Midlothian County Championships

Today, Monday 24th April, was a typical golfing day. The Midlothian County Qualifying 36 hole competition had first of all, drizzly rain, then just as the waterproofs were getting slightly warm, there was lovely sunshine and afterwards the wind got up. The lucky ones were having lunch when the rain returned but not for long. As already stated - typical weather.

Prestonfield was the venue for this competition and in the sunshine it was very pretty indeed although the flowering cherry trees weren't yet in bloom as in previous years, but that was not the fault of the management. (Proper golfers would be so focussed they wouldn't notice anyway!) There were one or two comments about green difficulty but isn't there always. Although not quite fulfilling Vet Criteria, it seems justified to mention here that Rachel Watton, Gabrielle MacDonald and Kate McIntosh, (young potential vets) are to be commended for playing so well today at Prestonfield after returning only yesterday from the Helen Holm in Troon where the greens must have been so completely different.

Vets playing today were Fiona de Vries, Fiona Hunter, Noreen Fenton and Gilly Glen. Fiona Hunter (Baberton) and Noreen Fenton (Dunbar) will now play in the matchplay stage. Fiona De Vries(St Rule) unexpectedly cannot now participate in this due to family circumstances and Gilly Glen (Craigmillar Park) unfortunately did not qualify.

Top Qualifiers
154 Wendy Nicholson (Broomieknowe)
158 Noreen Fenton (Dunbar) (better second score) Linda Caine(Dunbar) Gabrielle MacDonald (Craigielaw)
163 Karen Marshall (Baberton)
164 Kirsten Blackwood (Craigmillar Park), Fiona Hunter (Baberton) Kate McIntosh (Broomieknowe)

Midlothian County Championship Draw (to be played Friday 28th April)
Wendy Nicholson v Linda Bain
Kate McIntosh v Gillian Simpson
Karen Marshall v Hilary Laughland
Claire McDonald v Gabrielle MacDonald
Linda Caine v Sal Shepherd
Claire Hargan v Kirsten Blackwood
Fiona Hunter v Louise Fraser
Noreen Fenton v Hannah Scott

Immediately after the County championship matches, the Bronze Championship will take place, the qualifying round for which was over Murrayfield last week.

Bronze Championship Draw
10.00 Denise Mitchell (Murrayfield) v Yvonne Blyth (Prestonfield)
10.07 Susie Laughland (Royal Dornoch) v Phyl Early (Glencorse)
10.15 Jaci Moriarty (Lochend) v Elsa Todd (Prestonfield)
10.22 Helen Warnock (Harburn) v Sandra Ashurst (Murrayfield)
10.30 Anne Brown (Deer Park) v Helen Martin (Kingsknowe)
10.37 Lynda Taylor (Dalmahoy) v Sandra Dickson (Mortonhall)
10.45 Coleen Derighetti (Lochend) v Isobel Halliday (Merchants)
10.52 Eileen McLaughlan (Kingsknowe) v Margaret Alexander (Baberton)

Good luck everyone. Hope the weather forecast is wrong.