13/04/11
Craig Ross, winner of the last month’s Junior Champion of Champions, remained on course for a national title double as he stormed through to a fourth round clash with defending champion Grant Forrest this afternoon at Dunbar.
The 18-year-old is aiming to go one better than fellow Kirkhill member Paul Shields, who reached two successive Scottish Boys Championship finals in 2008-09, only to suffer defeats at the hands of Michael Stewart and David Law. Ross overcame the challenge of Ranfurly Castle’s Andrew Cunningham by a 4 and 3 margin to set up an intriguing match with Forrest, who stormed through 7 and 5.
“I said to myself at the start of the season that it would be nice to win a Scottish event this year and I’ve manage to achieve that quickly. I’ve been working hard on my game with my coach George Boswell and it’s nice that the work is paying off so early,” said Ross.
“I’ve played with Paul (Shields) a few times and he’s obviously performed well in this event but it would be nice to go one better than him. My local pro Duncan Williamson knows the Dunbar course well and he brought me down here a few times to get me ready, which was really helpful. I like match play golf as you can be aggressive and that’s what I’ve been doing.” he added.
Cruden Bay 16-year-old Robbie Gauld fought off a spirited fightback from Scottish Under-14s champion Bradley Neil to seal his place in the fourth round. Gauld, coached by Neil Marr, was two up with two to play but Neil forced the match into extra holes before Gauld won the match with a par at the 19th.
David Wilson continued his solid progress in his bid to follow in the footsteps of Troon Welbeck club-mate Michael Stewart as he eased into the fourth round, while Peebles will have two representatives in the last 32 as Daniel Flannery and Craig Howie both chalked up afternoon victories.
Jamie Savage, son of Tartan Tour pro Stewart Savage, is also through after a 2 and 1 win while Lothians star Anthony Blaney reached day four for the second successive year following a win by the same margin over Crieff’s Rory Stewart. Tantallon’s Callum Hill, the most local player left in the field, is also through to Thursday’s fourth round after a 3 and 2 win before Scotland U18s player Greig Marchbank (Dumfries & Galloway) raced through 7 and 6.
In a dramatic final match amid fading light, former Boys Stroke Play champion Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock Barassie) staved off a tenacious challenge from 15-year-old Craig Lawrie to close out the game by one hole.
Tomorrow (Thursday) sees the fourth and fifth round matches taking place, with the first game teeing off at 8.00am.
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