TEN years after a slump in performance persuaded Adam Hunter to call time on his career as a European Tour professional, one of Scotland's top coaches put himself back under the competitive microscope at the PGA Centenary course yesterday when he carded a respectable 74, one over par, in the first round of the Gleneagles Scottish PGA Championship.
Hunter, who once thwarted Darren Clarke in a play-off at the Portuguese Open in 1995, was hailed as coach of the year by the Scottish Institute of Sport after helping Paul Lawrie win the Open at Carnoustie in 1999.
Since then, Hunter has worked
with any number of European Tour players and continues to assist Lawrie with guidance on the short game. While he doesn't regret spurning life as a touring pro at the tender age of 34 – "I'm such a competitive person and wasn't meeting the standards I'd set for myself" – the director of instruction at Mearns Golf Academy, near Glasgow, has decided to dip his toe in tournament waters once again this season.
After finishing seventh at the Northern Open and fourth in one of the Callaway 36-holers – both Order of Merit events – Hunter teed up in the Tartan Tour's flagship event yesterday determined to let the player in him perform without any interference from the coach.
Hunter was a little disappointed not to capitalise on a bright start – he was two under par after six holes – and regretted not making more of the chances he'd created.
Although trailing leader Graeme Lornie, on 69, by five shots, Hunter found the billowing rough on the PGA Centenary less of an issue than many among the 132 Tartan Tour regulars who struggled on a bright, calm day. The stroke average for the first 13 groups to complete their rounds was 79. If the wind whips up over the weekend then the Scottish region of the PGA will need to be cautious about how they set up this challenging test.
Colin Gillies, the leading money-earner in Tartan Tour history, thinks the course is fair but penal if you stray from the short grass. "Basically, it you hit it off line, it's a lost ball," he said. And, on a lay-out measuring 7,000 yards, there's little alternative to using a driver off the tee. "If you don't, then you're hitting almost as far for your second shot as you were for the first," warned Gillies, who posted 76.
Due to host the final Ryder Cup-counting event for Valhalla on the European Tour at the end of August, this re-fashioned course is far less accommodating today than it was in 2002 when Adam Scott demolished the par 5s to post 26 under par and win by ten strokes from Raymond Russell.
Lornie, 28, was two over after seven holes even though he eagled the par-5 second. His form improved markedly on the inward half when he made 2 at the short tenth before covering the back nine in 32, five under.
A greenkeeper for ten years, this is Lornie's first season as a regular on the Tartan Tour.
Twice a runner-up in this championship in 2006 and 2007, Craig Lee, who posted a birdie and an eagle over the closing three holes, has struggled to make ends meet on the European Tour this year. There's £8,800 for the winner here on Sunday and Lee, on 71, would find that money helpful in funding further travels in Europe.
The full article contains 590 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
