North-east contingent well placed for golfing success

WHILE Banchory's James Byrne, Scotland's leading-ranked amateur, is absent due to college commitments in America, the chances of a north-east player winning the Scottish Open Stroke Play Championship this weekend look particularly promising.

The 72-hole event gets under way today at Glasgow Gailes and three of the leading contenders all hail from the Aberdeen area, where former Open champion Paul Lawrie is having a big influence on some of Scotland's up-and-coming players.

Peterhead's Philip McLean and David Law of Hazlehead are both part of the Lawrie Foundation and have headed for Ayrshire with high hopes of adding to previous successes in that particular neck of the woods. McLean won the Edward Trophy at Gailes, and the 23-year-old is looking forward to being back on familiar territory.

"I attributed that win to my driving and you need to be good off the tee to score well at Glasgow Gailes while to win any big event you need to putt well which I've been doing," said McLean, who tied for eighth behind Englishman Tommy Fleetwood, the runaway winner in last year's event at Murcar Links.

"I've had a good season so far with an SGU Order of Merit event win followed by the North East's victory (in the Scottish Area Team Championship at Kinross] so I'll go into this weekend full of confidence."

Law, who won the Scottish Amateur Championship at Troon last summer, also has the class to win an event like this, as does Fraserburgh's Kris Nicol, the form horse among the home contingent.

Emerging from the shadow of clubmate and former British Boys' champion Jordan Findlay, Nicol was runner-up in both the Lytham Trophy and Irish Stroke Play Championship before also figuring in that North-East title triumph.

Colville Park's Ross Kellett will be looking to improve on his third-place finish in 2006, while Fleetwood's decision not to defend the title is offset by the presence of two other leading English players, Walker Cup man Stiggy Hodgson and Tom Lewis.

Previous winners of the event include Colin Montgomerie (1985), Stephen Gallacher (1995), Alastair Forsyth (1996) and Richie Ramsay (2004).

• John McTear moved into the top ten during the second round of the Senior PGA Club Professionals' championship at Northants County.

The Glasgow veteran, who won the over-50s title in 2001, posted a level-par 70 for a two-over 142 and was sharing eighth spot with Edinburgh exile Stephen Craig, who hit a 71.

The Scots duo finished the day five shots behind Steve Cipa of South Essex, who moved to the front with a 68 for 137.