Nicholson wins top amateur title

Scotland not only provided the winner of the Helen Holm Scottish women's open amateur stroke play golf championship at windswept Royal Troon on Sunday for the first time since 1992, they also had the third-placed finisher as well.

Lesley Nicholson (Haddington), winner of the prestigious 54-hole title by a single stroke from Alison Coffey (Warrenpoint), and Anne Laing (Vale of Leven) are both Edinburgh University sports science students.

Miss Nicholson opened up a one-stroke overnight lead with steady rounds of 72 and 73 over the Troon Portland links on Saturday and maintained that advantage over a windswept final 18 holes at Old Troon, which has a testing women's par of 75.

Lesley kept her nerve and finished with nine straight pars for a closing 77 and a one-under-par total of 222.

She was content to two-putt from 3ft for a par at the last while Belfast engineer Miss Coffey birdied it to finish one stroke behind.

Alison had birdied three of the last eight holes to be the only threat to the winner.

It was the second year in a row that the Irish woman had finished second in the "Helen Holm."

TRW