New national men's medal unveiled by Scottish Golf for 2019

The final of the Scottish Men's Amateur Championship is being cut to 18 holes. Picture Kenny Smith

The launch of the Scottish Men’s Medal Finals follows the successful introduction of a popular female equivalent, with affiliated clubs able to enter scratch and medal winners from this season into five regional finals set to take place in June and July.

The top six qualifiers in each section from the regional events will book their place in grand final at Ladybank in August, two months after the Revive Active Scottish Women’s Medal event concludes on the Eden Course at  St Andrews.

“The introduction of the Scottish Men’s Medal Finals completes our 2019 offering of championships for club golfers and underlines our commitment to providing opportunities for golfers of all ages and abilities to participate in nationally contested events,” said Fraser Munro, Scottish Golf’s head of events.

“We would encourage all clubs to enter their members and have made a number of changes including increasing handicap limits to 54, which we hope will encourage greater inclusivity and participation going forward.”

To be held at Crail, the Scottish Men’s Championship will be played over five days instead of six, with the two semi-finals and an 18-hole final being staged on the final day.

In another change, the Scottish Women’s and Girl’s Amateur Championships will both be contested over three days at Kilmarnock (Barassie) and Blairgowrie respectively, with 36-hole stroke play qualifying on day one followed by two match play flights of 16.

In addition, the Scottish Boys Under-16 Open Championship at Royal Burgess will be played over 54 holes, with 50 per cent more players making the cut (60 and ties) and the event counting towards World Amateur Golf Rankings for the first time.