McCreadie delighted to finally make his mark on European Tour

Published on Friday 10 July 2009 22:54

JASON McCreadie, the Tartan Tour golfer who qualified to compete in a limited schedule of European Tour events this summer thanks to a runner-up finish behind Chris Doak in the PGA play-offs last year, was thrilled to sign for 67 and 137,five under par, at the Barclays Scottish Open.

"It was my best performance of all time," enthused the 38-year-old from Buchanan Castle. "I played well today. I've only made one cut (on the European Tour] before at Gleneagles for the Diageo a few years ago.

"I hit every green apart from the 17th. I started well in the Wales Open but couldn't finish it off at Celtic Manor. Maybe I was more relaxed this time. You relax when you're playing well. When you're playing badly, it can be hard to do that.

"It's a fantastic opportunity for me this weekend, just as every other event has been for me since I joined the Tour. As yet, I haven't taken any of those opportunities." The highlight of McCreadie's round was a notable 3 on the home hole where he made a testing birdie putt.

"It looked as if it was a pretty straight six-footer and I thought I'd pulled it," he recalled. "But it moved from right to left and in it went."

Looking forward to a weekend alongside the world's elite, McCreadie added: "A year ago this week I was injured and at home. I'd won the Scottish PGA at Gleneagles (on the Tartan Tour] and was out for three weeks after that. I watched the Scottish Open on the telly and the Open the week after."

Helensburgh's Gary Orr, 68 for 138, is very much the local hero this week.

"I always get a lift from playing here, close to where I grew up, and I love the course," reported the highest placed Scot, 127th, in the world rankings. "I've had a lot of friends and family wandering around."

Having also qualified for the Open at Turnberry next week, the Scot is aware of juggling priorities. "I think, to be honest, you've got to focus on this week first," he said. "It's an important tournament in its own right and, if you can play well here, you can carry that on to the Open next week.

"The most important thing for me is to play well, build up some form, and take that with me to Turnberry. For me, being competitive is important – any week I play well is good.

"I haven't actually been to Turnberry since I qualified at Sunningdale.

"I've spoken to a few guys who have and they tell me the rough is pretty severe in places. I'll try my best to treat it as another tournament, even though we all know it's not.

"It's very important that we have a good number of players involved when the Open is in Scotland. We all know that Scottish golf has been going through a little bit of a lull in recent years, certainly at our end. But that will change. There are some good young players out there just looking for a bit of luck. Maybe someone like Lloyd Saltman will have a big Open and that will catapult him on to better things."