New Scottish mid-amateur events hailed as chance to 'reconnect' golfers

Driven by Blairgowrie’s Connor Neil and Kingsfield member Allyn Dick, The McAlpine and The Hutcheon will be held at Alyth and Monifieth Links respectively in honour of two well-known figures in the Scottish game.

Kevin McAlpine, who won the Scottish Amateur Championship at Nairn in 2006, passed away at the age of 39 in October 2023 while Ian Hutcheon is a three-time Scottish Stroke-Play champion and four-time Walker Cup player who is still loving his golf.

The new events, both of which will be open to men and women over 30 years of age, have been set up to try and plug a gap described by Dick, a two-time winner of the now defunct Scottish Mid-Amateur Championship run by Scottish Golf, as “enormous” between elite amateur golf and seniors’ golf.

“The Scottish Mid-Ams are interesting on a personal note because, when I look around, there isn't a lot to play in,” Dear, who teamed up with Wallace Booth and Callum Macaualy when Scotland were crowned as world amateur champions in Australia in 2008, told Scotland on Sunday. “The 72-holers are competitive, but working Monday to Friday then competing and going back to work is tough.

“My father-in-law has been heavily involved in the Scottish Seniors Golfing Society and the guys who play in those events really rave about them - there is a camaraderie amongst the golfers reconnecting and competing.

“In the wider golfing world, mid-am golf events are on the rise, with the new European Mid-Amateur Team Championship and various national mid-am championships. I am sure the Scottish Mid-Am events will attract a competitive field and be a success.”

The McAlpine will take place over 54 holes of stroke-play on 23-24 June while The Hutcheon on 4-7 August will start with stroke-play qualifying before then becoming what will effectively be the Scottish Mid-Amateur Match-Play Championship.

“The McAlpine will bring back a lot of memories as most of my rounds at Alyth were with or against Kev and I was delighted that the organisers decided to name the event after him,” added Dear, a reinstated amateur. “It would be an event that he would have loved to have played in, doing so with a smile but also desperate to win.”

Blairgowrie’s Glenn Campbell, who won the Scottish Amateur Championship the year before McAlpine at Southerness, is also excited about what he hailed as a “great idea” from Neil, brother of 2014 Amateur champion Bradley, and two-time Eden Trophy winner Dick.

“Mid-Am golf back in the day was a great thing for the working guy,” he observed. “It was disappointing when they stopped playing these events for whatever the reasons were at the time. Hopefully, the new events, which are being played on two great courses for two trophies named after two champions, will get good backing from players across the country.

“The Mid-Am is of huge importance in American golf, so it's great that we in Scotland are hopefully starting something that can grow and maybe get a British Mid-Am back on the calendar again.”

Crail Golfing Society’s Andrew Davidson is a working amateur who more often than not finds himself up against full-time amateurs, as was the case, for example, when he represented Scotland in last year’s Home Internationals at Murcar Links.

Adding his voice to a chorus of praise for the reintroduction of mid-amateur golf in Scotland, the winner of the 50th edition of the East of Scotland Open at Lundin in 2023 said: “It gives working guys the opportunity to play in high-level events and compete against others in the same situation. Scotland has needed these events back in the calendar and I have no doubt they will go from strength to strength and get the support they deserve.

“Allyn and Connor deserve a lot of credit for giving up their time to make it happen so hats off to them and I look forward to hopefully competing in the events this season. It is very difficult to stay competitive in elite amateur golf once you leave university as you simply don’t have the time to be practicing for hours on end each day.

“You also find yourself turning up to events at the last minute with not very great preparation which obviously makes it harder to compete but you’ve just got to give it your best and see what happens. This being said, it does give you a sense of relaxation knowing golf doesn’t mean everything and you can just go out and enjoy the game.”

Both events will carry World Amateur Golf Ranking points, with Shot Scope, the West Lothian-based golf technology experts, and Mizuno through Ross Bell, a working amateur as well, handing the organisers a huge boost through coming on board as sponsors.

Dear, who works for Shot Scope, said: “When I discussed with Connor and Alyn about us providing sponsorship, it was important that the events were serious and also available to both male and female golfers.

“At Shot Scope, we are focusing on growth in North America. However, as a Scottish company, it is important to remember our roots and give back to the golfers in Scotland. Sponsoring the mid-am events allows us to provide more golfing opportunities to those in Scotland who have perhaps been unable to compete in elite/WAGR-ranked events previously. Hopefully a number of the Shot Scope team will participate in the events, too.”