Sixteen-year-old Perthshire golfer Connor Graham produced a blistering final round to be crowned Scottish Men’s Open champion on Sunday.
The talented youngster, from Blairgowrie, hit a closing seven under par 63 to surge clear at the top of the leaderboard at Meldrum House.
Earlier rounds of 67, 67 and 68 had provided the ideal platform for the rising star who is continuing to go from strength to strength.
Connor impressively finished the tournament on 15 under par, four clear of second-placed Atlin Van Der Merwe of South Africa.
Among those to send their congratulations was 1999 Open champion Paul Lawrie.
“It feels great,” Connor said after the fantastic triumph. “This is the first big amateur win and it was great to play as well as I did.
“A key highlight was shooting that 63 to finish, I played really good from start to finish.
“During the tournament it’s taken a lot of patience, a lot of good shots – that’s my approach to the course. I definitely hit my irons and wedges well this week.”
The Scottish Men’s Open win is the latest achievement in a growing list for Walker Cup and Junior Ryder Cup hopeful Connor. Last year he was crowned R&A Junior Open champion.
He is always a familiar face at the practice area of Blairgowrie Golf Club and those hours of dedication are clearly paying off.
“Meldrum has been a fantastic golf course and they’ve got it set up really nicely,” Connor went on to add.
“I’m a first Scottish champion in a few years, so it feels really good. Work hard, put in the hours and eventually you’ll be competing at top level.”
In the opening rounds, Connor had been battling it out at the top of the leaderboard with his older brother Gregor.
They had sat at the summit of the standings together heading into Sunday’s 36-hole shootout.
Connor, in particular, had made a storming start to the final round and carded five birdies in his opening nine holes.
He went on to sink an eagle on the 11th and recorded further birdies on 16 and 17 to claim the special victory.
Four shots better off than his nearest challenger, Connor was then seven clear of England’s Zachary Chegwidden who placed third.
His brother Gregor finished the tournament in 21st position on two over par for his four rounds while Andrew Thornton, from Kinross-shire, impressed to finish in 12th.
Thornton, who grew up representing Muckhart Golf Club, signed for scores of 71, 68, 69 and 70.
