Robert MacIntyre named Scottish golfer of the year
Robert MacIntyre has secured the coveted accolade of Scottish Amateur Golfer of the Year.
Thanks to finishing as the leading Scot (13th), at both male and female level, on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), the left-hander capped a superb season with the honour.
The Glencruitten player held off the challenge of GB&I Walker Cup winner Grant Forrest (19th) and Connor Syme (23rd), the Australian Amateur champion, to come out on top.
MacIntyre began his year with a narrow victory in the Scottish Champion of Champions at Leven Golfing Society and became the first Scot in the last three years to reach the Amateur Championship final.
The 20-year-old lost out to England’s Scott Gregory but helped Scotland retain the European Amateur Team Championship title in Sweden.
As well as earning GB&I honours at The St Andrews Trophy, he also finished fourth in the European Amateur Championship in Estonia and reached the quarter-finals of the Scottish Amateur.
“I’ve just pipped Grant to the post, so it’s always nice to get another accomplishment like this,” said MacIntyre of his award, having reached his highest ever world ranking.
“Although I did well at Leven, it was a slow start to my year. But, overall, it’s been good and late on in the season has been really good.
“Reaching The Amateur final was a nice week, even if I was gutted to lose in the final. The European Amateur a few weeks ago was just as good, because it’s stroke play and you want to prove yourself at that level.”
He is now in Mexico competing for the Eisenhower Trophy at the World Amateur Team Championship.
Steve Carroll
A journalist for 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long. A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A's prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.
Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men's Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.
A part of NCG's Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; TaylorMade Stealth 2 irons; TaylorMade Hi-Toe, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.