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Glenmuir Returns to St Andrews

The Glenmuir Club Professional Championship returns to Scotland, indeed to St Andrews, just three years after Bob Cameron defeated Russell Weir in a play-off over the Duke's Course.

06 August 2003 1 minute read Glenmuir Returns to St Andrews

This time 156 players from all over Britain and Ireland will converge, from August 12 - 15, on St Andrews Bay Resort, opened almost two years ago and boasting two 18-hole championship courses. The Sam Torrance - designed lay-out, which can stretch to almost 7,000 yards, will be the test for the Glenmuir qualifiers and exempt players. The other course was designed by former Australian star, Bruce Devlin, an eight-time winner on the US Tour.

 

For a record 11th year the Scottish-based golf and leisurewear manufacturers will be sponsoring the national club professional championship, worth £78,000 in prize money.

 

From mid-April onwards almost 650 non-exempt players set out on the qualification trail for the title which brings not only a cheque for £10,000 but also an automatic place in the 2005 PGA Cup team to meet the United States.

 

As both Cameron and Weir pursue their careers on the European Seniors Tour, it's premature to say that a new name will be inscribed on the trophy (a few former champions are in the field) but the new venue will certainly challenge the players.

 

The likes of Paul Wesselingh (Kedleston Park, Derby), Graeme Bell (Eaglescliffe, Durham), and Simon Edwards (Wrexham), members of the PGA Cup team in Florida earlier this year, have the games to withstand challenges from any quarter.

 

An innovation this time is the introduction of a separate 36 - hole women's championship, worth £5,000, for WPGA professionals.

 

Nine players will tee up on Thursday and Friday, including seven who've played on the Ladies European Tour. The most experienced player is Catherine Panton-Lewis, daughter of three-times Ryder Cup player, John. But Catherine's pedigree in European women's golf stands comparison, having won 14 times on tour between 1979 and 1988.

 

Indeed, in June Catherine, who teaches at The Berkshire club, made her debut on the US Women's Senior Tour (aged 45 and over), and finished tied 31st in the Hy-Vee Classic in Iowa, in a field that included stars like Amy Alcott and Patty Sheehan.

 

Others likely to catch the attention are Sara Forster (Herne Bay), who can boast three top-15 places on the Ladies European Tour, and Ormskirk's Alison Gray, who, along with Sara, has qualified for The Wales WPGA Championship of Europe at Royal Porthcawl a week after the Glenmuir championship.

 

For the first time, live scoring from St Andrews Bay will be available on the PGA's website - www.pga.info - during all four days of the championship.

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