RAMSIDE HALL Hotel and Golf Club has launched a search to identify the North East’s next generation of golfing superstars.

The Durham golf resort is offering four scholarships to junior golfers, aged ten to 16, including a year’s free membership, use of its two championship courses, golf academy & driving range plus tuition with its team of three expert coaches.

Helen Roseberry, director of golf, said: “We are on the lookout for the next Graeme Storm, Jodi Ewart or Chris Paisley, and are keen to hear from junior golfers who want to develop their game and character at one of the North East’s finest golf facilities.”

The scholarships are offered annually and are called the Michael Adamson Junior Golf Scholarships, in honour of Ramside’s late company chairman Michael Adamson MBE.

The scholarships are provided to two boys and two girls each year and seeks to identify young people with outstanding personal character and dedication to golf. Lewis Reay (Ramside Hall), Duran Gun (George Washington), Gabrielle Dickinson (Houghton-le-Spring) and Kitana Hollins (Ramside Hall).

The deadline for applications is Tuesday, July 12 at midnight. The final selection evening takes place on Friday, July 22 at Ramside with head professional Kevin Jackson.

BEDALE Golf Club is among 148 local sports projects to secure a share of £9m of National Lottery funding from Sport England’s Inspired Facilities fund.

Inspired Facilities has helped breathe new life into tired community sports facilities and converting existing buildings into venues suitable for grassroots sport since 2011.

Bedale will receive £70,000 of Inspired Facilities funding to construct two new facilities, comprising of an indoor swing studio and an outdoor academy course for coaching and junior competition. The purpose of this project is to attract more young people to play golf in an environment they are comfortable in.

The indoor Swing Studio will give players a virtual range of options to enable them to practice and improve their technique, or play a normal round of golf without the walking in between shots. The full range of shots can be performed with a complete breakdown of shot performance data.

ROCKLIFFE HALL will play host to the MASfab North of England Open Foursomes next Wednesday (July 13).

Talented golfers from across the north will take part in the 36-hole competition open to professionals and amateurs of all ages and sex, with a maximum handicap of five.

There will be a guaranteed first place prize of £1000 each with additional prizes down to tenth place, plus best first and second round scores.

To enter, visit www.rockliffehall.com and download an entry form, call The Pro Shop at Rockliffe Hall on 01325 729980, or email golf@rockliffehall.com.

THREE golf clubs from the area will take part in a bid to drive participation in golf as the Open Championship gets underway at Royal Troon.

Open patron and long term international golf sponsor HSBC has enlisted the support of Rickie Fowler, double Open Champion Padraig Harrington and European Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke to back its pioneering HSBC Hour initiative.

This year HSBC Hour will take place at clubs across England, Scotland and Wales, offering an hour of free golf to children and their families with almost 300 golf clubs signed up so far. Bedale, Cleveland and Hunley Hall Golf Clubs are all involved.

CASTLE EDEN golfer Kathryn Watkin has clinched one of ten qualifier places in the England Golf Grand Medal Final to find the country’s champion woman medal player.