Challenge Tour winner George Murray returns to amateur ranks

Twelve years after winning the Scottish Challenge in Aviemore, George Murray is making his first competitive appearance as a reinstated amateur this weekend.

The 38-year-old is in the Fife team set to take on West Lothian at Lundin Links in the title decider in this season’s Fife & Lothians Winter League.

Anstruther man Murray won the Scottish Boys’ Under-16 Open in 1999 before being crowned as Scottish Amateur champion five years later at Gullane.

He turned professional in 2006 and, helped by that Challenge Tour title triumph at Spey Valley, graduated to the European Tour in 2011.

The highlight of his rookie season came on Fife soil as he finished third in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship behind Michael Hoey and Rory McIlroy.

Murray held on to his card for the following year by finishing 81st in the Race to Dubai before finding himself back on the Challenge Tour in 2013 then quitting as a tour pro at the end of the 2016 campaign.

“This will be George’s first game back for us since he got his amateur status back,” said Fife team manager Derek Paton of Sunday’s clash with West Lothian.

Fife top the table after two wins out of two, including a 5-0 victory over Midlothian in the most recent round of matches at Craigielaw.

Among those joining forces with Murray at Lundin Links are two other former Scottish internationals, James White and Scott Crichton.

“It’s a very strong Fife team and hopefully they will bring the win and the title home on Sunday,” added Paton, the current Irish Senior Open Amateur champion.

“Being captain of Fife has been a very enjoyable experience so far and the enthusiasm shown by the team has been very encouraging.”

West Lothian are the defending champions and team manager Ross Mallon reckons his