Ayrshire's Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) was amongst the award winners at the Hilton Hotel in Glasgow on Friday night, 1st March, when he received the Amateur Golfer Of The Year award.
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| Amateur Golfer Of The Year Jack McDonald with the Ayrshire officials who attended the Scottish Golf Awards L - R : SGU Council Member Ronnie Potts, Vice President James McMurdo, Jack McDonald, President Milton Murray & Secretary Alasdair Malcolm |
Before a sell-out
crowd of almost 600 guests at the annual showpiece jointly-organised by the
Scottish Golf Union and Scottish Ladies’ Golfing Association, the two-time Major
champion received a richly-deserved standing ovation as he collected the final
award of the night.
Lyle, who won The
Open Championship at Royal St George’s in 1985 before making history by becoming
the first Briton to claim the Green Jacket three years later, became one of the
world’s leading golfers in the 1980s and is forever regarded as a member of
Europe’s ‘Big Five’ during that era.
After amassing 30
professional wins and playing on five Ryder Cup sides, he was inducted into the
World Golf Hall of Fame in 2012 and has now entered Scottish Golf’s equivalent,
joining previous inductees Sam Torrance, Colin Montgomerie and Paul
Lawrie.
“It was a wonderful
night at the 2013 Scottish Golf Awards at the Hilton Glasgow,” said Lyle, 55.
“What an honour it was to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award in front of Scotland’s golf fans in Glasgow, so close to my family heritage in Milngavie. It was also wonderful to have my wife, Jolande, and four children present at the awards dinner.
“It really doesn’t
seem like 25 years ago that I won at Augusta National, but it’s obviously a
memory that will live with me forever.
“I’ve been lucky to
have enjoyed a great career and it was nice to reflect on it in Glasgow. Well
done to all the award winners and thank you to the Scottish Golf Union and the
Scottish Ladies’ Golfing Association for organising a fantastic
occasion.”
During a night to
celebrate Scottish golf at all levels after a fantastic 12 months at amateur and
professional level, Lyle was reacquainted with the Claret Jug and the Ryder Cup
– among six trophies on show for dinner guests during a wonderful evening which
raised thousands of pounds for junior golf in Scotland.
Lyle also presented
Alford’s Laura Murray with the SLGA Ladies Order of Merit award, before
accepting his own Lifetime Achievement accolade from another icon of the 1980s,
the Scotland football manager Gordon Strachan.
Other famous
personalities from across Scottish sport who gathered included Stephen
Gallacher, the recent winner of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, who presented
the Amateur Golfer of the Year award to Jack McDonald of Kilmarnock
(Barassie).
Gallacher walked away
with the Shot of the Year award after his heroics in Dubai, while Ryder Cup hero
Paul Lawrie won the prestigious Player of the Year award.
Craig Brown, manager
of Lawrie’s beloved Aberdeen, received the award on his behalf, with other
sports celebrities in attendance including golfer Alastair Forsyth, Scotland’s
curling queen Eve Muirhead and Grand Slam winning rugby hero Tony
Stanger.
Among other awards
presented on the night, Scotland’s victorious Men’s Home Internationals team won
the fierce fight for Team of the Year, while Bradley Neil accepted the Boys’
Order of Merit title on behalf of his Team GB gold medal-winning team-mate Ewan
Scott from St Andrews.
The awards also
recognised the efforts of those involved at the grass roots level of the game,
with the RBS Volunteer of the Year award going to Shirley Murray from Torvean,
while Central region club Strathendrick triumphed in the RBS Junior Club of the
Year.
Another St Andrews
player, Lauren Whyte, the 2012 Scottish Girls champion, was also the second
recipient of The Adam Hunter Award, created following the death in 2011 of the
ex-European Tour player and coach. Stephen McAllister, a former close tour
colleague of Hunter’s, was appropriately on hand to accept Whyte’s £500 grant
towards her coaching and development.
Meanwhile, proceeds
from the Jewson Long Putt Challenge went to Lyle’s nominated charity – The Brain
Tumour Charity. On the day of Bandanas for Brain Tumours, Sandy and dinner
guests donned bandanas for the second biggest Brain Research Charity in the
world focussing on research.
The full list of
winners from the 2013 Scottish Golf Awards reads below:
2013 Scottish Golf
Awards – List of winners
Amateur Golfer of the
Year - Jack McDonald
SLGA Girls Order of
Merit - Jessica Meek
Team of the
Year - Scotland Men’s Team
SGU Seniors Order of
Merit - David Gardner
SGU Boy's Order of
Merit - Ewan Scott
SLGA Ladies Order of
Merit - Laura Murray
SGU Men's Order of
Merit - Scott Borrowman
Junior Club of the
Year - Strathendrick
Volunteer of the
Year - Shirley Murray
Adam Hunter
Award - Lauren Whyte
Shot of the
Year - Stephen Gallacher
Player of the
Year - Paul Lawrie
Lifetime Achievement
Award - Sandy Lyle
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