Bobby Rushford back in giant-killing form as he bundles out top seed with ease

The 23-year-old, who is in the final year of a sports management degree at Stirling University, bagged five birdies en route to a 4 and 3 victory, leaving his opponent, the world No 12 and the beaten finalist in this year's Amateur Championship, with no cause for complaint.

"Bobby played excellent and didn't give me anything, though, at the same time, I wasn't at my best," said Stewart, who had set out in his home county and over a course he knows well with high hopes of becoming the first player since Charlie Green in 1983 to win the SGU's flagship event back-to-back.

The Troon Welbeck player now plans to take a couple of days off before heading to Sweden for next week's European Individual Championship. He has then got the Home Internationals in Ireland before the US Amateur Championship in Milwaukee. "Hopefully I'll also have the Walker Cup after that," said Stewart, who deserved credit for the gracious way he took his early exit on the chin.

Rushford, who lives in Polmont and is a member at Grangemouth, was four up after six, lost the seventh and eighth, but then birdied the ninth and tenth to win both of them. He made a mess of the long 14th and eventually conceded that, but clinched victory in style with a birdie-2 at the next, hitting an 8-iron tee shot to three feet.

"I've been playing well this week and, while Michael is a good player, I was expecting to do well against him," said the Stirling University team captain and member of five title-winning sides in the British Universities' Championship during his six years there.

Rushford lost to eventual winner Kevin McAlpine in this event in 2006, but underlined his potential by knocking out Saltman, one of Britain's top-ranked amateurs at the time after finishing 15th in The Open at St Andrews the previous year, on his way to the last four.

Asked to pick the biggest scalp between Saltman and Stewart, he said: "No disrespect to Michael, who I can remember since he was 12-year-old, but I was younger then and Lloyd was a player I really looked up to. He was the be all and end all then."

Rushford revealed he has benefited enormously from working with former European Tour winner and 1993 Scottish champion Dean Robertson, who became the head coach for the Stirling University golf programme almost exactly a year ago.

It would be wrong to say that Robertson has transformed Stirling's fortunes as the likes of Catriona Matthew and Richie Ramsay enjoyed fruitful spells there, but Rushford admitted that himself and fellow bursars James White, Graeme Robertson, Zander Culverwell and Jack McDonald have all been feeding off each other lately.White, this year's Tennant Cup winner, and Robertson are No 1 and No 2 in the SGU Order of Merit, while Culverwell won a counting event, the Battle Trophy at Crail, earlier in the year. To the delight of Robertson, no doubt, that trio and local lad McDonald, too, are also through to the last 32 here.

McDonald, the 2009 Scottish Boys' Stroke-Play champion from neighbouring Kilmarnock (Barassie), recovered from three down with five to play to beat Aberdour's Scott Crichton, who earlier in the day had delivered a crushing blow to Ross Kellett's Walker Cup hopes as the Colville Park man became one of five seeds to exit.

Late in the day, Fraserburgh's Kris Nicol also saw his chances of making that Great Britain & Ireland side suffer a major dent as he lost at the 19th to Dunbar's Danny Kay. At the same, three-time finalist and 1989 champion Allan Thomson squeezed through at the 21st against Daniel Thompsett from Aboyne.

The seeds left standing in addition to White are David Law, the winner at Troon two years ago, and James Byrne, who had eight birdies in 13 holes as he overpowered Grant Forrest.