Congratulations to Turnhouse GC for winning the Scottish Junior Team Championship at Panmure, and to West of Scotland Girls as the leading all-girls Team! Photos attached. Commiserations to runners-up Glasgow GC!Detailed scoring at the SJTC can be seen on the Golf Genius App, by entering only the code SJTC24 on the sign in page of the App. Attached is a list of prizes and the winners. As few Teams were able to stay for the prize giving, I have delivered them if local, or posted them out to more distant Clubs.The feedback from Convenors, Parents and Players at the SJTC event on Sunday at Panmure has been fantastic. Our sincere thanks are due to Convenors, and all the Parents, for the participation of 119 Players in 20 Teams, from as far away as Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire. The field included 25 Girls, a far cry from the 1 girl amongst the 120 competitors who attended the inaugural SJTC in 2017! The event gave all of the Players a rare chance to play one of Scotland’s most fabled courses!I would like to thank the Management, Staff and Members of Panmure GC, for the warm welcome we received and for the access granted for practice rounds, and for the excellent clubhouse facilities, catering, free range balls etc, as well as providing a golf course in tip top condition. The assistance from so many volunteers from Panmure members as starters and spotters etc was much appreciated, due to the recruitment work put in by their dedicated Junior Convenor, Euan Kerr.Reece, of Panmure Member and Visitors Services, and Panmure’s Concierge, Fraser, F&B Managers Craig and Jo, and their staff in the Clubhouse, and Dom the Assistant Professional, were in attendance for most of the day and ensured that the long day ran efficiently. David Brodie, the Panmure GM, was involved at the start of the inception of the SJTC whilst he was GM at Glenbervie in 2017, and was again instrumental in Panmure’s hosting of the event.Our thanks also go to Ian Howarth, former President of Scottish Golf, who donated the trophy and medals, but sadly was unable to attend on the day due to the sudden illness of his wife Audrey to whom we wish a swift recovery!The scoring and other organisational functions, etc, were handled from within the ranks of the East Lothian Junior League, and I thank Sue, Gareth and Chris for the long hours they put in, with particular thanks to Jenny Potter of “Golf Genius” for her assistance on the preparatory work, and for being contactable in case of any problems.We thank Rory Anton, who attended the start of the event to represent Scottish Golf, and hope Rory left with a good impression. I now respectfully ask all Convenors, if they think the concept and format of the free-to-enter SJTC event has any validity and importance to Players in Junior Leagues in Scotland, to write to Robbie Clyde and Fraser Crawford at Scotland Golf and support my contention that SG could adopt this event and include it in their portfolio of annual events. As far as I know, Scottish Golf have handicap events for Men and Women, but do not have a handicap event for Juniors. England Golf have, for some years, held a handicap Team event for Juniors. I am concerned about the number of costly Junior events now being run in Scotland by profit making organisations who are not affiliated to Scottish Golf and are therefore not authorised to hold “qualifying events” for handicap purposes. They may not have the required Child Welfare and Protection and other authorisations, to work in the area of Junior Golf. As far as I am aware, the East Lothian Junior Golf League is the only Junior League in Scotland affiliated to Scottish Golf, and we have to be because the League is run on a Strokeplay Stableford basis, and not on the traditional Matchplay format. We abandoned that format several years ago.The running of the SJTC is a large task, and I am doubtful that I will be able to be the sole Organiser for much longer. I see this as a golden opportunity for SG to now step forward and take on the organisation and running of the SJTC event. Such adoption would provide SG with an opportunity to raise awareness of the role of SG amongst our up and coming youngsters with higher handicaps, and that SG are there for them even if they never make it into any of their elite events for scratch golfers. That said, there were still 8 Boys playing on Sunday who possessed plus handicaps!I hope to see some of you at the next SJTC at North Berwick West Links on Sunday the 28th September 2025!Regards,Dave WarrenSJTC Organiser 2017-202407595 301425
