O'Hara six clear at Royal Dornoch

Scottish young professionals' champion Paul O'Hara has made an impressive start in his bid to win the Sandy Pipey Young Masters Championship for the third year in a row at Royal Dornoch Golf Club.

Coming off a runners-up finish in the Paul Lawrie Invitational, the Clydeway Golf man surged five shots clear of the field at the halfway stage with a brilliant round of seven-under-par 63 over a classic links, rated in the world's top 100 by many pundits.

O'Hara, who birdied the first three holes and three of the last four, had a total bag of nine birdies in halves of 32 (three-under-par) and 31 (four-under).

His only bogey came at the fifth.

Greg Patterson (St Andrews Links Golf Academy) is Paul's nearest rival, five shots adrift on 68, a round which included seven birdies but also five bogeys in halves of 34.