IT will be a bittersweet moment for Mac Dawson if the current Scone Golf Club champion defends his crown over the next fortnight.
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While he would love nothing more than to win his fourth title, the 2017 tournament is expected to mark the end of an era.
“It’s rumoured that this is the last club championships on this course, due to the construction of the Scone bypass,” Dawson said.
“So, it’d be an awesome feeling to win the event, which has been here for 120-plus years.
“But, it’s also a chance for the town to get another top sporting facility.
“That’s pretty exciting.
“We’ve been pretty lucky, too – we’ve had some good golfers come out of Scone, such as Will Barnett and Nathan Waters.”
Dawson is hoping to etch his own name in the record books.
After tasting success in 2007, he lifted the trophy in 2015 and 2016.
“It’d be nice to get three in a row,” he admitted.
“I was also runner-up in 2005, 2006 and 2014.
“I’ve had a few good battles with Nathan [Waters], too.
“But, as a golfer growing up in Scone, you always want to win the club championship and the Scone Open.
“I’m yet to claim that [the Scone Open].
“My aim is to snare 10 [club championship] titles – I’d love to emulate the feats of people like Sue Watts and Al Phelps.”
Dawson, who captured Scone’s only junior pennant with Jake Teague, Justin Smart, Matt and Will O’Donnell in 2007, will face two of his former team-mates on the fairways this weekend.
“Jake [Teague] and Justin [Smart] are expected to play, along with top locals Joel Harrison, James Smart, Simon Groom and the dark horse Jeff Harrington,” he said.
“I don’t know how he [Jeff] hasn’t won a championship.
“However, I’ve set myself to play to my handicap.
“If I can shoot four rounds of 75, I’ll be happy.”
The men’s club championships take place on Saturday and Sunday, with the final days on June 24 and 25.