AREA BOYS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP - Niagra Cup for Smith as Ayrshire finish joint fourth

Marc Smith (Troon Welbeck) won the Niagra Cup for the best individual round in the 2010 Scottish Boys Area Team Championship on Sunday 6th June at Peebles, as Ayrshire finished in joint fourth place behind the winners, Lothians.

After the morning foursomes Ayrshire were in joint tenth place out of the 16 areas, a formidable 16 shots behind the Lothians team who went on to win the title.

The pairing of Marc Smith and Euan Walker had 14 pars in their round but penalty shots cost them dearly as they struggled to a 8 over par 78.

The other foursomes pairing of Jack McDonald and David Wilson returned a six over par 76, but were hampered by a back injury to Wilson, sustained the previous afternoon.

The injury to Wilson prevented him taking part in the afternoon singles and his retiral left the three remaining Ayrshire players scores required to count towards the team total.

The Ayrshire side rose to the challenge and McDonald was first in the clubhouse, with a level par round of 70, despite running up a double bogey seven at the final hole.

Marc Smith was next in and his display of controlled and accurate golf was rewarded with a three under par round of 67 which included birdies at the final two holes.

The final Ayrshire player on the course, Euan Walker, dropped a shot at the seventeenth to go to two over par but a superb approach shot at the final hole set up a closing birdie four for a one over par round of 71.

Ayrshire's resultant singles total of 208 proved to be the best of the day and pushed the team up to joint fourth place in the final table, just six shots behind the winners.

Marc Smith's triumph in winning the Niagra Cup was the third such success for Ayrshire players following on from Graham Fox (1995) and Cameron Gray (2007).

(The Ayrshire Team - David Wilson, Jack McDonald, Euan Walker & Marc Smith)

FINAL PLACINGS

356 - LOTHIANS (138 - 218)

360 - LANARKSHIRE (151 - 209), SOUTH (143 - 217)

362 - AYRSHIRE (154 - 208), CLACKMANNANSHIRE (153 - 209), FIFE (152 - 210)

363 - BORDERS (150 - 213)

366 - RENFREWSHIRE (149 - 217), STIRLINGSHIRE (145 - 221)

371 - NORTH EAST (154 - 217), PERTH & KINROSS (151 - 220)

375 - DUMBARTONSHIRE (160 - 215)

376 - GLASGOW (160 - 216)

393 - ANGUS (159 - 234)

396 - ARGYLL & BUTE (159 - 237)

DISQ - NORTH (DQ - 214)

(Defending champions, The North District, were disqualified when a player in one of their foursomes pairings teed off out of turn and the error was not discovered until after the players had played the next hole)