Glenn Campbell won the only time he and the player he jokingly calls “the little upstart” met in competition and they will lock horns again in friendly fashion at Downfield in the Fairstone Scottish Amateur Championship.
Blairgowrie’s Campbell, the 2005 Scottish champion, takes on the reigning Amateur champion Bradley Neil, also from the Rosemount club, in the last 32 this morning
The meeting of Blair’s finest player for more than a decade and his successor in that role will be well worth watching, although it’s not really a master-versus-pupil scenario.
“I supposed when I was growing up I looked up at (Blairgowrie club stalwart) Stuart Graham more than Glenn, because he was usually away playing national events,” said Bradley, a 5 and 3 victor over Michael Bacigalupo yesterday.
“It was only when he won the Scottish title and we started playing together that I really started to look up to him. When he won the Scottish, it wasn’t just a victory for him, it was one for the whole club.”
Although they play together a lot a Saturday practice round at Downfield most recently they have met competitively just once before, in a county championship quarter-final on the Lansdowne in 2010, when Neil was just 14.
Two-up through five, Bradley missed a six-foot putt for birdie on the sixth green and, annoyed with himself, immediately yanked his ball back with his putter head to incur an immediate loss of the hole.
“That was the turning point, and I went on to lose the match,” he recalled. “I’ll certainly not be doing that tomorrow!”
Glenn, who beat Battle Trophy winner Nick Macandrew on the last hole yesterday, has seen Bradley develop from that callow youth into a world-class player, but he knew that was coming.
“I think from the age of 10 or 11, we could all see the potential,” said the 41-year-old, who with four children and work at Perth’s North Inch courses plays the national events only sparingly these days. “He won the club championship at 14 and he’s just continued developing.
“He’s got a great attitude and works so hard at his game, and he’s certainly reaping the rewards right now.”
Bradley out-hits Glenn by what the veteran calls a “comfy” 60 to 70 yards with the driver but the wily veteran still knows how to get his ball around, as evidenced when they asked each other about how they played the490-yard 11th, playing short and downwind yesterday.
Bradley hit a gap wedge into the par five while Glenn needed a six-iron. “I got a four, what did you score?” asked Bradley, to which Glenn immediately retorted “a three”.
“To be honest I don’t think this course suits either long or short hitters,” added Glenn. “None of the par fives are that long and the real reward here comes from keeping the ball in play rather than length.”
As for this morning’s meeting, Bradley just wants “to know I played as well as I could” whatever the result while Glenn thinks “the match will just take care of itself.”
Fellow Blair member Wayne Crole couldn’t quite force his way into the last 32 and a match-up with Stewart Smith, the five-time Downfield club champion.
Former captain Campbell Donaldson is another through to the last 32 from the host club and he takes on Euan Walker (Kilmarnock Barassie).
St Andrews is well-represented in the last 32 despite the loss of Ewan Scott as BenKinsley, runner-up in the Scottish Boys’ this year, won handsomely against Donald MacAndrew (Royal Aberdeen) and Joshua Jamieson, the former Scottish Boys’ strokeplay champion, now at Northwestern University in Chicago, also came through.
Kinsley will play the East of Scotland champion Chris Robb, this surprisingly being his debut in the Scottish.
“I pulled out last year because I was exhausted after the European Boys’ teams, so it’s my first time,” said the 18-year-old. “This time it’s close to home and I’m in good shape, so I’m enjoying the competition.”
Defending champion AlexanderCulverwell is being pressed in every game but is still there, aiming to be the first player since Charlie Green in 1983 to retain the title.
Culverwell has another tough one this morning, meeting Kyle McClung, who had a free pass into the fourth round when Royal Troon’s Paul Moultrie was forced out injured.
Jack McDonald, the Stirling University student and fourth seed, is moving through impressively as is sixth-seeded Conor Syme, semi-finalist at the Amateur, who had to come from behind to beat Bathgate’s Greg Miller.
He is aiming at a possible match-up with Barry Hume, the 2001 winner at Downfield, who came through two more matches yesterday but is feeling the pace of two matches a day, he admitted.
Second seed Grant Forrest has moved through comfortably as has the experienced Graeme Robertson, seeded to meet each other in the quarter-final at the bottom of the draw.