Strong record has Hutcheon as one to beat at Deer Park
Greig Hutcheon is clearly the man to beat in the latest Tartan Tour Order of Merit event, the EMTEC Deer Park Masters starting today at the Livingston venue.
This title, after all, has fallen to Hutcheon (Paul Lawrie Golf Centre Inchmarlo) four times already, including for the last three years, when the quality of his play has been reflected in him covering 72 holes in a cumulative 28-under-par.
Hutcheon, who has claimed the Northern Open at Royal Dornoch already this season, faces 49 title rivals over the next two days at a venue which has a long association with the Tartan Tour, stretching back to when it staged the Scottish PGA Championship in 1990.
Elsewhere, a Scotland side with Scott Knowles as nonplaying captain head into the opening day of the Boys’ Home Internationals at Ballyliffin in County Donegal with two survivors from last year’s title-winning team at Conwy in Wales.
Among those joining Rory Franssen (Inverness) and Darren Howie (Peebles) in doing battle in the four-cornered event on this occasion are Scottish Boys’ champion Eric Mcintosh (Brunstfield Links) and Paul Lawrie’s youngest son, Michael, who plays his golf at Deeside.
“The Boys Home Internationals is an excellent opportunity for the leading young players in the home nations to play against their peers from Great Britain and Ireland in an international team environment,” said Johnnie Colehamilton, the R&A’S executive director of championships. “The matches are always very competitive and we look forward to three days of excellent golf at Ballyliffin.”
Off the course, Roger Mcstravick from St Andrews has won his second literary award this year for his book, St Andrews In The Footsteps of Old Tom Morris.
The book, which sets out the golf history of St Andrews and is set to the backdrop of the life of Old Tom Morris, has been awarded the Murdoch Medal by The British Golf Golf Collectors’ Society.
“To win this and USGA’S Herbert Warren Wind Award this year Collectors’ Society is far more than I could ever have hoped for when I was writing the book,” said Mcstravick.