Fans get chance to see Torrance take his bow

GOLF fans in and around the Capital are in for a treat if they jump in their cars and head down to the Borders next weekend.

The Roxburghe, near Kelso, is the place to be and for just a £5 parking fee you’ll get the chance to enjoy what looks like being the best version yet of the Scottish Seniors Open.

Star attraction in the Charles Church- sponsored event, which starts on Friday and finishes on the Sunday, will be Sam Torrance, who will be making his debut on the seniors’ circuit.

The man who led Europe to their dramatic Ryder Cup victory at The Belfry last year has been preparing for this new chapter in his career for some time. He recently had surgery to cure a troublesome leg injury and is raring to go again.

Can Torrance make a winning debut at The Roxburghe? Well, having watched him at close quarters in a recent charity event at Turnberry, I certainly wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if he did just that.

Not that one of Scotland’s favourite golfing sons will get things all his own way in the Borders - far from it.

As anyone who was either at Turnberry for the recent Seniors British Open or watched it on television will testify, the standard of golf in these events is pretty high.

Sam, therefore, will need to be firing on all cylinders and his two main rivals in an event which carries a £150,000 prize fund could well be fellow Scots.

Anglo Bill Longmuir, the man who led the Open Championship on two separate occasions, only joined the seniors circuit himself earlier this season but already has two victories under his belt.

And John Chillas, the former club professional at Stirling and Glenbervie, will arrive in the Borders fresh from his first victory on the Tour at Wentworth last weekend.

The English challenge, meanwhile, will be led by Denis Durnian, who will be defending the title on a course he describes as his favourite venue.

Five of the previous ten editions of the event have been won by English golfers with Durnian following in the footsteps of Neil Coles (1999), Tommy Horton (1997 and 1993) and John Morgan (1996).

Twelve months ago Durnian crowned his "most enjoyable week on Tour", at his "favourite venue of the year", with an emphatic six-stroke victory over Coles, Horton, Scotland’s Martin Gray and American Alan Tapie.

It was the second of his three Seniors Tour victories and helped consolidate his position as No.2 on the European Seniors Order of Merit and earned him a place in the UBS Cup team against the United States.

The challenge from south of the border at The Roxburghe will again be formidable with the four previous champions joined by the current leader of Seniors Tour Order of Merit, Carl Mason.

Last month Mason came within a whisker of following his Mobile Cup triumph with victory in the Senior British Open, presented by MasterCard, at the Westin Turnberry Resort, but was defeated in a play-off by Tom Watson.

The following week he was again challenging for the top honours only to be pipped by Longmuir at the De Vere PGA Seniors Championship at Carden Park, and last weekend he finished joint-fourth behind Chillas at Wentworth.

Mason now holds a commanding lead over Longmuir in the race to finish Seniors Tour No.1. Other English challengers next week will include former Ryder Cup players Maurice Bembridge, Peter Dawson, Malcolm Gregson and Peter Townsend.

As always, former Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher will enjoy his fair share of home support, as, of course, will David Huish.

The big North Berwick professional won this event at Dalmahoy in 1998 but, on the evidence of his form so far this season, there is little likelihood of him being able of repeating the feat.

While Torrance will be hoping to hog more of the headlines on his debut, the Scottish scene sees two other big events taking place next weekend.

Musselburgh’s Fraser Mann defends the Scottish PGA Championship at Gleneagles, while, on the amateur front, Steven Armstrong of Turnhouse will be bidding to retain the South-East District Open title at West Linton.

Mann’s rivals in Perthshire will include Uphall’s Gordon Law, who will be bidding to make it a quickfire double following his superb success in the Glenmuir Club Professionals’ Championship at St Andrews Bay just over a week ago.