Scotland call-up for golfer Kirsty
Rising local star Kirsty Brodie has been taking advantage of the facilities at Gleneagles ahead of the European Amateur Team Championship in Norway next month.
The Strathmore member has been busy on the range with a Scotland squad set to compete at the Oslo Golf Club from July 5-9.
Working in partnership with Scottish Golf, Gleneagles hosted the six-strong team for a special training camp.
Kirsty (16) finished second in the recent Paul Lawrie Foundation Scottish Schools Championship, held at Murrayshall, to secure her spot in the team.
Andrew Jowett, head professional at Gleneagles, believes the Perthshire resort is the perfect base for the girls to hone their skills ahead of the prestigious competition.
He said: “They’ve been utilising the putting greens to work on speed control, technique and green reading, using the short game area to improve pitching and bunker play, perfecting technique in the long game area and taking advantage of the tournament-spec grass tee for more realistic lies.
“Playing on all three courses is providing the squad with a range of challenges. The King’s, Queen’s and the PGA Centenary have tested the skills of the world’s most experienced golfers.
“That will give the girls the chance to perfect the different types of shots they’ll be facing on Norway’s oldest course in July.”
David Patrick, Scottish Golf’s girls’ national coach, knows how good an experience playing the championships will be for Kirsty and the rest of the team.
He said: “It’s a young team this year, with three on their first cap for Scotland and four who haven’t played the Europeans before, but this means the competition will be a superb learning experience for them.
“As the host venue of the 2014 Ryder Cup and the 2019 Solheim Cup, Gleneagles ticks all the boxes and offers some of the best golfing facilities in the UK.
“So this is a fantastic opportunity for the girls to come and take their game up a level.
“The course in Norway has quite a bit of undulation and has really fast, sloping greens, so there’s no better location than Gleneagles to match those kinds of conditions.
“Getting to play on three world-class courses in the space of three days is also giving the girls tremendous experience and exposure to different challenges.
“It’s really important to Scottish Golf that these young girls have all the support they need to help them fulfil their potential and succeed as golfers.”