“It’s my best round ever,” said Brown (pictured) with a grin that could have spanned the River Tay. “I know this course so well and know where to hit it and where not to hit it. I was sensible off the tee and if you can keep it in play, there is a score to be had here.”
Brown’s finishing flourish was capped by a cracking drive down the last and a chip to four feet for a closing birdie. “My boss, Stuart Syme, always used to say to me, ‘it doesn’t matter how you’re playing or where you’re playing, always go with the intention of birdieing the last hole’,” he added.
Brown served his PGA apprenticeship under Syme at Dumfries & County before they both moved to Fife, while he remains a close friend of his mentor’s son, Connor, the DP World Tour campaigner.
“Connor is like my wee brother,” added Brown. “He plays at a totally different level but the standard he sets is something for me to aim for. He’s a good guy to pick the brain of when it comes to golf.”
Robertson, who illuminated his golfing summer by qualifying for The Open at Hoylake, tucked himself into second place with a tidy 66 which included a triple whammy of birdies at 14, 15 and 16.
“The wind made it tricky so I tried to keep it steady on the front nine, plot my way round and then try to make a score on the back nine,” said Robertson, who made gains at the ninth and 10th to ignite his assault. “It all went to plan and I’ve given myself something to build on.”
