North of Ireland Championships: There is something of Robert the Bruce about Mark Campbell. He is still hunting for success in the Magners North of Ireland Championship after six years, but yesterday he made a steady start to his seventh attempt at taking the title.
The Stackstown man opened with a one-under-par 69 on the Valley Course. Today he tackles the more difficult Dunluce links.
After today's action, when the players switch courses with the higher-handicap men going to the Valley, 64 names will go into the matchplay draw this evening.
"I have played in this tournament since 1998 and the best I've done so far was to reach the quarter-finals last year, when I lost to Brian McElhinney. I have to keep trying and maybe this year I will go better," reflected the plus-two handicapper.
A birdie three at the fifth hole, where he wedged to 15 feet and rolled in the putt, was carded between a bogey five at the second, where he three-putted, and a four at the short sixth, where sand cost the East of Ireland champion a shot.
Campbell then adorned his card with an eagle three at the 10th as he rifled an eight-iron just five feet from the flag to get under par, before swapping a three-stab bogey on 14 for a birdie two at 15, carved out with a seven-iron to five feet.
Campbell trails Valley pacesetter Wayne Telford by three strokes. Telford holds the Valley course record of 64 and yesterday pencilled in half a dozen birdies in his 66. Local 21-year-old Telford is currently playing full-time amateur golf.
Defending champion Brian McElhinney has a lot of ground to make up after he opened with a 74 on the Valley. He has no explanation for this slump in form.
"I can't figure out what went wrong," he said. "My driving was the worst part of my game but my iron play and my putting were poor as well. I holed nothing outside of two feet. This has put the pressure on me. I'll need a very good round on Dunluce to make the cut."
The sixth, seventh and eighth holes were difficult playing into the wind yesterday, and McElhinney, the European and Irish champion and the North titleholder, dropped shots at all three. The only birdie on his card was a four at the 10th, where he was 12 feet from the flag with a drive and seven-iron and got down in two stabs.
McElhinney's only serious outing since winning the Irish Close title at Donegal last month was in the Barton Shield last weekend, when he helped his club, North West, to defeat Castle Hume and Donegal by 11 holes in both matches.
THE VALLEY
66 - W Telford (Rathmore).
68 - R Boal (Scrabo), D Crowe (Dunmurry), A Watt (Holywood), M O'Sullivan (Galway), D Carroll (Grange), C Murphy (Clandeboye), D Morgan (Mullingar).
DUNLUCE
70 - G Black (Ballymena).
71 - P McCarroll (Massereene).
72 - S McGarry (Ballymena), D McCusker (Moyola Pk), C McCormick (Holywood).
