David Law and Paul Shields have joined the “proven” method for graduating to the major tours by being two new faces on Team SSE Scottish Hydro for 2016.
The pair, who met in the final of the Scottish Boys Championship in 2009, have been reunited on the scheme that gives logistical backing to Scottish men and women professionals on their way to the major European Tours.
They join Fifer George Murray and Jack Doherty in their fourth year on the scheme Grantown-on-Spey’s Duncan Stewart and two established Ladies European Tour players, Pamela Pretswell and Sally Watson.
Law, who has already won four professional events including one just last week at the Sotogrande Masters on the MENA Tour was a double Scottish Amateur champion and at still only 24, the Paul Lawrie protg is gradually making his way up the ranks, set to play his second full season on the Challenge Tour in 2016.
Shields will make his debut on the Challenge Tour after a strong performance at the Tour School last November but was controversially overlooked earlier this year by another support scheme. Scottish Golf Support Ltd, which distributes money from the Scottish Government, opted not to back Sheilds despite him being the only male player who presently matched their criteria.
Both however are delighted to have been given the backing of Team Hydro, which has seen seven graduates reach the men’s European Tour in five years and has backed tournament winners like Kylie Walker on the LET.
“It’s fantastic to be supported by Team Scottish Hydro, it’s a system that has been proven to work in the past, so it’s an honour to be involved,” said Law.
Shields has put the snub from SGS behind him, and has since got backing from both Team Scottish Hydro and from Paul Lawrie.
“Hydro gave me my first Challenge Tour start at Aviemore, which I was so grateful for,” he said. “It’s great to be included in this scheme now and I’m excited for this season now.
“I went to Kenya for the first event knowing that this was going to happen and it’s helped me already.”
Shields does have some frustration that the Challenge Tour season only begins in earnest in the next month.
“When you do well at Tour School, you feel you have a bit of momentum and then you realise that you don’t have a tournament until April,” he said.
Pretswell finished inside the top 15 on the Ladies European Tour order of merit last year, the highest finish of any Team Scottish Hydro member. She and Watson, the LET’s rookie of the year in 2014, are bidding for the next level this season.
Murray, the most successful male player on the scheme with three previous years on the European Tour and two top three finishes in that time, admitted that this was “make or break” for him this season.
“I wouldn’t still be here if I didn’t believe I could get back to the Tour,” said the 32-year-old from Anstruther. “But it’s fair to say if it doesn’t happen for me this season I won’t be getting the clubs back out next year.
“It’s a good pressure to have. I believe if you don’t put pressure on yourself you won’t get anywhere, so it’s up to me now.”
Team Scottish Hydro players get support for travel and accommodation expenses when on tour, as well as management support from the leading Scottish company Bounce Sports.