Result - Strokeplay Round 2. Queen’s. 27th June.

Round 2 Report

If Round 1 over the PGA was a test of endurance, Round 2 over the Queen's was a test of patience.

Following Friday's torrential rain, the Queen's was playing every inch of its yardage. Fairways were soft, there was virtually no run on the ball, and many of the bunkers had been stripped of much of their sand by the deluge. Add in humid conditions, a strong blustery wind and thick cloud overhead, and scoring was never going to come easily.

Those who managed to keep mistakes off the card were always likely to prosper.

Leading the way in the scratch competition was Bill McNeill, whose superb 75 was comfortably the best gross score of the day. On a course offering little assistance and plenty of punishment, Bill produced a wonderfully controlled round to claim the gross honours. Congratulations to Bill on an excellent performance.

The net prize went to Ian Fisher, whose outstanding 67 was the best adjusted score of the day. Having been drawn in the final group, Ian quietly went about his business while others were busy donating shots to the Queen's. A superb effort and a thoroughly deserved victory.

There were plenty of other eye-catching performances.

Colin Campbell continued to underline why he is one of the favourites for this year's Strokeplay Championship, finishing second gross with 77 to strengthen his position heading into the final round in September.

Mark Higham was once again in excellent touch with a 78, while Ken Marshall's 79 would have been even better were it not for one particularly costly hole.

Ken will undoubtedly replay the 17th in his mind over the coming weeks. After finding trouble from the tee, he eventually had to play his third ball from the tee before finally finding one in play. The resulting 8 proved expensive. A routine bogey would have catapulted him to the top of the championship leaderboard heading into the final round. Golf can be wonderfully cruel.

Elsewhere, Rob Simpson and Andy Lothian both returned tidy 81s, while Rob Crockart, Tony Stewart and Robert McCleary shared 83.

Speaking of Mr Crockart, his adventure on the 7th deserves special recognition. Having enthusiastically hooked his drive onto the 9th fairway, Rob briefly contemplated the heroic route over the trees towards the 8th. Sensibility eventually prevailed. Instead, he elected to play backwards up the 7th fairway, somehow managing the rare golfing achievement of making his third shot longer than his second. Remarkably, after all that strategic cartography, he still escaped with a bogey. Sometimes golf refuses to obey the laws of common sense.

At the opposite end of the course, your correspondent had the pleasure of witnessing Aidan O'Carroll and Kevin Dickson launch their opening tee shots enthusiastically over the trees in the general direction of the Gleneagles Hotel. The resulting damage was reflected in opening scores of 9 and 10 respectively. Had they simply followed this correspondent's considerably less ambitious tactic of topping the opening drive twenty yards off the tee, they too might have enjoyed the comparative luxury of an 8.

Unfortunately, your correspondent once again demonstrated a complete inability to recognise the time of year. Another snowman found its way onto the scorecard, before matters deteriorated even further with a magnificent 10 on the final hole. Apparently, if you're going to finish badly, you may as well commit fully to the occasion.

With two rounds now completed, the Strokeplay Championship is beginning to take shape, although there is still one significant hurdle remaining over the King's Course on 5th September.

Strokeplay Championship – Aggregate Standings (R1 + R2)

Gross Standings (The Pursuit of the Scratch Cup)

Colin Campbell: 159 (82 + 77)

Ken Marshall: 166 (87 + 79)

Mark Higham: 169 (91 + 78) on countback

Rob Crockart: 169 (86 + 83)

Michael Page: 171 (84 + 87)

Net Standings (The Race for Handicap Glory)

Patrick Elsmie: 142 (73 + 69)

Rob Crockart: 144 (72 + 72)

Colin Campbell: 145 (75 + 70) on countback

Billy Z McNeill: 145 (73 + 72)

Mike Collier: 145 (74 + 71)

So, congratulations once again to Bill McNeill, whose outstanding 75 claimed today's gross honours, and to Ian Fisher, whose excellent 67 net earned him the net prize.

Two rounds down, one to play. The King's awaits in September, where championships will be won, lost, and, if history is anything to go by, your correspondent will almost certainly discover at least one more snowman lurking somewhere on the back nine.

Taz