No Summers holiday as Ailsa moves into final
IT is what you would call a Summers holiday. Her mum, dad and two dogs are all lapping up the sunshine on the Ayrshire coast this week but Ailsa Summers has remained in business mode on her way to the final of the Scottish Women’s Amateur Championship at a glorious West Kilbride.
With father Graham acting as caddie and the rest of the clan supporting from the sidelines before retreating to the caravan they are renting, Summers produced a significant surge on the back nine in her semi-final joust with Hannah McCook to claim a 4&2 win and set up an 18-hole final shootout with 2014 champion Gabrielle Macdonald.
Summers, a 22-year-old from Carnoustie, was rewarded for her bold sense of adventure as she took a tight tussle with McCook by the scruff of the neck. All square through 10 holes, Summers drove the green on the 11th and two-putted for birdie to move one ahead before “taking it on” again on the 14th when her raking tee-shot spawned another birdie which doubled her advantage. Summers then effectively put the tin lid on the tie at the 15th when she found the putting surface from a thick lie and trundled in a 30-footer for birdie. When McCook plonked her drive on 16 out of bounds, it was all over.
“It had been a bit of a scrappy game and I was getting a bit frustrated so I decided to go for it,” said Summers of that back-nine barrage. “I holed a very good putt from about 15 feet on the 12th for a half which was important to keep things going after I had got myself in front.”
In her quarter-final tie in the morning, Summers had to go to the 20th hole before staving off the menacing advances of Gillian Paton, of Montrose. “You take nothing for granted and I knew every match would be tough,” said Summers.
Her final tie against Macdonald promises to be a tough one too. Known in Craigielaw circles as Steely for her never-say-die attitude in the matchplay format, Macdonald demonstrated her sturdy resolve against Minto’s Tara Mactaggart and claimed a 2&1 win.
Two-up through eight, Macdonald, who won the national title at Prestwick, swiftly lost her advantage with a stumble around the turn but she steadied herself coming home and struck a telling blow on the 15th. A putt of some 30 feet gave her a birdie to inch her ahead and the 23-year-old sealed the win on 17 when her short putt for another birdie was conceded.
Edinburgh’s Macdonald beat Summers in the quarter-finals on her way to the Scottish Championship crown two years ago. And Macdonald is relishing the prospect of another showdown. “It is good to have that previous win over Ailsa behind me and it will be another tight test,” she said.
Ian Poulter is expected to miss the next four months of the season due to a foot injury, effectively ending his chances of qualifying automatically for the Ryder Cup. “I am disappointed to be in this situation, especially during a Ryder Cup year,” said Poulter. “Right now, rest and rehab take priority in me returning to full strength later this season. I look forward to resuming a full schedule as soon as I am able.”