and all four finalists by Michael Brown, Captain of Prestwick Golf Club.

At the end of the prizegiving, Championship winner David Glass thanked the championship organisers and officials of all three Prestwick clubs on behalf of all the competitors in the championship and concluded with an emotional tribute to his late father, Jim Glass, who served as a tournament organiser of the event for many years and sadly passed away a few weeks after the championship last year.