Top seed tumbles out on day of Boys’ shocks

Favourite and top seed Darren Howie tumbled out and St Andrews’ John Paterson’s bid for a double national title crashed as well on a Sunday of shocks at the Scottish Boys Championship at Scotscraig.

The Girls Championship first round went largely with seedings, but it was a different story in the boys with Peebles’ Howie failing in his bid to follow brother Craig to the Boys matchplay title.

As many as 17 strokes separated Howie and Dumfries’ Jamie Marchbank in qualifying but it made no odds with the five-handicapper winning on the final green against the Scotland junior internationalist, who plays off plus three.

Paterson’s hopes of adding the matchplay title to the strokeplay championship he won at Monifieth back in April also ended in the first round.

The 18-year-old New Club member, who qualified as fourth seed, was beaten at the second extra hole by Steven P ears of Nairn Dunbar.

Second seed Marc Watt (Inverallochy) and Blairgowrie’s Campbell Gibson, the third seed, both progressed as did defending champion Euan McIntosh (Bruntsfield Links).

In the Girls Championship, being played simultaneously with the Boys for the first time, all the leading seeds progressed in the first round.

Huntly’s Shannon McWilliam, seeded third but the field’s backmarker, had a hole-in-one at the sixth as she defeated Jennifer Rankine (Haggs Castle) 6 and 5, the biggest win of the day.

Strathmore’s Kirsty Brodie had a solid 2 and 1 win over Maria Cowan (Wigtownshire) in her first round game.