Huge recovery operation gets Dunbar ready to host the Boys

A MASSIVE recovery operation has been completed at Dunbar's East Links to get the course ready for next week's Scottish Boys' Championship, the first big event of the domestic season.

As revealed in The Scotsman in December, the Scottish Golf Union had expressed serious concern about the state of the East Lothian course after it suffered extensive damage caused by a storm last year.

Debris was strewn across the course, which is also due to host final qualifying for the Open Championship when it returns to Muirfield in 2013, following the storm.

While volunteers helped with a clearing up operation straight afterwards, it wasn't until the summer that greenkeeping staff discovered the grass was dying in front of their eyes due to the salt water that had been tossed on to the course.

However, a huge re-turfing operation has been carried out over the past few months and, thanks to an excellent job carried out by Soutars of Stirling in tandem with the club's greenkeeping staff, the course is back looking in great condition.

"It is like night and day to when we paid a visit at the beginning of December," said Euan Mordaunt, the SGU's events manager.

"The contractors had just dug up the dead turf then and it was certainly looking poor at the time.

"However, we were happy with the progress that had been made on paying another visit in Decemeber and it has been steady since then, with the turf now having knitted well."

Ten holes were affected by the damage, some worse than others, and more than 10,000 square metres of turf has been laid to get the course back to normal in time for the return of the Scottish Boys for the first time since 2007.

"It is amazing to think that in one year the course has been transformed," said Dunbar club captain Bill Kane.

"This is due to the combined efforts of our greenkeeping staff, the contractors and our members, many of whom helped with the clearing up operation.

"It is testimony to their work that, within a year of the course being struck by a bad storm, we are able to host such a prestigious competition as the Scottish Boys' Championship."

Next week's event, the 70th staging, will involve players from more than 150 clubs, with Craigielaw's Grant Forrest, the winner at West Kilbride 12 months ago, defending his title in a field that also includes Craig Lawrie, the 15-year-old son of former Open champion Paul.

"It is the first time since Scott Henry, the winner in 2004 and 2005, that we will have the defending champion in the field, the cut-off for which was 5.5 compared to 6.4 at Dunbar eight years ago," added Mordaunt.