Sponsored again by D.W. Shaw solicitors, the entry fee is £15 and there will be sponsored prizes at every hole for both classes, for either nearest the pin or longest drive.
There is a link to the entry form on the left of this page, under the 'Entry Forms' heading.
Closing date for entries is the 15th of July.
The final was a closely fought affair, played in fine and sunny conditions, and conducted in an excellent, friendly, spirit which was a credit to both finalists.
Max took the early lead with an opening par four, after Charlie missed the green to the right with his approach and failed to get up and down, but the match was squared at the second hole when Charlie holed from 18 feet for a birdie 2, whilst Max's effort from 15 feet struck the pin and spun out of the hole.
After a couple of halved holes in regulation pars, Max took the lead again when Charlie missed the green to the right at the short 5th hole, and failed to get up and down for par, but again the match was squared two holes late when Max missed from 6 feet for par. The players saw out the outward half with successive halved holes in par to leave the match all square at the turn, both players having one over par figures of 36 for the outward 9.
Again it was Max who took the lead at the 10th, getting up and down from just off the back of the green for a par 3, whilst Charlie was unable to match him from the front right bunker.
Charlie was consistently longer off the tee throughout the match and he used his length to full advantage at the 287 yard 12th hole, hitting a magnificent drive onto the green to set up a winning birdie three to square the match once again.
At the 13th hole Max restored his one hole advantage after Charlie suffered the only three putt by either player in the match to lose the hole to par.
The players negotiated the 343 yard 14th hole in completely different styles, Max laying up from the tee with an iron and Charlie going for length with a driver, but the result was that Charlie holed from 12 feet for a birdie three, only to see Max follow him in from 5 feet to halve the hole.
The tee shots at both the 15th and 16th holes proved decisive in the match, Max finding bunkers on both holes from the tee which resulted in him losing both holes to par as Charlie took the lead in the match for the first time.
At the 183 yard, par 3, 17th hole, Charlie teed off first but found the bunker on the right of the green whilst Max saw his tee shot come up short, also in a bunker. Max played out first, to 5 feet from the hole but had no opportunity to try for a half to take the match to the last as Charlie played a magnificent bunker shot which saw the ball run across the green and drop into the hole for a winning birdie two to give him the match, and 2021 title, with a 2 & 1 victory.
 |
| The 2021 finalists |
Glasgow's Charlie Greaves (Glasgow GC) and Ayrshire's Max Barclay (Ayr Belleisle)
Max Barclay was up against Fraser Hamilton (Hamilton) in the semi final and in a tight match he reached the 17th with a single hole lead. Hitting first at the penultimate hole, Barclay's tee shot ran just through the green but when Hamilton took three to get down after his tee shot, for a bogey 4, Barclay, whose first putt had run a couple of feet past the hole, confidently holed out for a winning par 3 and a 2&1 victory in the match.
In the other semi final Charlie Greaves faced the new strokeplay champion, Alexander Farmer (Kilmacolm), and after 8 holes he held a single hole lead. Greaves doubled his advantage at the turn, winning the ninth to lead by two holes, and birdies at the 12th, 13th and 15th turned his lead into a victory by 5 & 3.
The 18 hole final tees off at Rowallan Castle on Wednesday morning, the 30th of June, at 9.00 am.
Alexander Farmer (Kilmacolm) remains on course to complete a championship double following his win in the strokeplay event on Monday. In the first match off in the morning, he completed the 17 holes in one under par, with three birdies during the round, on his way to a 2 & 1 victory over Rudy Brown (east Kilbride) .
In the semi finals on Tuesday afternoon, farmer will play Charlie Greaves (Glasgow), who eased past Joseph Kelly (Cambuslang) in the opening round with a 4 & 3 victory.
Fraser Hamilton (Hamilton) had the greatest margin of victory in the first round, beating Ryan Stribling (Turnberry) by 5 & 4, and in the semi final will be up against Max Barclay (Ayr Belleisle), who won the all Ayrshire first round clash against Jack Ramsay (Kilmarnock Barassie) by 3 & 2.
The semi finals take place on Tuesday afternoon, with the final scheduled for Wednesday morning, the 30th of June, at Rowallan Castle.
SEMI FINAL LINE UP
ALEXANDER FARMER (Kilmacolm) Vs. CHARLIE GREAVES (Glasgow)
FRASER HAMILTON (Hamilton) Vs. MAX BARCLAY (Ayr Belleisle)
With the course in fine condition and the players enjoying excellent, sunny, and calm weather conditions, the early pace was set by Rudy Brown (East Kilbride) and Jack Ramsay (Kilmarnock Barassie) with a pair of 76's, four over par. Almost half the field had finished their round before that total was bettered, Fraser Hamilton (Hamilton) and Max Barclay (Ayr Belleisle), playing in the same group ending with honours even with two over par scores of 74.
Seven other sub 80 scores were posted before 16 year old Farmer, playing off a handicap of 4, returned a stunning five under par round to storm into the lead and ultimate victory.
Farmer's round started quietly with an opening bogey five, but three birdies in the outward half saw him to the turn in 33, two under par, before an immaculate inward nine consisting of six pars and three birdies was finished off with a birdie four on the final hole, which ultimately saw him home in 67 shots.
In winning the 2021 West of Scotland Boys Strokeplay Championship, Alexander Farmer followed in the footsteps of his father Andrew, a former Scottish internationalist, who won the trophy on two successive occasions in 1990 and 1991, whilst a member of Ranfurly Castle GC.
The full list of scores returned at the 2021 West of Scotland Boys Strokeplay Championship is :-
The players returning the best eight scratch scores in the strokeplay event will go forward to contest the West of Scotland Matchplay Championship at Rowallan Castle GC on Tuesday the 29th and Wednesday the 30th of June.
The draw for the West of Scotland Boys Matchplay Championship is:-
With their first match of the season, at home to Glasgow, postponed last month due to COVID travel restrictions, the Ayrshire side had a difficult opening fixture in their bid to take the boys title for the third consecutive time.
In the four Under 16 ties, Ayrshire lost out by 3 - 1 though two of the ties were only lost on the final green and the other at the seventeenth.
With a robust effort needed from the four senior under 18 players, Fraser Russell was edged out on the penultimate green before both Jack Allan and John McCracken had comfortable 4 & 3 victories to bring the score back to 4 - 3 for Renfrewshire with one tie remaining on course.
In the anchor tie, Kerr Brooks (Loudoun) was all square playing the seventeenth and agonisingly saw his 4 foot, right to left, putt to win the hole lip out before holing from 30 feet on the final green for a winning birdie three, a single hole win in his tie and the crucial fourth point on the board for Ayrshire to secure a drawn match overall.
Next month, Ayrshire travel to Grangemouth on Sunday the 25th, too play Stirlingshire in their next fixture.
Match details (Ayrshire names first):-
Noah O’Brien (Royal Troon) lost to Sean Smith (Mearns
Castle) by 1 hole
Harris Fleming (Royal Troon) lost to Ethan Lamb (Paisley) by
2 & 1
Rory Inglis (Royal Troon) beat Ross Anderson (Williamwood)
by 2 holes
Ryan Kennedy (Irvine) lost to Tom Hepburn (Williamwood) by 2
holes
Fraser Russell (Royal Troon) lost to Stuart Dickson
(Fereneze) by 2 & 1
Jack Allan (Ballochmyle) beat Euan Urquhart (Paisley) by 4
& 3
John McCracken (Kilmarnock Barassie) beat Drew Cleaver
(Fereneze) by 4 & 3
Kerr Brooks (Loudoun) beat John Jack (Gourock) by 1 hole
AYRSHIRE 4 RENFREWSHIRE 4
The top 16 available players from the Ayrshire Srokeplay Championship will play off for the trophy, presently held by Michel Smyth (Royal Troon), the 2019 winner.
The qualifying score for this years matchplay championship was 145, with mark watt (Prestwick St Cuthbert) just edging out Blair Morton (Royal Troon) on that total, by virtue of the better second round.
The full draw for the first round matches, to be played on Monday the 5th of June, is:-
A capacity field enjoyed glorious weather and a course in first class condition as the championship was played in mid summer following postponement due to COVID on it's traditional April date.
Turnberry members Steven Stamper and Ruben Lindsay lead after the opening round with scores of 66, but the highlight of the opening round came from host club member John Haggarty who recorded a hole in one on the 156 yard 11th hole.
Alan McLean (Largs) amd Daniel Forbes (Irvine) were a shot further back at the half way stage, with Scott Brown (Prestwick St Cuthbert), Christopher Hunter (Ballochmyle) and Barry O'Rourke (Loudoun) on 68 and a group of 5 players on 69, including Jack Broun, Blair Morton (Royal Troon), Sandy walker (Kilmarnock Barassie), John Haggarty and Mark Watt (Prestwick St Cuthbert).
Out in the first game, Barry O'Rourke set the early pace, a second round score of 70 giving him a 138 total, and ultimately 5th place in the championship. A second round score of 67 saw John Shanks (Irvine) match Barry O'Rourke's 138 total and 4th place overall by virtue of the better second round.
Steven Stamper secured third place overall, on 137, after a second round of 71, before Daniel Forbes added a 68 to his morning round for a total of 135 and the leaders position in the clubhouse.
With only a few players in the field remaining with a realistic chance of matching or beating daniel Forbes' score, it fell to Jack Broun to post a second round of 66, the best of the afternoon alongside Craig Telfer (Prestwick St Cuthbert), which left Jack Broun and Daniel Forbes tied on 135.
The only realistic challenger still on the course was Scottish Internationalist Ruben Lindsay (Turnberry) but he faltered over the closing few holes and could do no better than 73 in the afternoon to put him out of the running.
Jack Broun lost to Michael Smyth (Royal Troon) in a play off for the title the last time the championship was hosted by Loudoun Gowf Club, in 2019, which undoubtedly was at the back of his mind as he made another play off bid for his first men's county title.
A three hole play off took place over the 13th, 11th and 12th holes. At the opening hole of the play off both players found the green in two and after Daniel's 20 foot putt pulled up short, Jack's 15 foot putt for a birdie missed on the left, leaving the hole halved in par fours.
At the par three eleventh hole both players hit nine iron with Daniel finding a bunker on the left of the green and lipping out with a 40 foot putt for par, en route to a bogey four. Jack Broun successfully two putted for par to take a one stroke lead going to the final play off hole.
At the final hole, the 12th on the course, jack's approach was too strong and went through the back and into the burn behind the green. Whilst daniel pitched to 25 feet en rout to securing his par 4, Jack took a penalty drop, chipped on and bravely holed his putt for a bogey five to take the championship decider into sudden death play off holes.
The players continued onto the 4th play off hole, the first on the course and both players were well positions from the tee, with Daniel's tee shot some distance beyond Jack's. Playing first, jack Broun struck an excellent approach to within just a few feet of the hole, whilst Daniel followed him in, safely reaching the green with his ball finishing some 20 feet from the hole, but with a difficult left to right putt to negotiate for his birdie three. despite an excellent effort, Daniel's putt stayed above ground and he had to settle for a par 4, and he could only watch on as |Jack Broun bravely holed his put for a winning birdie three to take the 2021 Ayrshire Strokeplay title.
The Ayrshire Golf Association are very grateful to the committee and members of Loudoun Gowf Club for hosting the championship this year, and their ongoing support of The Association's activities year on year.
The full list of championship totals were:-
The Strokeplay Championship takes place on Monday, with the players returning the best 8 scratch scores returning on Tuesday and Wednesday to contest the West of Scotland Boys Matchplay title.
The draw for the Strokeplay event on Monday is:-
Mark Watt had a 4 & 3 win over John R Anderson (Skelmorlie) at home in round 2 whilst Scott McIlwraith was awarded a walkover by Alan McLean (Kilbirnie Place), which meant that the two St Cuthbert players will play off in the next round for a place in the last eight.
Also through to round 2 by virtue of walkovers are Paul Denim (Loudoun) and Andrew Carroll (Drongan), awarded by Craig Menzies (Muirkirk) and Connor Martin (Braehead) respectively.
The remaining 2nd round ties are due to be completed by the 4th of July.
With no competition in 2020, it is Irvine Golf Club who are the holders, and they return to defend the R. Leslie Crawford Trophy, which is presented to the team who return the best two score scratch total from three.
The draw for order of play is:-
This space will be filled on a first come first served basis.
Anyone wishing the place should initially contact the Area Secretary by email at
ayrshire.golf@btinternet.com
and follow up with a completed entry form and on line payment.
handicap limit is 4 and entry fee is £20.00
The player returning the best net score of the competition will win the Sandy Provan Trophy. There are also prizes for best scratch score and handicap prizes in three age group categories.
In addition there will be two nearest the hole prizes and an optional twos competition.
Entry fee is £10.00 and the remaining places will be filled on a first come first served basis.
Entry forms should be available through member clubs, and can also be downloaded via the appropriate link on the left of this page, under the 'Entry Forms' heading.
Present positions in section A are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Moorpark |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
9 |
4 |
5 |
8 |
|
West
Kilbride |
4 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
10 |
15 |
-5 |
8 |
|
Turnberry |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
10 |
9 |
1 |
4 |
|
Kilbirnie
Place |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
-1 |
0 |
In SECTION B, Kilmarnock Barassie top the table but their
qualification hopes were dented, following a 3 – 3 draw in their final home
match against Ayr Dalmilling and a defeat by 4 – 2 at Ardeer.
Present positions in section B are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Kilmarnock
(Barassie) |
5 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
15 |
15 |
0 |
10 |
|
Rowallan
Castle |
4 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
12 |
12 |
0 |
8 |
|
Ardeer |
4 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
12 |
12 |
0 |
8 |
|
Ayr
Dalmilling |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
In SECTION C, Portmann surprised their hosts, Ayr Belleisle,
with a 4 – 2 away win whilst Loudoun moved into second place in the table
following a 5 – 1 away win against Portmann.
Present positions in Section C are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Ballochmyle |
5 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
17 |
14 |
3 |
14 |
|
Loudoun |
4 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
17 |
8 |
9 |
12 |
|
Portmann |
4 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
9 |
16 |
-7 |
4 |
|
Ayr
Belleisle |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
7 |
12 |
-5 |
2 |
In SECTION D, Auchenharvie 88 moved to the top of the table
following a 4 – 2 away win against Stewarton, after Caprington drew their last
match 3 – 3 away to local rivals Annanhill.
Present positions in section D are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Auchenharvie
88 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
10 |
9 |
1 |
8 |
|
Caprington |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
7 |
5 |
2 |
6 |
|
Annanhill |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
10 |
9 |
1 |
6 |
|
Stewarton |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
4 |
8 |
-4 |
0 |
Present positions in section E are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Prestwick
St Nicholas |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
3 |
7 |
8 |
|
Ayr
Seafield |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
6 |
0 |
4 |
|
Troon
Portland |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
10 |
-7 |
0 |
In SECTION F, Redburn’s good start was dented, with a 4 – 2 defeat,
away to Troon Merchants, whilst Routenburn recorded their first points of the
campaign with a 5 – 1 win at home to Troon Merchants.
Present positions in section F are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Redburn |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
12 |
6 |
6 |
8 |
|
Alton |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
8 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
|
Routenburn |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
5 |
7 |
-2 |
4 |
|
Troon
Merchants |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
13 |
-8 |
4 |
In SECTION G, Troon Welbeck lead the way after completing
their home fixtures with 4.5 – 1.5 wins over Troon St Meddans and Royal Troon.
Royal Troon maintained their challenge with a 4 – 2 home win
over Troon St Meddans whilst Tam O Shanter got their first points on the table
with a narrow 3.5 – 2.5 home win over Prestwick St Cuthbert.
Present positions in section G are:-
|
|
GP |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
Troon
Welbeck |
4 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
17 |
7 |
10 |
16 |
|
Prestwick
St Cuthbert |
4 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
14 |
11 |
3 |
8 |
|
Royal
Troon |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
9 |
9 |
0 |
8 |
|
Troon St
Meddans |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
13 |
18 |
-5 |
4 |
|
Tam O
Shanter |
4 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
8 |
16 |
-8 |
4 |
