Golf: Gallacher breaks habit of a lifetime . . just for Scotland

STEPHEN GALLACHER has been warned by his ten-year-old son not to make a fashion faux pas when he partners Martin Laird for Scotland in this week’s World Cup in China.

Young Jack offered the advice after his dad agreed to break a habit of a lifetime by wearing white trousers for the Omega-sponsored event at Mission Hills. “Martin emailed me a few weeks ago about our dress arrangements and I’ve had to succumb to white trousers,” Gallacher told the Evening News. “We are going white trousers/navy top, white top/navy trousers, all navy then a day when we’ll go for something completely different.

“Jack has already warned me that I’ll need to wear white pants and I pulled his leg by saying I might wear Saltire boxers!”

Gallacher and Laird are both making their debuts in the event, which gets underway on Hainen Island in the early hours of tomorrow morning with a fourball session.

“We are looking forward to it,” added the Lothians star. “We’re playing against some of the best players in the world and it means a lot to us.

“Both our wives have come out with us, which is good. As Martin said, at least we’ll have two supporters, even though his wife is American.”

As amateurs, Gallacher and Laird both represented Scotland on a regular basis, though never in the same team due to the former being nine years older than his compatriot.

“My Scotland debut was in the Home Internationals at Prestwick,” recalled Gallacher. “I couldn’t have picked a better person than Allan Thomson as my partner as it was around his home track.

“Unfortunately, it was a baptism of firm – one of our opponents was Warren Bennett – as we lost.

“It is a novelty now whereas you used to play team golf all the time, whether it was at club level, county level or national level. Even at GB&I level.

“It was all you really played. European Boys, Area Team etc so it is nice to get back into that this week and we’re hoping to contend.”

Gallacher, who has already played in Singapore and Malaysia on this trip, is staying on in the Far East for next week’s Hong Kong Open.

Having slipped to 60th in the Race to Dubai, he will need to pick up a decent cheque there to guarantee his place in the season-ending Dubai World Championship.