Hay hoping to secure home win at Cawder

Former footballer Paul Hay will be playing on home ground when he tees off in the Lombard Trophy regional final at Cawder Golf Club.

Hay teams up with PGA Professional Gordon Stewart, above, for the pro-am event which will take place at the Bishopbriggs venue on June 14.

The duo will be joining clubs from Scotland to compete for a place in the £41,500 final at Pestana Golf Resort, Vila Sol, from September 22-23.

The Lombard Trophy in association with Coca-Cola attracts entries from more than 700 clubs and requires 14 regional finals to cater for the huge demand.

And Hay, who works in the golf retail industry, will be hoping he and Stewart can gain some advantage as the host team.

“It’d be nice to think we could win the event, but it won’t be as easy as that and the most important thing is that we enjoy the event and hosting it at Cawder,” said Hay, 35, who plays off scratch.

Hay, from Stepps near Glasgow, has turned to golf after retiring from football three years ago.

He played for Clyde, Stirling Albion and East Stirlingshire as a central midfielder.

“I stopped playing about three years ago and it’s strange because you’re used to having your Saturdays occupied by football and playing every week," he said.

“So golf is filling that for me although I’ve probably been playing on and off for around 25 years. And I’d love to try and get to the final - plus working in the industry means I can get the day off to play in this event!”

Hay is looking forward to partnering Stewart for the Cawder event.

“Gordon’s been the professional here for a few years now, it’ll be good to play alongside him but I don’t think we’ll be getting too many shots in our favour with my handicap,” he added.

Also taking part in the event at Cawder will be Ian Taylor and Hugh McIntyre (Drumpellier Golf Club); Martyn Huish and Andrew Madin (North Berwick Golf Club);  Gareth Wright and Malcolm Ilgunas (West Linton Golf Club); Robert Farrell and Lee Gibson (Cardross Golf Club); and David Murchie and David Simpson (Crieff Golf Club).