22ND LASSIES CLASSIC STARTS TODAY

One of local golf's most tradition-rich and unique tournaments will be played today and Thursday at the Cape Girardeau Country Club.

The 22nd edition of the Lassies Classic a Scottish-themed tournament pattered after the "old course" in St. Andrews, Scotland will feature 200 players.

"It looks like we're going to have another great tournament," said tourney creator and organizer Marion Miles. "This has just grown and grown. We started out with 30 teams; now we have 100 teams every year and we always have a waiting list."

According to Miles, the roots for the tournament began to take shape during a trip she and her husband took to Scotland more than two decades ago.

"My husband and I played the old course at St. Andrews, where the first women's golf association was formed in 1868," she said. "We came back and decided to have a tournament."

Tartan plaid flags will line the entrance to the Cape Girardeau Country Club when play in the two-woman, 36-hole scramble event begins at 8 a.m. today.

Golfers from five states will play around Loch Lomond and across Loch Ness, where the Monster of Loch Ness resides. The 25-foot, multi-colored monster has been a staple of the tournament since it began.

"We pattern the course after the Old Course at St. Andrews, where the British Open will be played this week," said Miles. "We've got bagpipes, tartan flags on the greens, a gathering of the clan at the clubhouse (tonight)."

Two-time defending champions Harriett Myers and Diane Fowler of New Madrid will try to make it three in a row this week. They figure to receive stern challenges from perennial contenders Vicki Long of Cape Girardeau and Janice Hoffman of Dexter, along with several other squads.

"It's always a very competitive tournament," Miles said. "Everybody has a lot of fun and the golf is very good."