The Bonallack Trophy – 2018 Preview, Reports & Results

Posted on 06/03/2018 by Golf Bible

The Winning 2018 Asia-Pacific Team (Photo: Jayaram)

Asia-Pacific Captain Matt Cutler With The Bonallack Trophy (Photo: Matt Cutler)

10th March 2018

Asia-Pacific won the 2018 Bonallack Trophy match 16.5 – 15.5 at Doha GC in Qatar.

This was just the third time Asia-Pacific had prevailed. Their previous wins coming in 2002 and 2004.

The home team overturned a two point deficit at the start of play by winning the day 3 Singles series 7.5 – 4.5.

Europe’s four Singles wins came from Todd Clements (ENG), Sami Valimaki (FIN), Kristoffer Reitan (NOR) and Oliver Gilbert (SWE). Angel Hidalgo Portillo (ESP) halved his game.

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Click here to view the – 2018 Bonallack Trophy Final Results

Looking at the individual player performances Daniel Hillier (NZ) was the star performer for the winning Asia-Pacific team. He recorded 3 wins and two draws and as such was the only unbeaten player in the event. He has moved up 10 places to No. 57 in the SPWAR.

Kristoffer Reitan (NOR) made the best contribution for Europe. He delivered three wins in his four games. He has moved up 21 places to No. 158 in the SPWAR.

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Finally here is the updated Great Britain & Ireland Bonallack Trophy playing records data.

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ME.

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9th March 2018

Europe turned the match around on Day 2. They now lead Asia-Pacific 11 – 9 with just tomorrow’s 12 Singles to be played.

Afternoon

In what could prove to be the critical session of the 2018 Bonallack Trophy match Europe secured 3.5 points in the Day 2 Foursomes.

Frederic Lacroix (FRA) / Edgar Catherine (FRA), Robin Dawson (IRE) / Marc Hammer (GER) and Matthew Jordan (ENG) / Todd Clements (ENG) all delivered victories for Europe.

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Morning

The Day 2 Fourballs were again very competitive with two of the games halved. Europe won the series 3-2 to draw level with Asia-Pacific in the match 7.5 – 7.5.

Sam Valimaki (FIN) / Matias Honkala (FIN) and Kristoffer Reitan (NOR) / Rasmus Hojgaard (DEN) were the two European pairs to deliver wins.

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ME.

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8th March 2018

Asia-Pacific lead the Bonallack Trophy 5.5 – 4.5 in Qatar after the conclusion of play on Day 1.

Afternoon

The Day 1 Foursomes proved to be more successful for Europe who won the series 3 – 2.

The Robin Dawson (IRE) / Marc Hammer (GER), Kristoffer Reitan (NOR) / Rasmus Hojgaard (DEN) and Frederic Lacroix (FRA) / Edgar Catherine (FRA) pairs secured the three wins for Europe.

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Morning

Asia-Pacific won the Day 1 Fourball session 3.5 – 1.5, coming out on top in games 2 and 3, both of which were tight affairs.

Oliver Gilbert (SWE) and Angel Hidalgo Portillo (ESP) secured Europe’s only win in Game 5.

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(Scoreboard Photos: Qatar Golf Association / European Golf Association / Golfbox)

ME.

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6th March 2018

The Bonallack Trophy is a 3-day biennial amateur match played between 12-man teams representing Europe and Asia-Pacific.

It is named in honour of Sir Michael Bonallack, one of Great Britain and Ireland’s (GB&I) greatest ever amateur golfers and formerly Secretary of The Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews (1984-99).

The 2018 match will take place between 8th-10th March at Doha GC in Qatar.

Europe, led by an unbeaten Jack HUME (IRE / W4) and Mario Galiano (ESP / W4 L1), won the Trophy in 2016 beating Asia-Pacific 21.5 – 10.5 at Vidago Palace in Portugal. Full Results

The match was first played in 1998 and Europe now lead Asia-Pacific 7 – 2 in the history of the event.

Bonallack Trophy 2016 Europe Winners Photo 2

The Winning 2016 Europe Team (Photo: Hugo Ribeiro / FPG)

Players and Teams

The European Golf Association and the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation select the two 12-man teams.

Players are selected with reference to the World Amateur Golf Ranking and guidance from national coaches and officials. The two captains also have an unspecified number of picks to provide flexibility.

No more than two players may be selected from the same country.

Both Captain’s, Alexis Godillot and Matt Cutler, will be reprising their 2016 roles in Qatar.

Gregory Foo (SGP) and Takumi Kanaya (JAP) are the only players returning to the match. All of the other players will be making their debuts in 2018.

Three GB&I players have been selected for the European team. There were six in Europe’s 2016 team. Matthew JORDAN (ENG) represented GB&I in the 2017 Walker Cup match in Los Angeles last September.

Europe

Alexis GODILLOT (FRA) – Non-Playing Captain

Edgar CATHERINE (FRA)   – SPWAR 63
Todd CLEMENTS (ENG) – SPWAR 75
Robin DAWSON (IRE) – SPWAR 92
Oliver GILLBERG (SWE)      – SPWAR 44
Marc HAMMER (GER) – SPWAR 536
Angel HIDALGO PORTILLO (ESP)    – SPWAR 70
Rasmus HOJGAARD (DEN) – SPWAR 201
Matias HONKALA (FIN) – SPWAR 430
Matthew JORDAN (ENG) – SPWAR 28
Frédéric LACROIX (FRA) – SPWAR 74
Kristoffer REITAN (NOR) – SPWAR 179
Sami VALIMAKI (FIN)    – SPWAR 76

Asia-Pacific

Matt CUTLER (AUS) – Non-Playing Captain
Andy YAMANAKA (JAP) – Vice captain

Gregory FOO (SGP) – SPWAR 119
Lloyd Jefferson GO (PHI) – SPWAR 24
Jaemin HAN (KOR) – SPWAR 1,505
Daniel HILLIER (NZ) – SPWAR 67
Takumi KANAYA (JAP) – SPWAR 21
Sadom KEAWKANJANA (THA) – SPWAR 62
Dong-Min KIM (KOR) – SPWAR 333
Min Woo LEE (AUS) – SPWAR 5
Kammalas NAMUANGRUK (THA) – SPWAR 122
Kazuya OSAWA (JAP) – SPWAR 316
Rayhan THOMAS (IND) – SPWAR 208
Shae WOOLS-COBB (AUS) – SPWAR 43

The current Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings (SPWAR) suggest Europe have the strongest team on paper. Europe’s total team SPWAR being 1,868 versus Asia-Pacific’s 2,825.

However, Asia-Pacific have 6 players in the top 100 to Europe’s 8 so are certainly not without some real quality. In Min Woo Lee, US Junior Amateur champion in 2016, Asia-Pacific also have the best player on paper.

I expect a tighter match than last time where poor weather arguably didn’t help the visitors.

Match Play Format

On the first two days five fourball matches will be played in the morning (starting at 7.00am) and five foursome matches in the afternoon (starting at 12 noon).

On the final day all 12 team members will compete in singles (starting at 10.00am).

The times quoted above are local. Doha, Qatar is 3 hours ahead of the UK.

As is normal practice a win will deliver a point, a half half a point and a loss no points.

There are 32 points to play for with the winning team requiring 16.5 to claim the Trophy. In the event of a tie, the trophy is retained by the holders. Europe won the last match in Portugal in 2016.

Venue

This year the host course is Doha GC in Qatar.

The Doha Club is well known to followers of the European Tour as it has staged the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters on many occasions. Eddie Pepperell won the Mother of Pearl Trophy in 2018 with a 270 (-18) score just a few weeks ago.

The Qatar Masters was played over a course measuring 7,400 yards and a par of 72.

The Bonallack Trophy is supposedly being played off the White Tees over 6,640 yards. The front nine is 3,512 yards and the back 3,128 yards, both with pars of 36. If this proves to be correct low scoring can be expected.

It is a typical Middle East desert course; designed by Peter Harradine, flat with plenty of water.

Rahan Thomas (IND) is Dubai-based and won the Qatar Open Amateur Championship at Doha in 2016 so will return with positive memories.

Past Results

Europe lead Asia-Pacific 7 – 2 in the Bonallack Trophy series.

2016 Vidago Palace, Portugal Europe 21.5 – 10.5

2014 Karnataka Golf, Bangalore, India Europe 17.5 – 14.5

2012 Monte Rei G&CC, Portugal Europe 21.5 – 10.5

2010 Karnataka Golf, Bangalore, India Cancelled *

2008 Valderrama, Spain Europe 20 – 12

2006 Auckland GC, New Zealand Europe 18 – 14

2004 Circolo Golf, Roma, Italy Asia-Pacific 16.5 – 15.5

2002 Hirono GC, Japan Asia-Pacific 18 – 14

2000 Puerta De Hierro, Madrid, Spain Europe 20 – 12

1998 Lake Karrinyup CC, Australia Europe 18 – 14

* Cancelled following the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption in Iceland which restricted air travel for the participants.

Bonallack Trophy 2014 Europe Team

The Winning 2014 Europe Team (Photo: EGA)

Former Players

Notable GB&I

To date 99 different players have represented Europe in The Bonallack Trophy.

41 GB&I golfers have competed; 15 from England, 10 from Ireland, 10 from Scotland and 6 from Wales.

Career amateurs Nigel EDWARDS (WAL) and Gary WOLSTENHOLME (ENG) both played in four Bonallack Trophy matches.

Other GB&I players to compete include: –

Jamie DONALDSON (WAL) – 1998
Oliver FISHER (ENG) – 2006
Shane LOWRY (IRE) – 2008
Rory MCILROY (IRE) – 2006
Richie RAMSAY (SCO) – 2006
Justin ROSE (ENG) – 1998
Danny WILLETT (ENG) – 2008
Chris WOOD (ENG) – 2008

Notable Mainland Europeans

Of the 58 players from mainland Europe to play in the Bonallack Trophy the most notable have been: –

Nicolas COLSAERTS (BEL) – 2000
Gonzalo FERNANDEZ CASTRAÑO – 2004
Anders HANSEN (DEN) – 2002
Peter HANSON (SWE) – 1998
Mikko ILONEN (FIN) – 2000
Joost LUITEN (NED) – 2006
Edoardo MOLINARI (ITA) – 2002-04
Francesco MOLINARI (ITA) – 2004
Renato PARATORE (ITA) – 2014

Notable Asia-Pacific

Notable former players from Asia-Pacific include: –

Marcus FRASER (AUS) – 2002
Shiv KAPUR (IND) – 2002
Hideki MATSUYAMA (JPN) – 2012
Geoff OGILVY (AUS) – 1998
Angelo QUE (PHI) – 2000
Brett RUMFORD (AUS) – 1998
Cameron SMITH (AUS) – 2012

ME.

My Review Of GB&I Men’s Amateur Golf In 2017

Posted on 24/12/2017 by Golf Bible

24th December 2017

As we come to the end of 2017 I thought I would record the more memorable performances that we have seen from Great British and Irish (GB&I) amateur golfers throughout the year.

When one reads through the months below it’s hard not to conclude that the year has generally been another successful one, with many highs and just a few lows.

An unusually large number of players have turned professional in the last 3 months (‘Amexit’) but I think we can take comfort from the positive signs already emanating from the next generation of players coming through.

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JANUARY

The year started with various touring parties heading off to events in the Southern Hemisphere.

Evan GRIFFITH (quarter finals) and Robert MACINTYRE (semi-finals) enjoyed good runs in the Australian Men’s Amateur.

Jack DAVIDSON and Conor O’ROURKE finished 4^th and tied 7^th at the South American Amateur in Argentina.

Jack SINGH BRAR and Bradley MOORE finished 2^nd and 3^rd in the Avondale Amateur in Australia.

FEBRUARY

Scott GREGORY delivered GB&I’s first major win of 2017, beating compatriot Marco PENGE by 1 hole in the Final of the New South Wales Amateur.

Robin DAWSON (2^nd), Dan BROWN (3^rd), Liam JOHNSTON (5^th) and Craig HOWIE (7^th) made good starts to their seasons with high finishes in the South African Stroke Play Championship.

Back in Europe Josh MCMAHON (2^nd), Gian-Marco PETROZZI (T4), David BOOTE (T4) and Bailey GILL, George BLOOR and Tiarnan MCLARNON (T7) all showed early season form at the Portuguese International Amateur.

Robin DAWSON (2^nd) lost a play-off to South African star Garrick Higgo in the Cape Province Open. Stuart GREHAN and Alex GLEESON finished T4 in the same event whilst Craig HOWIE was T9.

Dan BROWN (-15) was co-medalist in the South African Amateur. Dan sadly lost the play-off for the Proudfoot Trophy on the 4^th extra hole albeit his second round 63 at Humewood GC will no doubt live long in his memory. He was 6-under after his first 5 holes having eagled two par 4’s. Liam JOHNSTON and Joe LONG made the Quarter-Final when the Championship match play got going.

Liam Johnston (Photo: Ernest Blignault)

Liam JOHNSTON didn’t have to wait much longer to get his name up in lights. The following week he went on to win the African Amateur Stroke Play Championship at Leopard Creek CC. In a good week for Scottish Golf Connor SYME (2^nd), Jamie STEWART (3^rd) and Craig HOWIE (5^th) also finished high up.

Ben AMOR (ENG) turned Pro in February.

MARCH

Jack DAVIDSON got the European season underway by winning the Spanish International Amateur. Interestingly Jack was the final stroke play qualifier after Chris MACLEAN had pipped Stuart GREHAN to medalist honours. Nevertheless he soon got to grips with EL Saler ultimately beating Marco PENGE 4&3 in the 36 hole final.

In an event with little GB&I support David HAGUE popped up with a T7 result at the Italian International Amateur. Even more surprisingly Sean CROCKER the highly rated US College golfer turned up and ended up winning the Championship comfortably by 5 shots.

A superb opening day’s play from Bailey GILL, where he shot two 65’s, helped the Yorkshireman literally blow the field away at the subsequently weather shortened Darwin Salver.

Scott GREGORY re-affirmed his match play credentials with an impressive 1^st Extra Hole win over Australia’s 2016 US Amateur champion Curtis LUCK in the pre-Masters Georgia Cup match.

APRIL

WALES, represented by David BOOTE, Jack DAVIDSON, Joshua DAVIES and Owen EDWARDS, won the European Nations Cup Team competition at RCG Sotogrande in Spain. WALES’ total of +13 was 11 shots better than second placed IRELAND (+24) and 21 shots better than fourth placed SCOTLAND (+34). An out of sorts ENGLAND (+61) finished a disappointing 12th.

Jack DAVIDSON won the Individual European Nations Cup title by 4-shots. Rounds of 70, 70, 70 and 73 (-5), which included 20 birdies and 2 eagles, gave him his second major title in less than a month.

Charlie STRICKLAND, who was runner-up to Bailey GILL at the Darwin Salver, then came to the fore, winning two 72 hole events in consecutive weeks. First came the Duncan Putter – which will be moving to three days at Southerndown in 2018 – and quickly following it up with the U18 Peter McEvoy Trophy at my home club, Copt Heath.

Charlie Strickland with Peter McEvoy (Photo: @GolfBible)

The 2016 US Mid-Amateur champion, Stewart HAGESTAD, won the Silver Cup at The Masters following rounds of 74, 73, 74 and 73 (+6). His tied 36th finish saw him comfortably win low amateur honours. Our Amateur champion, Scott GREGORY, missed the cut after rounds of 82 and 75 (+13).

The Scottish Boys Open Championship, disappointingly scheduled directly against the Peter McEvoy Trophy, was won in style by John PATERSON who came past runner-up Jamie STEWART at Monifieth with an exceptional final round of 67.

The Hampshire Salver again proved a popular weekend for competitors. Jack SINGH BRAR won Saturday’s Selborne Salver and Jake BURNAGE Sunday’s Hampshire Hog at North Hants. Singh Brar beat Burnage by 1shot for the combined 72 hole Hampshire Salver.

Up in Scotland Craig HOWIE, the clear favourite at the start of play, dominated the Craigmillar Park Open shooting rounds of 66, 66, 66 and 67 (-15) and winning by 8 shots.

Barry ANDERSON won the West of Ireland Amateur Open Championship at County Sligo beating Jack PIERSE 3&2 in the Final. Earlier Conor O’ROURKE had edged out fellow Naas member Jonathan YATES to secure medallist honours in the 36 hole stroke play qualifier.

Chile’s Joaquin NIEMANN started his rise to the top of the Men’s World Amateur Golf Ranking by winning the prestigious Junior Invitational at Sage Valley in the United Sates.

Owen EDWARDS (-3) won the West of England Stroke Play after a strong final day’s play at Saunton left him as the only player under par. David HAGUE (+1) was 2^nd and Will POOLE (+3) tied 3^rd.

On the same weekend Connor SYME won the Battle Trophy at Crail. Despite giving the field a chance with a final round 79 the Drumoig man still won by 5 shots.

Meanwhile in South Wales Matthew HARRIS won the Carmarthenshire Open at Ashburnham and Callum MORRIS the Golden Eagle at Tenby. However, it was Luke HARRIES who won the Trubshaw Cup for the best 72 hole score over the weekend.

MAY

May saw the focus return to Great Britain and Ireland with our leading amateur events now starting to be played.

Jack SINGH BRAR won the Lytham Trophy helped in no small part by a superb first round of 68 achieved in strong winds when the rest of the elite field struggled (CSS 79). Charlie STRICKLAND and Jake BURNAGE finished 2^nd and 3^rd in what proved to be a very good week for England Golf with 7 of the top 10 coming from the home nation.

Just down the road George RAITT and Conor GOUGH finished 2^nd and tied 3^rd respectively in the Boys’ Fairhaven Trophy. However, Sweden’s Ludvig ABERG was in a class of his own that week winning by 9 shots.

Having come close in the West of England a few weeks’ earlier Will POOLE found Kent’s links courses even more to his liking winning the South East of England Links Championship.

Peter O’KEEFFE won the Irish Open Amateur Championship holding off a strong field at Royal County Down GC. A posse of English and Scottish players made Peter work for it with Chris MACLEAN and Tom SLOMAN ultimately finishing 3 shots back in tied 5^th.

David HAGUE won the Lagonda Trophy by 12 shots. An astonishing 62 63 final day finish on the 6,367 yards par 70 Old Course blitzing the field.

David Hague (Photo: Kevin Diss)

Josh HILLEARD won the Murat Cup at the French International Amateur beating the home junior Pierre PINEAU on the second play-off hole. Both players came through the field in the final round of the 72 hole contest at Chantilly; Hilleard shooting 64 and Pineau 66.

In what proved to be a successful weekend for England Golf Gian-Marco PETROZZI secured the Welsh Amateur Open Stroke Play title at The Vale Resort. Gian-Marco (-13) won by 9 shots from fellow Staffordshire player Jack GAUNT (-4) and local favourites Jack DAVIDSON (-3) and Owen EDWARDS (-1).

Woodhall Spa staged the 2017 Brabazon Trophy with South Africa’s Kyle MCCLATCHIE beating Jamie STEWART, Jake BURNAGE and Jack SINGH BRAR by 1 shot to secure the prestigious English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play title and beautiful gold plated trophy.

In what proved to be a generally disappointing US Collegiate season for GB&I players Braden THORNBERRY won the NCAA Division 1 Individual Stroke Play before OKLAHOMA secured the Team title in the subsequent Match Play stage.

Sam HORSFIELD (ENG) turned Pro in May 2017.

JUNE

June started with England’s Max MARTIN picking up the Welsh Open Youths Championship at Prestatyn.

Liam JOHNSTON won the Scottish Men’s Open Championship at Western Gailes, holding off an in form Matthew JORDAN (2^nd) by 2 shots and fellow Scottish Internationals Craig HOWIE (T3) and Connor SYME (5^th).

The East of Ireland Amateur went to Reece BLACK whose final round 66 at County Louth was needed to hold off a fast finishing Robbie PIERSE (69).

Matthew JORDAN finally got the win his outstanding play in May and June deserved when he picked up the St. Andrews Links Trophy. Two late bogeys on the Old Course from Matthew enabled Ireland’s John Ross GALBRAITH, who birdied two of his last four, to finish 1 shot back, making the result tighter than it really should have been.

Somewhat ominously, given September’s Walker Cup match, USA ran out easy winners against Europe in the Arnold Palmer Cup played at the Atlanta Athletic Club. Driven on by unbeaten Doug GHIM, with Maverick MCNEALY, Collin MORIKAWA and Norman XIONG all featuring, USA won easily 19.5 – 10.5. The Arnold Palmer Cup match moves to a new mixed format in France next July.

One of the highlights of the year was Harry ELLIS’ magnificent win in The Amateur Championship staged at Royal St. George’s and Princes in Kent. 4 Down with five holes to play Ellis somehow fought back, helped in no small part by Dylan PERRY bogeying four of these remaining holes. The Hampshire man ultimately won on the second extra hole when the Australian could do no better than a 6 on the par 4 2^nd hole. The win secured Harry his place in history but also this year’s Open Championship and the GB&I Walker Cup team. With a trip to Augusta National in April 2018 still to come it really is the Championship that keeps on giving. A quick word also for medallist Caolan RAFFERTY whose 62 on Day 2 at Prince’s, even with a bogey on the last, was one of the amateur stroke play rounds of the year.

Ben JONES won the U18 Boys Sir Henry Cooper Masters by 10 shots at Nizels G&CC, separating himself from his peers after a 9-under, bogey free, 63 in round 3. In a stellar year for the competition the outstanding Lily May HUMPHRIES won the Girls event by 12 shots.

The 2017 Berkshire Trophy was won by Adam LUMLEY who finished on -18, 7 shots ahead of JACK CLARKSON. David HAGUE and Billy MACKENZIE finished tied 3^rd.

Mark Power (Photo: Castleroy GC)

Mark POWER retained his Irish Boys Amateur Open Championship title at Castleroy GC, the first person to do so since Paul Dunne a few years ago. He and England’s Jack COPE finished on -5 before Mark ended a topsy-turvy three hole play off in style by holing a 129 yard wedge on the 18th.

Kevin LE BLANC (IRE) turned Pro in June.

JULY

July 1^st saw Alfie PLANT memorably win the European Men’s Amateur at Walton Heath GC. A near tap-in birdie on the 72^nd hole helped the man from Kent draw level on -15 with Lorenzo SCALISE and defending Luca CIANCHETTI, helped in no small part by both Italians bogeying the same hole. With a place in The Open Championship on the line Plant went on to birdie the Old Course’s 2^nd hole, winning the sudden death play off on the fifth extra hole.

Alfie Plant (Photo: GolfBible)

Greg DALZIEL won the Scottish Boys Amateur Championship at Scotscraig, beating Australian-based Josh GREER by 1 hole in the Final.

A week later The Scottish Boys U16 Open Championship at Fairmont Kittocks went to 13 year old Calum SCOTT, younger brother of Scottish Men’s International Sandy. Josh GREER finished tied 2^nd four shots back. Equally of note were the 7^th and tied 12^th place finishes of Max HOPKINS and Aidan O’HAGAN, new names that would come to mean more as the year unfolded.

The North of Ireland Championship was played at Royal Portrush GC with Caolan RAFFERTY winning the stroke play qualifier on -10. Caolan fell to Colin FAIRWEATHER in the semi-finals before Rowan LESTER beat Colin by 2 holes in the final.

DENMARK won the European Boys Team Championship at La Manga beating SPAIN 4-3 in the Final. ENGLAND (T4) and IRELAND (8^th) both qualified for Flight A but found little success in their three matches.

ENGLAND (1^st), SCOTLAND (5^th) and IRELAND (6^th) all made Flight A in the Men’s European Amateur Team Championship which was played concurrently with the Boys’ at Diamond CC in Austria. In a closely fought match SPAIN beat ENGLAND 4-3 in the final.

Estonia’s Joonas TURBA was something of a surprise winner at the MacGregor Trophy (Boys’ U16 Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship). English propsects Max HOPKINS and Robin WILLIAMS were second and third respectively.

Noah GOODWIN (USA) beat Matthew WOLFF (USA) 1Up in the final of the US Junior Amateur at Flint Hills National GC in Kansas.

Alfie PLANT collected the Silver Medal for the low amateur at The Open Championship after rounds of 71, 73, 69 and 73 (+6) secured a T62 at Royal Birkdale GC. Connor SYME (73 76, +9) and Harry ELLIS (77 75, +12) both missed the cut.

Jake BURNAGE beat a fast finishing Jack YULE to win the South East of England Amateur Championship played on the New and Old Courses at Walton Heath GC. The Club have recently announced that the event will be renamed as The Walton Heath Trophy from 2018.

Jake Burnage (Photo: GolfBible)

Andrea ROMANO from Italy beat France’s Jean BEKIRIAN in a play-off to secure the Carris Trophy (Boys’ U18 Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship). English trio Jack COPE, Taylor STOTE and Robin WILLIAMS all finished in the Top 5 at West Sussex GC.

Conor GOUGH (-5, 7^th), Barclay BROWN (+1 T14), Lily May HUMPHRIES (-2, 1^st) and Annabell FULLER (Ev, T3) collectively won the Team title at the European Young Masters with a -12 total score in Oslo.

The 2017 South of Ireland Open Championship was won by James SUGRUE at Lahinch. After the North champion Rowan LESTER had won the 36 hole stroke play qualifier James worked his way through a strong field before beating Conor O’ROURKE 3&2 in the final.

AUGUST

Evan GRIFFITH dominated stroke play qualifying in the Wales Amateur Championship at Aberdovey GC with two rounds of 68 and 64 (-10) seeing him achieve medalist honours by an impressive 6 shots. However, Wales’ player of the year Jack DAVIDSON got the better of him in a tight semi-final before going on to beat Tim HARRY in the 36 hole final by 8&7.

The Scottish Amateur was played at Prestwick and was won by Sam LOCKE. Sandy SCOTT and Calum FYFE were the leading qualifiers. LOCKE played superbly in the match play stage ultimately beating Ryan LUMSDEN 9&8 in the 36 hole final.

The English Men’s Amateur was contested at The Berkshire. The story from the stroke play stage was medalist’s David LANGLEY’s superb 61 on the Blue Course on Day 1. However, it was Todd CLEMENTS who prevailed in the match play eventually beating Jack GAUNT 2&1 in the final.

Like the Brabazon Trophy earlier in the year it was a South African who won the Reid Trophy, awarded to the winner of the English Boy’s U14 Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship. Casey JARVIS (-4) held off fast finishing Spaniard Jose BALLESTER at the Manchester GC. For those looking for potential GB&I stars of the future Rory MCDONALD-O’BRIEN (ENG), George DURKAN (ENG), Joshua HILL (IRE), Joseph BYRNE (IRE) and Jack BIGHAM (ENG) all finished in the top 10.

ENGLAND won The Boys’ Home Internationals at St. Anne’s Old Links. Toby BRIGGS, Conor GOUGH, Joe PAGDIN and Robin WILLIAMS all compiled W5 L1 H0 records during the week. Whilst SCOTLAND came last they did provide the highlight of the week; the unbeaten foursomes pairing of 13 year olds Calum SCOTT and Aiden O’HAGEN.

Calum Scott and Aiden O’Hagen (Photo: GolfBible)

Andrew WILSON (-4), the only player to finish under par for the 72 holes and helped on his way by a 62 in round 1, won the Lee Westwood Trophy at Rotherham GC. Charlie THORNTON and Olly HUGGINS (Ev) were tied 2^nd.

IRELAND continued their superb run at the Men’s Home Internationals winning the Raymond Trophy for a fourth consecutive year at Moortown GC in England. Caolan RAFFERTY (W5 L1 H0), Paul MCBRIDE (W4 L0 H1) and Colin FAIRWEATHER (W4 L1 H0) starred in a strong team performance.

The 2017 Boys’ Amateur Championship was played at Nairn GC and Nairn Dunbar GC. Home player Darren HOWIE (-8) was medallist with Alex FITZPATRICK (-7) tied 2^nd and Danny DANIELS (-6) tied 4^th. However, it was Portugal’s Pedro LENCART SILVA, who had qualified in tied 6^th on -4, who came through the match play stage to win. He beat defending champion Falko HANISCH (GER) 5&4 in the 36 hole final.

Played at the magnificent Riviera CC and Bel-Air CC’s in Los Angeles Doc REDMAN won the U.S. Amateur Championship in stunning fashion. Hayden WOOD (-9) achieved medallist honours in the stroke play qualifying. Jack SINGH BRAR (-2) T8 led the way for GB&I, with Connor SYME and Robert MACINTYRE (both +2) T35 following him into the match play stage. Syme went furthest at Riviera ending up losing 2&1 in the quarter finals to Doug GHIM. Ghim went on to reach the final where he found himself 2Up with two to play and just over the back of the green in two on the par 5 17^th. With Redman just on the green in front of him easily 50 yards away from the hole he could be forgiven for thinking the Havemeyer Trophy was his and for allowing his mind to wander to the first tee of Augusta National in April 2018. Unfortunately the golfing gods stepped in. After Ghim had left his chip 6 feet short Redman stepped up and at pace holed the most amazing right to left downhill putt of the year, or for that matter almost any year, for eagle. Redman then followed it up with a superb birdie on the uphill 18^th from 6 foot with Ghim only managing a scrambled par. With the match now All Square, Redman hit a perfect drive to the front of Riviera’s short 315 yard par 4 10^th, the first extra hole. Visibly shocked at what was happening in front of him Ghim then hooked his drive and having hacked around for a while before securing a 6 conceded Redman the Championship. An unbelievable finish to amateur golf’s premier event.

The North of England U16 Boy’s Championship was won by Callum MACFIE at Pannal GC. Matthew JACKMAN was one back with Max HOPKINS a little further back in 3^rd place.

The Irish U16 Boys Amateur Open Championship was played at Rockmount and was won by Mullingar’s Adam SMITH. Odhran MAGUIRE, the younger brother of Leona and Lisa, was 2^nd.

Down at Sundridge Park GC Liam BURNS (-5) defenced the Waterford Trophy. A 67 66 final day finish was required by the man from Chiselhurst to hold off Nick PANTING by 1 shot.

The U16 Welsh Boys was won by Bryn THOMAS at Cradoc GC. Thomas’ final round of 67 helped him to a 9 shot victory over Tom PEET.

The Irish Amateur Close Championship was won by Jamie FLETCHER at Galway GC. Peter KERR and David BRADY were seeded 1^st and 2^nd after both recorded 138 (-2) in the stroke play stage. In a tight 18 hole final Fletcher beat David KITT by 1 hole.

Richard MANSELL (ENG), Bradley MOORE (ENG), Marco PENGE (ENG) and Sean TOWNDROW (ENG) all turned Pro in August.

SEPTEMBER

The CONTINENT OF EUROPE won the annual Jacques Léglise Trophy U18 Boys’ match against GB&I at Ballybunion GC by 15.5 – 9.5. Unbeaten pair Pedro LENCART SILVA (W3-L0-H1) and Eduard ROUSARD SABATE (SWE) helped the away side to a second successive win. Ben JONES (W2-L1-H1) and Robin WILLIAMS (W2-L1-H0) put up the best defence for GB&I.

The Walker Cup result was an even more sobering experience for GB&I the following week. Craig WATSON had to step down as GB&I captain on the eve of the match but with Andy INGRAM a very capable deputy I am sure this in no way contributed to what followed at Los Angeles Country Club. Whilst the final result was not unexpected the manner of the 17-9 defeat was. Only Jack SINGH BRAR (W3-L1-H0), Robert MACINTYRE (W1-L1-H1) and Scott GREGORY (W2-L1-H1) really came away with any credit from the match. From the USA side Captain Spider Miller had clearly learned a few lessons from Royal Lytham in 2015 and backed up by superb performances from Doug GHIM, Maverick MCNEALY, Colin MORIKAWA, (all W4-L0-H0) and Norman XIONG (W3-L0-H1) the one sided result felt inevitable as soon as the Day 1 singles were concluded.

The USA Walker Cup Team (Photo: GolfBible)

Ben JONES won The Duke of York Champions Trophy at Royal Liverpool GC by 8 shots from Sweden’s Oscar TEIFFEL. John PATERSON, who shot a 69 in round 2, the best of the week, finished 7^th.

David BOOTE (WAL), Dan BROWN (ENG) Jack DAVIDSON (WAL), Tom GANDY (ENG), Scott GREGORY (ENG), Evan GRIFFITH (WAL), Cameron LONG (ENG), Alfie PLANT (ENG), Craig ROSS (SCO), Conor O’ROURKE (IRE), Jack SINGH BRAR (ENG), Connor SYME (SCO), Will WHITEOAK (ENG) and Jack YULE (ENG) all turned Pro in September.

OCTOBER

David HAGUE (+1) won the North of England Amateur Open Stroke Play Championship at Alwoodley GC. Andrew Wilson (+3) was 2^nd with Harry GODDARD and Nick POPPLETON (+4) tied 3^rd.

Joshua DAVIES (WAL), Owen EDWARDS (WAL), Colin FAIRWEATHER (IRE), Stuart GREHAN (IRE), Liam JOHNSTON (SCO) and Robert MACINTYRE (SCO) all turned Pro in October.

NOVEMBER

A birdie, eagle finish helped China’s LIN YUXIN to the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship title at Royal Wellington GC in New Zealand. We can therefore look forward to seeing him in action at The Masters in 2018.

14 year old Max HOPKINS (-2) became the youngest ever winner of the Boys’ Telegraph Vitality Junior Golf Championship at Quinta do Lago in Portugal. Ben JONES (+1) was 2^nd and Alfie FOX (+3) 3^rd.

Jamie CLARE (ENG), John Ross GALBRAITH (IRE) and Chris MACLEAN (SCO) all turned Pro in November.

Sam HORSFIELD won the Final Stage of the European Tour Qualifying School at Lumine Golf & Beach Club in Spain. His final -27 score, with all six rounds in the 60’s and a best of the day final round of 63 (-8), saw him win the 108 hole event by an impressive 8 shots. Amongst the other players to pick up a 2018 Tour card were Connor SYME, who finished tied 9th on -17 and Jonathan THOMSON, who finished tied 18th on -14.

DECEMBER

Ben JONES (-12) finished tied 2nd at the South Beach International Amateur in Miami. In an event which enjoyed the 5th strongest field of the year it was also pleasing to see Harry HALL (-7) and Joe PAGDIN (-4) record impressive results; tied 10th and tied 19th respectively.

Ben JONES finished tied 28th at the Boy’s Junior Orange Bowl Championship in Miami, 22 shots behind runaway winner Jerry JI from The Netherlands. Lily May HUMPHRIES enhanced her growing reputation by winning the Girls event by 9 shots.

Mason OVERSTREET (USA) won The Patriot All-America in Arizona. The six GB&I players struggled to make an impression with George BURNS (T38) recording the best finish.

Josh HILLEARD (ENG) turned Pro earlier in the month.

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If you want to review the detailed results of any of the above competitions then please take a look at the GolfBible Results Page where you will be able to find links to nearly all of those mentioned above.

ME.

The 2018 GB&I Men’s National Squads

Posted on 12/12/2017 by Golf Bible

12th December 2017

The last few months have seen a relatively large number of Great Britain and Ireland international and other elite amateur players turn professional.

2018 therefore represents a huge opportunity for the next generation of GB&I players coming through the ranks.

As we start to look ahead to next year I thought it may be useful to lay out the 2018 National Squads for each of the four home nations in one place.

You will find these players listed below, along with each player’s current Scratch Players World Amateur Ranking (SPWAR), some other elite players not officially included in the various Panels to show depth (there are others too) and finally a list of all of the recent departures to the ‘dark side’ from each country.

Seeing how this period of transition for both GB&I amateur and professional golf unfolds next year and into 2019 will certainly be interesting.

ENGLAND

Men’s Squad
Jake Burnage (111)
Todd Clements (56)
Jack Gaunt (188)
David Hague (146)
Matthew Jordan (34)
Gian-Marco Petrozzi (126)
Charlie Strickland (212)
Andrew Wilson (329)

Men’s A Squad
George Bloor (270)
Bailey Gill (378)
Ben Jones (417)
Josh McMahon (431)
Nick Poppleton (260)
Tom Sloman (201)

Other Elite Players
Toby Briggs (902) – U.S. University of San Francisco, Freshman
Harry Ellis (35) – U.S. Florida State University, Redshirt Junior
Alex Fitzpatrick (408) – Committed to Wake Forest University – Summer 2018
Harry Hall (134) – U.S. University of Las Vegas, Junior
Billy McKenzie (247) – U.K. full time amateur.
Daniel O’Loughlin (328) – U.S. University of Colorado, Sophomore
Pavan Sagoo (352) – U.S. St. Mary’s College, Senior
Daniel Sutton (347) – U.S. University of Kansas, Junior
Laird Shepherd (222) – U.K. Stirling University
David Wicks (173) – U.S. Jacksonville, Junior

Players Who Have Recently Turned Pro
Dan Brown, Jamie Clare, Tom Gandy, Scott Gregory, Josh Hilleard, Cameron Long, Richard Mansell, Bradley Moore, Marco Penge, Alfie Plant, Jack Singh Brar, Sean Towndrow, Will Whiteoak and Jack Yule (14).

IRELAND

Men’s Senior Panel
Barry Anderson (1,051)
Colm Campbell (311)
Robin Dawson (68)
Jamie Fletcher (1,425)
Alex Gleeson (212)
Rowan Lester (215)
Paul McBride (43) – U.S. Wake Forest University, Senior
Tiarnan McLarnon (517)
Ronan Mullarney (323)
John Murphy (541)
Peter O’Keeffe (344)
Mark Power (690)
Conor Purcell (291) – U.S. University of North Carolina Charlotte, Sophomore
Caolan Rafferty (103)
James Sugrue (1,028)
Jonathan Yates (579)

Other Elite Players
Thomas Mulligan (1,591) – U.S. University of Oregon, Freshman

5 Players Who Have Recently Turned Pro
Colin Fairweather, John Ross Galbraith, Stuart Grehan, Kevin Le Blanc and Conor O’Rourke (5).

SCOTLAND

Men’s Squad
Darren Howie (492)
Sam Locke (509)
Jamie Stewart (120) – U.S. Missouri University, Freshman
Eric McIntosh (404) – U.S. Northwestern University, Freshman
Ryan Lumsden (132) – U.S. Northwestern University, Junior
Matthew Clark (436)
Calum Fyfe (131)
Sandy Scott (110) – U.S. Texas Tech University, Sophomore
Euan Walker (266)

Other Elite Players
Rory Franssen (314) – U.S. Missouri University, Sophomore

Players Who Have Recently Turned Pro
Liam Johnston, Chris Maclean, Robert MacIntyre, Craig Ross and Connor Syme. Craig Howie (49) is also expected to turn Pro shortly (6).

WALES

National Performance Programme
Ben Chamberlain
Gaelen Trew – U.S. Florida Institute of Technology, Junior
Luke Harries – U.S. Lincoln Memorial University, Freshman
Tim Harry

National Support Programme
Jake Hapgood
Kyle Harman
Matt Harris
Lee Jones
Llew Matthews
Lewys Sanges

Players Who Have Recently Turned Pro
David Boote, Jack Davidson, Joshua Davies, Owen Edwards and Evan Griffith (5).

ME.

European Tour Q-School – 2017 Final Stage Results

Posted on 08/11/2017 by Golf Bible

16th November 2017

Sam HORSFIELD (21) won the 2017 Final Stage of the European Tour Qualifying School at Lumine Golf & Beach Club in Tarragona, Spain.

The Florida-based Englishman was simply too good for Lumine’s Hills and Lakes courses and for that matter the rest of the field.

His final -27 score, with all six rounds in the 60’s and a best of the day final round of 63 (-8), saw him win the 108 hole event by an impressive 8 shots.

Following in the footsteps of Nathan KIMSEY last year he becomes the second player in a row and the third in total to come through all three stages of Q-School and win.

Horsfield left the University of Florida in May 2017 after his sophomore year had concluded. He had enjoyed a superb freshman year in US College golf in 2015/16 but had been inconsistent in this his second year, distracted by trialling equipment ahead of his move into the paid ranks.

A former amateur world number 1 and arguably Britain’s strongest golfing prospect in the last few years this victory should come as no surprise to anyone.

After a few starts on the PGA Tour Sam chose to try his hand in Europe this summer and received invitations to three late season tournaments. He made the cut at both the Made in Denmark (T49 -3) and Portugal Masters (T59 -4) but missed out at the KLM Open (T99 +3). In summary a steady if unspectacular start to his pro career.

His 2017 European Tour year to date earnings of €12,800 have now been more than doubled by the Final Q-School winner’s cheque of €16,000.

Sam Horsfield – Winner of the European Tour’s 2017 Q-School (Photo: @hr59sam)

Connor SYME (22) finished tied 9th on -17, continuing his seamless transition over the last 2 months from amateur golf and the 2017 Walker Cup match to the professional game.

Jonathan THOMSON (21) finished tied 18th on -14 capping a great season for the Yorkshireman. He finished 9th on the PGA EuroPro Tour Order of Merit and also showed he belonged on the European Tour with strong performances at both the D+D REAL Czech Masters (T54) and Portugal Masters (T25).

It was also good to see Gavin MOYNIHAN (23) progress. The Irishman, who played in both the 2013 and 2015 Walker Cups finished tied 25th on -13. After finishing 19th on the Challenge Tour’s 2017 Order of Merit he has clearly taken another important step forward this week.

English pair James HEATH and Ben EVANS should also be congratulated too, having fought their way into the Top 25 and ties on the final day. They both shot 66 (-5) when it mattered most in Round 6.

Horsfield, and the other players who finished in the top 25 and tied for 25th place, can now look forward to 2018 with confidence and the foundation of Category 17 and 5 cards for the European Tour and Challenge Tour respectively.

156 golfers started out in the Final Stage marathon with 49 from Great Britain and Ireland (GB&I) – 31.4% of the field.

After a 72 holes cut, following two rounds on each of Lumine’s courses, 74 players remained representing those that had finished 70th and tied.

27 GB&I players made the cut with 12 going on to achieve 2018 European Tour Category 17 playing privileges. In total 33 players finished in the Top 25 and tied places.

Here is a summary of the GB&I results showing each player’s Q-School entry point, finishing place and score as well as their 2018 European Tour (ET) and Challenge Tour (CT) categories: –

Results

Click here to view the European Tour’s – Lumine Final Stage Results

Top 25 – ET cat. 17 / CT cat. 5

Sam HORSFIELD (ENG) – First Stage 1st (-27)
Charlie FORD (ENG) – Final Stage T2 (-19)
Mark FOSTER (ENG) – Second Stage T9 (-17)
Connor SYME (SCO) – Second Stage T9 (-17)
Laurie CANTER (ENG) – Second Stage T12 (-16)
Ross MCGOWAN (ENG) – Final Stage T15 (-15)
James HEATH (ENG) – Final Stage T18 (-14)
Jonathan THOMSON (ENG) – First Stage T18 (-14)
Matthew BALDWIN (ENG) – Second Stage T18 (-14)
Ben EVANS (ENG) – Final Stage T25 (-13)
Gavin MOYNIHAN (IRE) – Final Stage T25 (-13)
Matthew NIXON (ENG) – Final Stage T25 (-13)

72 Hole Cut Made (Top 70 and Ties) – ET cat. 22 / CT cat. 9

Marcus ARMITAGE (ENG) – Second Stage T34 (-12)
Tom MURRAY (ENG) – Final Stage T37 (-11)
Chris LLOYD (ENG) – Second Stage T37 (-11)
Robert MACINTYRE (SCO) – Second Stage T37 (-11)
David LAW (SCO) – Second Stage T42 (-10)
Tom LEWIS (ENG) – Final Stage T42 (-10)
Paul HOWARD (ENG) – Final Stage T42 (-10)
Nathan KIMSEY (ENG) – Final Stage T50 (-9)
Scott HENRY (SCO) – Second Stage T54 (-8)
Steve WEBSTER (ENG) – Final Stage T54 (-8)
Stuart MANLEY (WAL) – Second Stage T58 (-7)
Steven TILEY (ENG) – Second Stage T58 (-7)
Ruaidhri MCGEE (IRE) – Second Stage T62 (-6)
Simon KHAN (ENG) – Final Stage T68 (-2)
Paul MADDY (ENG) – Second Stage T68 (-2)

Amateurs
Adri ARNAUS (ESP) – First Stage T65 (-5) – Adri turned pro after the 4th round
Kim KOIVU (FIN) – First Stage T68 (-2)

Missed Cut – CT cat. 15 (72 holes played)

Ewen FERGUSON (SCO) – Second Stage T75 (-1)
Ross KELLETT (SCO) – Second Stage T75 (-1)
Jamie RUTHERFORD (ENG) – Second Stage T82 (Ev)
Matt FORD (ENG) – Final Stage T82 (Ev)
Grant FORREST (SCO) – Final Stage T82 (Ev)
Oliver WILSON (ENG) – Final Stage T82 (Ev)
Joe DEAN (ENG) – First Stage T94 (+1)
Toby TREE (ENG) – Second Stage T94 (+1)
Cormac SHARVIN (N.I.) – Second Stage T94 (+1)
John PARRY (ENG) – Second Stage T103 (+2)
Scott GREGORY (ENG) – Second Stage T103 (+2)
Max ORRIN (ENG) – Second Stage T112 (+3)
Simon DYSON (ENG) – Final Stage T112 (+3)
Dan BROWN (ENG) – First Stage T112 (+3)
Dermot MCELROY (N.I.) – First Stage T121 (+5)
Chris DOAK (SCO) – Second Stage T121 (+5)
Richard MCEVOY (ENG) – Final Stage T121 (+5)
Sam HUTSBY (ENG) – Second Stage T132 (+7)
Rhys ENOCH (WAL) – Second Stage T136 (+8)
Robert DINWIDDIE (ENG) – Second Stage T144 (+11)
Duncan STEWART (SCO) – Final Stage T147 (+13)
Garrick PORTEOUS (ENG) – Final Stage WD (+11, after 3 rounds)

Amateurs
Oliver GILLBERG (SWE) – First Stage T94 (+1)

European Tour QS

FINAL STAGE Q-SCHOOL REWARDS

At the conclusion of play the leading 25 players (and ties) were eligible for Category 17 membership of the European Tour and Category 5 membership of the Challenge Tour for the 2018 season.

With regard to Category 17 the European Tour will be adopting a new structure in 2018. The Top 10 Q-School finishers will be ranked first, followed by those players who finished 101st-110th in the 2017 Race To Dubai and finally the 11th-25th Q-School leading finishers.

The leading 70 players (and ties) who made the 72-hole cut will be handed Category 22 membership of the European Tour and Category 9 membership of the Challenge Tour.

Those who missed the cut will receive Category 15 membership of the Challenge Tour.

The final Q-School finishing positions are important when it comes to determining each player’s standing in each Category and as such their actual playing opportunities next season.

The 2017 Final Q-School has a total prize fund of €150,000. The winner receives €16,000 with those finishing in the Top 25 (and ties) reducing amounts down to €1,860.

FINAL STAGE Q-SCHOOL BACKGROUND

The competition was played over 108 holes on Lumine’s Lakes (6,909 yards, par 71) and Hills (6,975 yards, par 72) Courses.

Whilst Lumine’s Lakes Course has hosted one of the Second Stage events for some time this is the first time the Club has been used for Final Stage Qualifying. The PGA Catalunya Resort in Girona has hosted the Finals for the last 9 years.

Lumine Beach & Golf Club – 18th hole, Hills Course (Photo: http://www.lumine.com)

70 players were exempted into the Q-School process at the Final Stage. Amongst this number are many experienced pros and previous European Tour winners. If reaching this Stage isn’t hard enough make no mistake the bar is once again raised at the Finals.

Eight First Stage and four Second Stage events were completed in recent months in the 2017 Q-School series. 176 players progressed from the former to Second Stage whilst 86 advanced from the latter to the Finals.

For a recap on these 2017 Q-School competitions please read my earlier articles: –

European Tour Q-School – 2017 First Stage Preview & Results

European Tour Q-School – 2017 Second Stage Preview & Results

Last year England’s Nathan KIMSEY (-13) won the Final Stage of the European Tour’s Qualifying School series at the PGA Catalunya Resort.

Nathan was just the second player to come right through from First Stage to win Q-School outright.

Nathan Kimsey – Winner of the European Tour’s 2016 Q-School (Photo: @ETQSchool)

Sadly Nathan wasn’t able to retain his European Tour card during the 2017 season and as you can see above finished tied 50th this week.

In fact just three players retained their playing status from the 30 2016 Q-School graduates. These were Eddie PEPPERELL (ENG), Edoardo MOLINARI (ITA) – who finished 44th and 66th on the Race To Dubai regular season standings – and Ashley CHESTERS (ENG), who was 110th but 8th on the Access List.

The introduction of the Rolex Series and the ever rising standard of play means that making the most of a good finish at Q-School is unquestionably getting harder each year.

Well done to the 33 2017 Q-School graduates. Enjoy your achievements this week and best wishes for next season.

ME.

Harold Hilton

Posted on 04/11/2017 by Golf Bible

16th November 2017

Harold Hilton was born on 12th January 1869 in West Kirby, near Liverpool in England’s North West.

Following in the footsteps of his father he joined the nearby Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake when he was 8 years old. The Club, which received its patronage in 1871, is the one he was associated with all of his life and where his collection of medals are still proudly displayed to this day.

Harold Hilton (Photo: Royal Liverpool Golf Club)

It was fellow Hoylake junior member Willie More that helped him most in his formative years, encouraging him to watch better players and practice as much as he possibly could. He was of course fortunate that Johnny Ball, 8 years older than him and arguably Britain’s greatest ever amateur, was a fellow member of Royal Liverpool and clearly someone to aspire to and learn from.

Harold Hilton was one of the very best players for the 25 years between 1890 and 1915. Freddie Tait was the only player of this era he rarely got the better of. Whilst Hilton did beat Tait in stroke play he never beat him in a match play game and this drew a lot of comment at the time. Tait to a lesser degree had the same problem with Ball in match play.

His outstanding golfing achievement was winning both the 1911 Amateur Championship and the U.S. Amateur Championship. He was the first player to complete this double and he did so at the age of 42. Until Matthew Fitzpatrick won in 2013 Hilton had been the last Englishman to win the U.S. Amateur.

The 1911 U.S. Amateur has gone down in history for two reasons; firstly the manner of the victory and secondly the impact it had on the growth of the game in the United States.

Harold Hilton at Apawamis CC (Photo: The Ron Watts Collection)

The 1911 U.S. Amateur took place at Apawamis Country Club in Rye, New York State. Hilton won the stroke play by two shots (76+74=150) leading 32 qualifiers into the match play stage. He then reached the 36 hole Final where he faced Brooklyn-born Fred Herreshoff (24). At lunch Hilton led 4Up and he quickly extended this to 6Up early in the afternoon round. Herreshoff fought back bravely and managed to draw level after 34-holes. The American had chances to win on both of the final two holes but putts just missed for him as Hilton struggled for halves.

Playing their 37th hole (the par 4 1st), with both players having driven into the fairway, Hilton sliced his 3-wood approach. What happened next remains uncertain. The ball either hit the rocky outcrop to the right of the green (in those days surrounded by trees and rough) or benefitted from a kind bounce on the slope before it. Either way from looking dead off the club face it ended up in the middle of the green 20 feet from the hole. In shock Herreshoff – no doubt thinking he had one hand on the trophy just moments earlier – topped his own approach short and then proceeded to take three more to get down. Despite his experience Hilton nervously two-putted for par, in the end having to hole a 3 footer to secure the Havemeyer Trophy.

Herbert Warren Wind described the ‘rock shot’ many years later in his The Story of American Golf (1948) as “the most discussed single shot ever played in an American tournament.” He went on to explain why it had motivated the next generation of U.S. golfers so much: “Americans were not at all pleased over the idea that a foreigner had carried one of our championship cups out of the country, and that men who had never cared about golf before now wanted to know the real inside story.”

Hilton’s Rock on the 1st Hole of Apawamis CC in 2015
(Photos: Dave Donelson, Westchester Magazine)

In total Harold Hilton won four Amateur Championships:-
1900 – at Royal St. George’s GC v. James Robb SCO (8&7)
1901 – at St. Andrews v. John L. Low SCO (1 Up)
1911 – at Prestwick v. Edward Lassen ENG (4&3)
1913 – at St. Andrews v. Robert Harris SCO (6&5)

It was perhaps no coincidence that his success in the Amateur started in 1900, the first year that both Tait (who had been killed that February in the Second Boer War) and Ball (who was still serving in South Africa) were both absent.

Hilton also lost three Amateur Finals; in 1891 to John Laidlay (19th hole), 1892 to Johnny Ball (3&2) and 1896 to Freddie Tait (8&7).

He achieved an impressive Won 95, Lost 29 (76.6%) overall Amateur Championship record. Between 1887 and 1927, he appropriately started and finished at Royal Liverpool, he played more Championships (33) and matches (124) than anyone else has in history. World War I deprived him of 5 Amateurs between 1916-1919 too.

Harold Hilton also won the Open Championship in 1892 (Muirfield, 305 – 66 entrants) and 1897 (Royal Liverpool, 314 – 86 entrants). The 1892 Open was the first played over 72 holes.

Just Johnny Ball (the first to do so in 1890), Bobby Jones (1926, 1927 & 1930) and Hilton have achieved this feat as amateurs. All three were members of Royal Liverpool GC.

It is in some respects surprising that Hilton won both of his Opens before he had secured an Amateur Championship but he was a renowned stroke player. In total he played in 20 Open’s between 1891 and 1914.

It’s worth noting that Hilton also finished tied third in the 1911 Open Championship at Royal St. George’s with Sandy Herd, one shot behind Harry Vardon, who won the subsequent play-off, and Arnaud Massy. What a hat trick of wins that would have been !

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Harold Hilton’s Medals at Royal Liverpool GC (Photo: GolfBible)

It is easy to forget that many equipment changes took place around the the turn of the century. Hilton dealt reasonably well with the transition, coping better than many of his peers with new clubs such as the Driver and the rubber-cored Haskell ball which replaced the old gutta-percha one. Interestingly of the seven Majors Hilton won the first four saw him use the more exacting gutty whilst the final three were with the easier rubber-core ball.

He also won the St. George’s Challenge Cup in 1893 and 1894, a major amateur competition back in the day.

He won the Irish Open Amateur Championship three years in a row and in some style too. In 1900 he beat S.H. Fry 11&9 at Newcastle, in 1901 P. Dowie 6&5 at Dollymount and in 1902 W.H. Hamilton 5&4 at Portrush.

In October 1910 Hilton (41) played Miss Cecil Leitch (19), a future women’s champion golfer, in a two day 72 hole exhibition match at Walton Heath and Sunningdale. Hilton had publically said he or for that matter any other first class male golfer could give 9 shots to an equivalent women over 18 holes. The Ladies’ Field magazine wanting to see if he could deliver on his word arranged the match and the publicity drew large crowds to the famous courses. Helped by the 18 shots she received Leitch ended up winning 2&1 but Hilton had largely made his point particularly as had been 2 Up after the first day’s play at Walton Heath.

Hilton’s last major win came in 1914 when he won the Golf Illustrated Gold Vase at Sunningdale with a 151 total. As one of the organisers of this event he paired himself with Francis Ouimet, the reigning U.S. Open champion, and proceeded to comprehensively out play him over the 36 holes.

Hilton’s swing was ungainly and notable for the fact he started by moving onto his toes before then very noticeably re-gripping the club at the point of transition. He almost always played whilst smoking too although it is said he limited himself to 50 cigarettes a day. However, like all the greats he practiced hard and honed his style. As he said himself “(I) served a long apprenticeship in the art of learning how to control the club in the upward swing.”

As Robert Harris, the runner-up in the 1913 Amateur, said: “His cap used to fall off his head at the end of full swings, as if jerked off, but this did not indicate if the swing was pure if unduly forceful. He was a small man with a powerful physique; it was exhilarating to watch his perky walk between shots. His assiduity was his greatness.”

Harold Hilton’s Swing (Photo: ingolfwetrust.com)

Hilton also spent a lot of time thinking about the mental side of the game. He believed it was “possible to develop the habit of concentration” and believed “that the majority of good match players are inclined to be very silent men” and tend to be those that play the game “without allowing any outside influence to affect them in any way whatever.”

Hilton was also a member of West Lancashire Golf Club and was this club’s first paid Secretary in the early 1900’s. He was also Secretary of Ashford Manor Golf Club later in his life.

In 1912 he played a leading role in designing the highly regarded Old Course at Ferndown Golf Club in Dorset. The 16th hole is still named ‘Hilton’s’ in memory of his involvement with the Club.

He turned his hand to writing about the sport as he came to the end of his playing career. As well as a frequent contributor he was the first editor of Golf Monthly magazine (from 1911) before taking on the same role at Golf Illustrated, then a weekly paper (from 1913).

He wrote three books My Golfing Reminiscences (1907), The Royal and Ancient Game of Golf (with Garden C. Smith, 1912) and Modern Golf (1913). The fact that he wrote his autobiography in 1907 is probably down to opportunity but also reveals that at 38 he probably thought his best playing days were behind him. It was in 1903 that he also started to suffer with rheumatism and sciatica. His confidence in his own game was such that he chose not to even enter The Open in 1906, 1907 (at Hoylake), 1908 or 1910. History of course shows how wrong he was to nearly retire from competitive golf.

‘Hoylake’ – the chain smoking Harold Hilton depicted by ‘Spy’ (Sir Leslie Ward)

Hilton died aged 73 on 5th May 1942 at his home in Westcote, near Stow on the Wold in Gloucestershire. He had a heart attack but had been suffering with Parkinson’s Disease for some time prior to this.

Harold Hilton was admitted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1978 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the game.

In 1992 John L.B. Garcia wrote Harold Hilton His Golfing Life and Times. It was published in a limited edition of 750 copies by Grant Books.

Royal Liverpool Golf Club inaugurated the Harold Hilton Medal for amateur golfers over the age of 30 in 1997 to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of their member’s famous home Open Championship victory. It is played in early June annually.

The Harold Hilton Medal (Photo: Royal Liverpool Golf Club)

Whilst small in stature, he was just 5 foot 6 inches tall, Harold Hilton is unquestionably one of the giants in the history of British golf.

It is amazing that Royal Liverpool produced first Johnny Ball and then just a short while afterwards Harold Hilton, two of the leading players of the time and looking back a 100 years later two of the biggest names in the history of amateur golf.

ME.

European Tour Q-School – 2017 Second Stage Preview & Results

Posted on 26/10/2017 by Golf Bible

October / November 2017

The Second Stage QSchool Results can be found at the bottom of this article.

The Second Stage of the European Tour’s Qualifying School started on Friday 3rd November at four venues in Spain.

The 72 hole competitions were all to be played over four days with no cut. However, following strong winds Sunday’s Round 3 at the Panoramica course was postponed. This Qualifier therefore finished on Tuesday, a day later than the others.

The fields included the 176 players that qualified from the eight First Stage events.

For a recap on the First Stage competitions and specifically on the progress of the Great British and Irish (GB&I) amateurs and new professionals please read my earlier article – European Tour Q-School – 2017 First Stage Preview & Results

The qualifiers were joined by those players who were exempt from First Stage due to their performances on the 2017 European Tour, Challenge Tour and other feeder / satellite tours.

Exemptions were also given to the leading 5 entrants as at 23rd August 2017 to a limit of 15th place in the World Amateur Golf Ranking provided that they had applied to enter the First Stage by this date. In 2017 this rule benefited Scott GREGORY (ENG), Connor SYME (SCO) and Robert MACINTYRE (SCO) [all of whom qualified this week for Final Stage].

86 players progressed to the Final Stage of Qualifying School. The Panoramica site was originally scheduled to have 21 qualifiers but for unknown reasons 22 players were allowed through. With the final round delayed perhaps time ran out for the ‘3 for 4’ play off that should have taken place ? Sudden death play-offs were required and used at the three other Second Stage qualifying sites where play concluded on Monday.

This year the Final Stage competition is being played at Lumine Golf Club in Tarragona, Spain between the 11th and 16th November. The Lakes and Hills courses will both be used.

This should be beneficial to the less experienced players who make the latter stage as this represents a new venue for the six round marathon, albeit the Lakes has hosted one of the Second Stage events for some time. You will recall that prior to 2017 PGA Catalunya Resort had been used for Final Stage for many years.

The leading 25 players (and ties) from the 156 that will contest Final Stage will be eligible for Category 17 membership of the European Tour and Category 5 membership of the Challenge Tour for the 2017/18 season. The leading 70 players (and ties) who make the 72-hole cut will obtain Category 22 membership of the European Tour and Category 9 membership of the Challenge Tour. Those who miss the cut receive Category 15 membership of the Challenge Tour.

European Tour QS

Here are the links to the European Tour’s Q-School Second Stage results webpages as well as my summaries of which GB&I players have and have not qualified this week: –

1. Desert Springs Golf Club, Almería – 6,745 yards, Par 72

Click here for the full – Desert Springs Results

There were 76 entries at Desert Springs with 21 from GB&I (26%).

QUALIFIED – 22 players at -8 or better, including

Matthew BALDWIN (ENG) 1st (-17)
Scott GREGORY (ENG) T4 (-12)
Max ORRIN (ENG) T4 (-12)
Cormac SHARVIN (N.I.) T7 (-11)
Chris LLOYD (ENG) T10 (-10)
Robert MACINTYRE (SCO) T13 (-9)
Scott HENRY (SCO) T13 (-9)
Sam HORSFIELD (ENG) T18 (-8) – via a 5 from 6 play off.

DID NOT QUALIFY (selected)

Jonathan CALDWELL (N.I.) T24 (-7)
Daniel YOUNG (SCO) T24 (-7)
James ALLAN (ENG) T37 (-4)
Liam JOHNSTON (SCO) T37 (-4)
Jamie CLARE (ENG) T51 (Ev)
Joey LAMB (ENG) WD (+8 after 36 holes)

2. Campo de Golf El Saler, Valencia – 7,052 yards, Par 72

Click here for the full – El Saler Results

There were 74 entries at El Saler with 25 from GB&I (34%).

QUALIFIED – 21 players at +1 or better, including

Ewen FERGUSON (SCO) T2 (-10)
Laurie CANTER (ENG) T2 (-10)
Dan BROWN (ENG) 5th (-5)
Ross KELLETT (SCO) T6 (-3)
Stuart MANLEY (WAL) T6 (-3)
Jamie RUTHERFORD (ENG) T8 (-2)
Rhys ENOCH (WAL) T10 (-1)
Steven TILEY (ENG) T10 (-1)
Dermot MCELROY (N.I.) T13 (Ev)
Jonathan THOMSON (ENG) T17 (+1) – via a 5 from 6 play off.

DID NOT QUALIFY (selected)

Jack SINGH BRAR (ENG) T23 (+2)
Jamie DICK (ENG) T57 (+13)
Craig ROSS (SCO) 62nd (+15)

3. Las Colinas Golf & Country Club, Alicante – 6,974 yards, Par 71

Click here for the full – Las Colinas Results

There were 73 entries at Las Colinas with 23 from GB&I (32%).

QUALIFIED – 21 players at -3 or better, including

David LAW (SCO) T3 (-15)
Toby TREE (ENG) 5th (-14)
Paul MADDY (ENG) T6 (-13)
Marcus ARMITAGE (ENG) 9th (-10)
Connor SYME (SCO) T10 (-9)
Chris DOAK (SCO) 13th (-7)
John PARRY (ENG) T14 (-6)

DID NOT QUALIFY (selected)

David BOOTE (WAL) T20 (-3) – via 2 from 10 play off.
Colin FAIRWEATHER (N.I.) T30 (-2)
Josh HILLEARD AM (ENG) T46 (+3)
JR GALBRAITH (IRE) 60th (+11)
Jack DAVIDSON (WAL) WD (+5 after 3 rounds)
Alfie PLANT (ENG) WD (+7 after 3 rounds)

4. Panoramica Golf & Sport Resort, Castellón – 7,030 yards, Par 72

Click here for the full – Panoramica Results

There were 74 entries at Panoramica with 26 from GB&I (35%).

QUALIFIED – 22 Players on -7 or better, including

Mark FOSTER (ENG) T4 (-13)
Ruaidhri MCGEE (IRE) T6 (-12)
Robert DINWIDDIE (ENG) 8th (-11)
Joe DEAN (ENG) T17 (-8)
Sam HUTSBY (ENG) T19 (-7)

DID NOT QUALIFY (selected)

Henry SMART (ENG) T23 (-6)
Gary HURLEY (IRE) T23 (-6)
Jordan WRISDALE (ENG) T23 (-6)
Nick MARSH (ENG) T39 (-3)
Henry SHERIDAN-MILLS (ENG) T47 (Ev)
Craig HOWIE AM (SCO) T47 (Ev)
Jack MCDONALD (SCO) T52 (+1)

So 30 GB&I players, representing 31.5% of the 95 that entered Second Stage, have made it through to Final Stage. Of course more GB&I players, those with stronger exemptions, will now enter the fray which starts again this coming Saturday.

Sadly the two remaining GB&I amateurs in the field, Josh HILLEARD (ENG) and Craig HOWIE (SCO) both missed out.

ME.

European Tour Q-School – 2017 First Stage Preview & Results

Posted on 04/09/2017 by Golf Bible

September / October 2017

The First Stage QSchool Results can be found at the bottom of this article.

The 2017 European Tour Qualifying School started on Tuesday 12th September.

A new Far East First Stage Qualifying competition had been scheduled to be played at Saujana G&CC in Malaysia on 5th September. However, the Tour cancelled this on 23rd August due to a lack of interest.

The First Qualifying Stage consisted of eight separate 72-hole events which were split into four Sections, A, B, C and D. The final Section D events of the series came to a conclusion on 6th October.

There were 54-hole cuts at each of these Qualifiers. Only those players who were within 7 shots of the final allocated qualifying place at this point played the final rounds.

2017 saw a record First Stage entry with a total of 838 competitors signing up. 45 countries were represented with England contributing the most with 211 players.

The leading five Q-School entrants as at 23rd August 2017, up to a limit of 15th place, in the World Amateur Golf Rankings were exempted into the Second Stage. This year Scott GREGORY (ENG), Connor SYME (SCO) and Robert MACINTYRE (SCO) were therefore not required to contest the First Stage.

The European Tour Q-School entrance fee is €1,800. Each First Stage Qualifier has a prize fund of €5,000 with the winner being allocated €1,800.

At the end of the series 176 players were allocated places in Second Stage. That’s 21% of the entries received.

The Second Qualifying Stage consists of four separate 72-hole events that will be played concurrently in Spain on 3rd-6th November 2017.

The Final Qualifying Stage consists of 108 holes at Lumine GC which has taken over from PGA Catalunya Resort this year. This competition will be played on 11th-16th November 2017.

As in previous years I am following the Q-School series, specifically focussing on the amateur and recently turned pro entries from Great Britain & Ireland.

Check out all the First Stage results below: –

European Tour QS

FIRST QUALIFYING STAGE RESULTS

SECTION D – BOGOGNO GOLF CLUB, ITALY (3-6 October)

QUALIFIED (24 players at -7 or better)

No GB&I AM / new PRO qualifiers

DID NOT QUALIFY

Richard MANSELL (ENG) T25 (-6)
Seb CROOKALL-NIXON (ENG) T83 MC
Owen EDWARDS (WAL) T96 MC

Click here for the full – Bogogno Q-School Results

SECTION D – FRILFORD HEATH GC, ENGLAND (3-6 October)

QUALIFIED (20 players at -2 or better)

Joe DEAN (ENG) 3rd (-7)
Colin FAIRWEATHER (NI) T5 (-4)
David BOOTE (WAL) T10 (-3)
Sam HORSFIELD (ENG) T10 (-3)
Dermot MCELROY (IRE) T10 (-3)
Jonathan THOMSON (ENG) T19 (-2)
Henry SHERIDAN-MILLS (ENG) T19 (-2)

DID NOT QUALIFY

Kyle MCCLATCHIE (RSA) AM T21 (-1)
Conor O’ROURKE (IRE) T21 (-1)
Paul KINNEAR (ENG) T24 (Ev)
Adam CHAPMAN (ENG) T29 (+1)
Alex STUBBS (ENG) AM T29 (+1)
Billy SPOONER (ENG) T37 (+3)
Craig LAWRIE (SCO) T42 (+4)
Harrison ENDYCOTT (AUS) AM T42 (+4)
Travis SMYTH (AUS) AM T49 (+5)
Dan BROWN (ENG) AM T58 (+7)
Tomasz ANDERSON (ENG) T65 MC
Cameron MORALEE (RSA) AM T65 MC
Stuart GREHAN (IRE) T65 MC
Luke TURBETT AM T71 MC
Patrick RUFF (ENG) T73 MC
Ben AMOR (ENG) T79 MC
Freddie SHERIDAN-MILLS (ENG) T92 MC
Kevin LE BLANC (IRE) 97th MC

Click here for the full – Frilford Heath Q-School Results

_________________________________________

SECTION C – HARDELOT, FRANCE (26-29 September)

QUALIFIED (21 players at -6 or better)

No GB&I AM / new Pro qualifiers

DID NOT QUALIFY

Ben ROBINSON (ENG) T64 MC
Callum MACKAY (ENG) AM T92 MC

Click here for the full – Hardelot Q-School Results

SECTION C – RIBAGOLFE, PORTUGAL (26-29 September)

QUALIFIED (24 players at -7 or better)

Jack SINGH BRAR (ENG) T3 (-12)
Jack DAVIDSON (WAL) T9 (-10)
Alfie PLANT (ENG) T15 (-8)

DID NOT QUALIFY

Robin DAWSON (WAL) AM T33 (-3)
Albert VENTER (RSA) T51 (+2)
Jamie BOWER (ENG) T78 MC

Click here for the full – Ribagolfe Q-School Results

_________________________________________

SECTION B – STOKE BY NAYLAND GOLF & SPA, ENGLAND (19-22 September)

QUALIFIED (20 players at -3 or better)

Dan BROWN (Yorkshire, ENG) 5th (-7)
Josh HILLEARD (ENG) AM T6 (-6)

DID NOT QUALIFY

Ashton TURNER (ENG) T21 (-2)
Will ENEFER (ENG) T33 (+1)
James WALKER (ENG) AM T33 (+1)
Evan GRIFFITH (WAL) T43 (+3)
Jay BEISSER (ENG) AM T45 (+4)
Oliver CLARKE (ENG) T49 (+5)
Tom GANDY (IOM) T52 (+6)
Jack YULE (ENG) AM T60 (+10)
Lewis PEARCE (ENG) AM T72 MC
Jordan FORSTER (ENG) AM T84 MC
Delon HAU (ENG) AM T94 MC

Click here for the full – Stoke By Nayland Q-School Results

SECTION B – EBREICHSDORF GC, AUSTRIA (19-22 September)

QUALIFIED (22 players at -4 or better)

No GB&I AM / new PRO qualifiers

Click here for the full – Ebreichsdorf Q-School Results

_________________________________________

SECTION A – FLEESENSEE G&CC, GERMANY (12-15 September)

QUALIFIED (23 players at -1 or better)

Craig ROSS (SCO) T2 (-9)

Click here for the – Fleesensee Q-School Results

SECTION A – ROXBURGHE HOTEL & GC, SCOTLAND (12-15 September)

QUALIFIED (22 players at -5 or better)

Liam JOHNSTON (SCO) AM T4 (-9)
Craig HOWIE (SCO) AM T8 (-7)
Jamie CLARE (ENG) AM T8 (-7)
JR GALBRAITH (IRE) AM T11 (-6)

DID NOT QUALIFY

Will WHITEOAK (ENG) T27 (-3)
Sean TOWNDROW (ENG) T47 (+2)
George BLOOR (ENG) AM T76 MC
Tom DOLAN (ENG) AM T76 MC
Chris MACLEAN (SCO) AM T82 MC
Bradley MOORE (ENG) T100 MC
Marco PENGE (ENG) RETIRED AFTER RD 1 MC

Click here for the – Roxburghe Q-School Results

ME.

U.S. Amateur Championship – 2017 Preview, Daily Reports & Results

Posted on 13/08/2017 by Golf Bible

Sunday 20th August 2017

Final Results

Doc REDMAN came back from 2 Down with two holes to play to beat Doug GHIM in the 36 hole U.S. Amateur Final at Riviera Country Club.

Redman eagled the 17th and birdied the 18th to force extra holes. Ghim, presumably in shock, then made a mess of the tricky short par 4 10th, the 37th hole played, and having made a bogey conceded Redman his birdie putt and the Championship.

Doc Redman, 2017 U.S. Amateur Champion (Photo: USGA)

Click here to review the full Stroke Play Qualifying Match Play results – U.S. Amateur Championship Live Scoring

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Final Preview

Doug GHIM (21) will play Doc REDMAN (19) for the Havemeyer Trophy in today’s 36 hole U.S. Amateur Final at Riviera Country Club. The Final will tee off at 7.45am (3.45pm GMT).

The champion will also receive a Gold Medal, whilst the runner-up a Silver one.

Both finalists are now exempt in to the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills G.C. The champion will also be exempt in to the 2018 Open Championship at Carnoustie Golf Links and can expect an invitation to play in the 2018 Masters at Augusta National G.C.

Finalists Doug Ghim (l) and Doc Redman (r) with the U.S. Open Trophy (Photo: USGA)

Both players are US College students; Ghim plays for the University of Texas and Redman for Clemson University.

Doug Ghim is ranked 1st in the SPWAR (updated as at 19/08/17) and 7th in the WAGR (as at 13/08/17). Ghim has enjoyed a very strong season and was already a very likely Walker cup pick for the U.S.A.

Doc Redman is ranked 7th in the SPWAR (as at 19/08/17) and 70th in the WAGR (as at 13/08/17). Redman has come on strong in the last few weeks. He was runner up in the Final of the Western Amateur a couple of weeks ago and has now backed it up with a great run at the U.S. Amateur. He must therefore be right in the Walker Cup picture too.

Sophia Schubert, who won the U.S. Women’s Amateur last week also studies at Texas. Whilst I am sure Doug Ghim won’t be thinking too much about it never in the history of the USGA have their reigning men’s and women’s amateur champions attended the same College.

ME.

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Saturday 19th August 2017

Semi-Finals (4)

Doug GHIM (USA) beat Theo HUMPHREY (USA) 2&1

Mark LAWRENCE Jr (USA) lost by 1 hole to Doc REDMAN (USA)

ME.

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Friday 18th August 2017

Quarter Finals (8)

In a game where neither player was at their best Connor SYME eventually lost 2&1 to Doug GHIM (USA) in the Quarter Final match.

Connor was 5-over par for the 17 holes played, albeit a double bogey on the 16th hole makes this appear worse than it really was. A single birdie on the 8th only produced a half for the Scotsman and against an in form and confident Ghim this was unlikely to be enough.

In his post round interview with the USGA Connor said “I just didn’t quite have my best stuff today. I was grinding away as much as I could. It was a good Championship but I’m obviously disappointed to lose today.”

Nevertheless a great week for Connor and he can now positively look forward to the Walker Cup down the road at Los Angeles Country Club.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

Match Play Quarter Finals Qualifying Hole Locations (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

ME.

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Thursday 17th August 2017

PM – Match Play Round 3 (16)

Connor SYME beat Norway’s Kristoffer VENTURA by 1 hole in their Round of 16 match.

In the previous round Ventura beat Stroke Play medalist Hayden WOOD (USA) 3&2.

In a tight match it took a forty yard chip in on the 18th hole for Connor to come out on top.

What a way to close out a match. Connor Syme is in the #USAmateur quarterfinals. https://t.co/pQLfhrz145

— USGA (@USGA) August 17, 2017

Connor was 1-under par for the round and continues to play very well.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

After the round Connor spoke with Shane O’Donoghue on Fox Sports.

Watch @connor_syme‘s post round interview with @ShaneODonoghue on @FOXSports. https://t.co/7IJ2Nfy7q9

— Golf Bible (@GolfBible) August 18, 2017

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

ME.

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AM – Match Play Round 2 (32)

Connor SYME beat Ricky CASTILLO (USA) 4&3 in a very impressive performance. Teeing off at 7.25am Connor wasted little time in taking the lead, birdieing the 493 yard 1st. A sequence of birdies on holes 6, 7 and 8 put the Scotsman 4 Up and cruising. The match finished on the 15th with Connor -4 for the holes played and bogey free. Let’s hope he can maintain that kind of form for a little while longer.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

Robert MACINTYRE lost 3&1 to Dawson ARMSTRONG (USA) in their Round of 32 match. Robert made a great start – two birdies helping him into a 3Up lead after four holes. However, Armstrong, one of USA’s strongest players, won the 5th with a birdie before winning five holes in a row between the 7th and 11th to lead 3Up. Unfortunately he didn’t have to work too hard for this match turning run as MacIntyre bogeyed four of the five. The end of the line for Robert but he can take comfort in a good Championship which must surely have secured his GB&I Walker Cup place.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

Match Play Round 2 (32) & Round 3 (16) Qualifying Hole Locations (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

ME.

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Wednesday 16th August 2017 – Match Play Round 1 (64)

The day started badly for GB&I with Harry ELLIS losing out in the play-off on the famous short par 4 10th hole at Riviera Country Club. His double bogey 6 in the second group out sadly saw him fall out of contention quickly.

Some better news was to come when the Round of 64 started in earnest.

Connor SYME beat Maverick MCNEALY (USA) 2&1. Connor won his match around the turn, winning the 9th with a par, the 10th with a conceded eagle 2 and the 11th with a birdie 4. 3Up at this point he was able to see out the match, albeit bogeys on 13 and 14 gave McNealy some hope. However, the American then proceeded to bogey the short 160 yard 16th and after shared birdies on the par 5 17th the match was over. Connor finished 2-under for the 17 holes played.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

Fellow Scot Robert MACINTYRE then beat Cameron YOUNG (USA) by 1 hole. In what appears to have been a high class game our man from Oban had to be at his match play best to overcome Young who battled all the way to the finish line. Robert finished 2-under for the 18 holes played.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

In the final GB&I match to finish Jack SINGH BRAR lost by 3 & 1 to Joey VRZICH (USA). As can be seen from the scores below Jack had a bad day at the office, starting very poorly and not really improve. He finished 7-over par for the 17 holes played. Worryingly in the context of the forthcoming Walker Cup this is the second time in three weeks, following the English Amateur, that Jack has qualified easily in stroke play before falling to a relatively unknown player in the first round of match play.

Hole-by-Hole Scores (Photo: USGA Scoring)

Here are the hole locations for the Round of 64 Match Play at Riviera Country Club: –

Match Play Round 1 (64) Qualifying Hole Locations (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

ME.

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Tuesday 15th August 2017 – Stroke Play Round 2

Jack SINGH BRAR, Robert MACINTYRE and Connor SYME have all qualified for the Match Play Stage of the U.S. Amateur Championship.

Harry ELLIS will contest a 13 player for 8 spots play-off tomorrow morning to see if he can join them.

Here are the Round 2 GB&I scores from the U.S. Amateur Championship which started today.

GB&I Round 2 Scores (Photo: USGA US Amateur Scoring)

The Stroke Play Medalist was Hayden Wood who broke the U.S. Amateur Championship 36-hole qualifying record with a total of 131. Wood followed his 64 at Riviera with a 67 at Bel-Air to beat the 132 shot by Hank Kim (1994), Gregor Main (2011) and Bobby Wyatt (2012).

Wood said. “To play that way these last two days has been good. I like where my game is. I feel comfortable on this course (Riviera) and it fits my game. I am looking forward to it because the tournament starts tomorrow.”
ME.

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Monday 14th August 2017 – Stroke Play Round 1

Here are the Round 1 GB&I scores from the U.S. Amateur Championship which started today.

GB&I Round 1 Scores (Photo: USGA US Amateur Scoring)

Here are the hole locations for the 36 hole Stroke Play Qualifying at Riviera Country Club and Bel-Air Country Club: –

Stroke Play Qualifying Hole Locations (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

ME.

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Sunday 13th August 2017

The 117^th U.S. Amateur Championship starts tomorrow in Los Angeles, California.

This year the championship is being staged at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades and Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles.Administered by the United States Golf Association (U.S.G.A.) the U.S. Amateur is the most important and prestigious competition in the amateur golf calendar.

Competition Format

On Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th August all of the contestants will play 36-holes of stroke play, one at Riviera and the other at Bel-Air.

The Top 64 qualifiers will then move forward to the match play stage of the competition. Ties for the last qualifying place will be resolved by a sudden death play-off.

18 hole match play rounds will then be played between Wednesday 16th and Saturday 19th, culminating in a 36-hole Championship Final on Sunday 20th August. Extra holes will be played to resolve any halved games.

2017 Field

A field of 312 players from 29 different countries will contest this year’s Championship.

251 players are from the U.S.A. with Australia (11) and Canada (7) the next best represented countries.

This year 100 (2015: 99) 36 hole Sectional Qualifying events were held in July across the USA, with one each in Canada and Mexico too.

The introduction of a European Sectional Qualifier, like the U.S.G.A. stage for the U.S. Open Championship, is long overdue. Perhaps it could be rolled into the South of England Open Amateur Championship ? Walton Heath have staged the U.S. Open one for many years so I am sure they would be pleased to extend their relationship with the U.S.G.A. further.

This year’s average competitor age is 22.39 (2016: 22.29).

The oldest player being George ZAHRINGER (64, b. 23^rd April 1953), who successfully came through Sectional Qualifying and will be playing in his 19^th U.S. Amateur.

The youngest Alec NACHMANN (15, b. 27^th March 2002) will be one of three 15 year olds competing. One of them Karl VILIPS (AUS), who is certainly one to watch, turns 16 on 16^th August.

There are nine GB&I players competing this year. There were 11 in 2016 at Oakland Hills.

Here is a list of them with their exemption category or sectional qualifying event noted: –

David BOOTE 22 (WAL) – QF 2016 U.S. Amateur, Top 50 WAGR 21/6/17

Harry ELLIS 21 (ENG) – 2017 Amateur Champion

Scott GREGORY 22 (ENG) – 2016 Amateur Champion, 2017 U.S. Open Qualifier, Top WAGR 21/6/17

Stuart GREHAN 24 (IRE) – Top 50 WAGR 21/6/17

Robert MACINTYRE 21 (SCO) – WAGR 21/6/17

Alfie PLANT 25 (ENG) – Top 50 WAGR 21/6/17

Jack SINGH BRAR 20 (ENG) – Qualifier at New City, New York (07/07/17)

Daniel SUTTON 21 (ENG) – Qualifier at Iowa City, Iowa (17/07/17)

Connor SYME 21 (SCO) – Top 50 WAGR 21/6/17

2017 Stroke Play Qualifying Draw

The draw for the 36-hole Stroke Play Qualifying competition was confirmed yesterday and can be viewed here – U.S. Amateur SP Draw

Interestingly the two Scots in the field, Robert MACINTYRE and Connor SYME, have been drawn together.

Host Courses

Riviera Country Club
7,284 yards, Par 70.
Opened 1927.
Designed by George C. Thomas and William P. Bell.

Riviera has hosted one U.S. Open (1948 Ben Hogan), two P.G.A. Championships (1983 Hal Sutton & 1995 Steve Elkington) and one U.S. Senior Open (1998 Hale Irwin) as well as serving as the perennial host of the US PGA Tour’s Northern Trust Open.

Bel-Air Country Club
6,785 yards, Par 70.
Opened 1926
Designed by George C. Thomas and William P. Bell, assisted by Jack Neville.

Bel-Air has previously hosted the U.S. Amateur (1976 Bill Sander) and 2004 U.S. Senior Amateur (2004 Mark Bemowski).

Weather Forecast (as at 7.00pm 13th August 2017)

Stroke Play Stage

Mon 14th Aug – Sunny. Wind 8mph (N). Temp. Max. 26°C / Min 18°C.

Tues 15th Aug – Sunny. Wind 8mph (N). Temp. Max. 23°C / Min 17°C.

Match Play Stage

Weds 16th Aug – Sunny. Wind 7mph (N). Temp. Max. 25°C / Min 15°C.

Thurs 17th Aug – Sunny. Wind 7mph NW). Temp. Max. 27°C / Min 15°C.

Fri 18th August – Sunny. Wind 7mph (W). Temp. Max. 28°C / Min 16°C.

Sat 19th August – Sunny. Wind 7mph (NW). Temp. Max. 27°C / Min 17°C.

Sun 20th August – Sunny. Wind 7mph (NW). Temp. Max. 26°C / Min 17°C.

As one would expect in California in August the weather is expected to be perfect for golf all week.

UK Television Coverage

Sky Sports normally take the US television feed, via the Red Button, over the final weekend.

Prizes

The 2017 U.S. Amateur Champion will receive the following (assuming they remain amateur): –

a) A Gold Medal and custody of the Havemeyer Trophy for the ensuing year.

b) An exemption to play in the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills G.C.

c) An exemption to play in the 2018 Open Championship at Carnoustie Golf Links.

d) An invitation to play in the 2018 Masters at Augusta National G.C.

e) An exemption to play in the 2018 – 2027 U.S. Amateurs; and no doubt

f) Invitations to play in a variety of PGA Tour and European Tour competitions.

A Silver Medal is awarded to the runner-up and Bronze Medals to the two losing semi-finalists.

The original silver Havemeyer Trophy was presented to the U.S.G.A. on March 1895 in honour of the Association’s first President Theodore A. Havemeyer. This was lost in a fire at Bobby Jones’ home club, East Lake, in 1925.

A new gold trophy was produced in 1926. This was retired in 1992 with a copy of the trophy being produced and passed from champion to champion ever since.

Sadly the original gold trophy was stolen from the USGA Museum in 2012 and has never been seen since.

The 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship

The 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship was played at Oakland Hills Country Club near Detroit.

Curtis LUCK (AUS) won beating Brad DALKE (USA) 6&4 in the 36-hole Championship match.

Curtis Luck (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

Alex SMALLEY (USA) earned medalist honours in the Stroke Play Qualifying. His 133 (-7) total came after two impressive rounds; a 65 on the North Course (NC), followed on Day 2 by a 68 on the tougher South Course (SC).

In the Stroke Play 56 players scored +1 or better to progress. A further 23 players finished with a +2 total and were required to participate in a sudden death play-off to determine the final 8 qualifiers.

Collectively Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) enjoyed a relatively successful Championship. Six of our players progressed to the Match Play Stage including one from each of the four home nations.

Here is a summary of the GB&I performances (in order of success): –

David BOOTE (WAL)
MP – Brad DALKE (USA) won 3&2 in the Quarter Finals.
SP – Tied 57^th, SC 70 / NC 72 (+2)*

Sam HORSFIELD (ENG)
MP – Dylan MEYER (USA) won 19^th hole in Round of 16.
SP – Tied 11^th, NC 66 / SC 72 (-2)

Scott GREGORY (ENG)
MP – Nick CARLSON (USA) won 19^th hole in Round of 32.
SP – Tied 6^th, NC 69 / SC 68 (-3)

Connor SYME (SCO)
MP – Dylan MEYER (USA) won 2Up in Round of 64.
SP – Tied 30^th, SC 70 / NC 70 (Ev)

Bradley MOORE (ENG)
MP – Dawson ARMSTRONG (USA) won 1Up in Round of 64.
SP – Tied 57^th, NC 71 / SC 71 (+2)*

Jack HUME (IRE)
MP – Bryson NIMMER (USA) won 1Up in Round of 64.
SP – Tied 41^st, SC 72 / NC 69 (+1)

Jack SINGH BRAR (ENG)
MP – Did Not Qualify
SP – Tied 80^th, SC 71, NC 72 (+3)

Ewen FERGUSON (SCO)
MP – Did Not Qualify
SP – Tied 80^th, NC 72, SC 71 (+3)

Robert MACINTYRE (SCO)
MP – Did Not Qualify
SP – Tied 99^th, NC 68, SC 76 (+4)

Grant FORREST 23 (SCO)
MP – Did Not Qualify
SP – Tied185th, NC 73, SC 75 (+9)

Jamie BOWER (ENG)
MP – Did Not Qualify
SP – Tied 243^rd, SC 74, NC 77 (+11)

* David BOOTE and Bradley MOORE both birdied the 11th in the Stroke Play Qualifying play-off to progress to the match play stage, holing putts of 20 and 45 yards respectively on the 465 yard par 4.

To review all of the U.S. Amateur Championship results click this link – 2016 U.S. Amateur Results

U.S. Amateur Championship History

The U.S. Amateur is the oldest golf championship in America and this will be its 117th playing.

It was first played in 1895, the winner being Charles B. Macdonald.

It has always been decided by match play save for an 8 year period between 1965 and 1972 when the winner was determined solely by stroke play.

Former US winners include Walter Travis (1900-01-03), Jerome Travers (1907-08-12-13), Bobby Jones (1924-25-27-28-30), Francis Ouimet (1914-31), W. Lawson Little (1934-35) Arnold Palmer (1954), Jack Nicklaus (1959-61), Deane Beman (1960-63), Lanny Wadkins (1970), Craig Stadler (1973), Mark O’Meara (1979), Hal Sutton (1980), Phil Mickelson (1990), Justin Leonard (1992), Tiger Woods (1994-95-96), Matt Kucher (1997), Ryan Moore (2004), Peter Uihlein (2010) and Bryson DeChambeau (2015).

British players have won the Championship on six occasions but just twice in the last 100 years – H.J. Whigham (1896-97), Findlay Douglas (1898), Harold Hilton (1911), Richie Ramsay (2006) and Matthew Fitzpatrick (2013).

Matthew Fitzpatrick (Photo: U.S.G.A.)

Italy’s Edoardo Molinari (2005) is the only player from the Continent of Europe to have lifted the Havemeyer Trophy.

Future U.S. Amateur Venues

2018 – Pebble Beach Golf Links, California.

2019 – Pinehurst Resort & Country Club, North Carolina.

2020 – Bandon Dunes, Oregon

ME.

Men’s Home Internationals – 2017 Preview, Daily Reports & Results

Posted on 12/08/2017 by Golf Bible

18th August 2017 – Day 3

The Men’s Home Internationals came to a dramatic conclusion this afternoon at Moortown Golf Club in Leeds.

The Raymond Trophy was won by IRELAND. They drew the deciding match with ENGLAND 7.5 – 7.5 but in doing so pipped the home nation by a half point in total match points earned, 26.5 against 26.0.

Game 6 – IRELAND v. ENGLAND – Results

This was Ireland’s fourth consecutive victory in the event, a national record for them in the long history of this competition.

Ireland (Photo: Leaderboard Photography)

Earlier in the day Wales beat Scotland 9.5 – 5.5, consigning the Scots to the wooden spoon.

Game 5 – WALES v. SCOTLAND – Results

Click here to view the detailed – Men’s Home Internationals Results

Here is the final Points Table with the ‘Countback’ information at the bottom: –

Points Table (Photo: England Golf Event Microsite)

Caolan RAFFERTY (IRE), Josh HILLEARD (ENG), Jack DAVIDSON (WAL) and Jamie STEWART (SCO) were the ‘Most Valuable Players’ for the four competing countries as can be seen in the following analysis: –

Screen Shot 2017-08-18 at 19.18.01

ME.

___________________________________________

17th August 2017 – Day 2

Game 3 – IRELAND v. SCOTLAND – Results

Ireland beat Scotland 10-5 to remain on course for a fourth consecutive Raymond Trophy win.

Ireland won the Foursomes 4-1, with only Ryan LUMSDEN and Euan WALKER able to come out on top for the Scots. The Singles were much closer with the Irish narrowly winning the series 6-4.

Paul MCBRIDE followed up a morning Foursomes win with Conor O’ROURKE with a notable 5&4 against fellow Walker Cup hopeful Liam JOHNSTON.

Game 4 – WALES v. ENGLAND – Results

England beat Wales 9.5-5.5 to secure a winner takes all match against Ireland tomorrow.

Wales had the better of the Foursomes winning the series 3-2. However, England came back strongly in the afternoon Singles (7.5-2.5) to run out comfortable winners in the end.

Jack DAVIDSON beat Matthew JORDAN 3&2 in the top Singles game.

David HAGUE beat Llewellyn MATTHEWS 8&6 to remain the only player in the competition with a 100% Win record.

The Day 2 Points Table (Photo: England Golf Website)

ME.

___________________________________________

16th August 2017 – Day 1

Game 1 – IRELAND v. WALES – Results

Ireland overcame Wales 9-6 on Day 1 of the Men’s Home Internationals. Wales won the morning Foursomes series 3-2 but struggled in the Singles, losing 7-3.

Paul MCBRIDE, having won his morning Foursomes with Conor O’ROURKE, was rested in the afternoon presumably due to a minor injury.

Jack DAVIDSON beat Conor O’ROURKE 2&1 in the afternoon Singles.

Game 2 – ENGLAND v. SCOTLAND – Results

England also beat Scotland 9-6. England took a 4-1 lead into the afternoon and looked for a while as if they may run away with the match but the Scots fought back to reduce the deficit to 3 points.

Craig HOWIE beat Dan BROWN by 1 hole whilst Matthew JORDAN halved with Liam JOHNSTON.

ME.

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12th August 2017 – Preview

The 2017 Men’s Home Internationals will be contested between 16th and 18th August at Moortown Golf Club near Leeds in England.

Ireland will travel to Yorkshire hoping to win the Raymond Trophy for a fourth consecutive year.

A competitive series of matches is guaranteed as all of the players will be looking to impress ahead of the Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup team announcement which is expected to be made on 21st August.

The Competition

11-man teams from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales play against each other annually, taking it in turns to the host the event.

Over three days all of the countries play each other once. There are five foursomes and ten singles match play games in each series.

The winner is the country with the highest number of match points. 1 point is awarded for a win, 0.5 for a half and 0 for a loss. Ties are resolved by considering the number of individual game points secured in the three matches played.

2017 Players

The four national golf unions have selected the following players to represent their countries this year: –

ENGLAND
Jack BURNAGE
Dan BROWN
Todd CLEMENTS
Jack GAUNT
David HAGUE
Josh HILLEARD
Matthew JORDAN
Bradley MOORE
Gian-Marco PETROZZI
Tom SLOMAN
Will WHITEOAK

IRELAND
Colm CAMPBELL
Robin DAWSON
Colin FAIRWEATHER
Alex GLEESON
John-Ross GALBRAITH
Rowan LESTER
Paul MCBRIDE
Peter O’KEEFFE
Conor O’ROURKE
Conor PURCELL
Colin RAFFERTY

The Raymond Trophy (Photo: Ayrshire Golf Blog)

SCOTLAND
Matthew CLARK
Rory FRANSSEN
Craig HOWIE
Liam JOHNSTON
Sam LOCKE
Ryan LUMSDEN
Chris MACLEAN
Craig ROSS
Sandy SCOTT
Jamie STEWART
Euan WALKER

WALES
Ben CHAMBERLAIN
Jack DAVIDSON
Joshua DAVIES
Owen EDWARDS
Evan GRIFFITH
Jake HAPGOOD
Matthew HARRIS
Tim HARRY
Llewellyn MATTHEWS
Lewys SANGES
Tom WILLIAMS

It remains a frustration to followers of amateur golf that this prestigious international match continues to be scheduled directly against the US Amateur Championship.

This year David BOOTE (WAL), Harry ELLIS (ENG), Scott GREGORY (ENG), Jack SINGH BRAR (ENG), Stuart GREHAN (IRE), Robert MACINTYRE (SCO), Alfie PLANT (ENG) and Connor SYME (SCO) are all playing in the US Amateur, thus weakening their respective national teams and reducing the importance of this historic competition.

Moortown Golf Club

Founded in 1909 Moortown was designed by the famous golf course architect Dr. Alister MacKenzie.

One of the finest inland golf courses in England it is noted for it’s large greens and superb bunkering.

The courses measures 6,980 yards from the Blue Championship tees, playing to a par of 71.

Moortown Golf Club Scorecard

Moortown hosted the 1929 Ryder Cup, the first on British soil, as well as many other professional tournaments between 1929 and 1986.

On the amateur circuit it has hosted the Boys’ Amateur Championship (1934, 1958, 1966 & 1972), the English Amateur Championship (1938, 1962, 1980 & 1994), the English Ladies Championship (1955), the Brabazon Trophy (1957, 1968, 1974, 1999 & 2009), the Ladies’ Home Internationals (1978), the Ladies’ British Amateur Open Stroke Play (1983 & 2015) and the Boys’ Home Internationals (2001).

2016 Men’s Home Internationals

Ireland won the 2016 Home Internationals after a nail biting 8-7 victory over England on the final day at Nairn Golf Club.

Ireland with the Raymond Trophy (Photo: Kenny Smith)

England had led the match 3-2 after the morning Foursomes but Ireland came out fighting in the afternoon Singles. Early on they appeared to be leading virtually all of the matches. England did well to recover a few of the games but at the end of the day the Irish were able to carry their early momentum through to secure a crucial 6-4 series win.

Man of the moment was Colm CAMPBELL who birdied the last to secure a narrow 1 hole win over Adam CHAPMAN. Playing in the final Singles it proved to be the crucial winning point.

Please click the link to review the full competition results – 2016 Men’s Home Internationals Results. [Click on the match results to see the individual game scores]

I include below the Individual Performances Analysis from last year as much so we can reflect on who played as to how well each player did: –

1. IRELAND

Screen Shot 2016-08-13 at 08.22.57

2. ENGLAND

Screen Shot 2016-08-13 at 08.23.48

3. SCOTLAND

Screen Shot 2016-08-13 at 08.25.02

4. WALES

Screen Shot 2016-08-13 at 08.25.48

I am looking forward to this week’s competition and to some of the match ups, which may very well end up being unofficial Walker Cup deciders.

Good luck to all the players and teams.

ME.

European Men’s Amateur Team Championship – 2017 Preview, Results & Reports

Posted on 10/07/2017 by Golf Bible

15th July 2017

ENGLAND lost 4-3 to Spain in today’s Final of the European Men’s Amateur Team Championship at the Diamond CC in Austria. Whilst I am sure they are all disappointed the Silver Medal still represents a very good achievement for the English team.

The two morning Foursomes were shared. Harry ELLIS and Alfie PLANT beat Angel Hidalgo and Javier Sainz 2&1 but Scott GREGORY and Matthew JORDAN lost on the 19th hole to Adria Arnaus and Victor Pastor.

HARRY ELLIS lost the first afternoon Singles game 2&1 to Alejandro Del Rey.

After a late afternoon 35 minute suspension in play due to the risk of lightning the remaining Singles were quickly resolved.

Scott GREGORY beat Manuel Elvira by 1 hole but Alfie PLANT, losing his first game in the match play stage, lost 2&1 to Victor Pastor. Gian-Marco PETROZZI, playing in the final Singles game, won for the second day running beating Javier Sainz 3&2.

This meant the match came down to the Matthew JORDAN and Adriá Arnaus game. Arnaus held on bravely to win by 1 hole to secure the title for the Spaniards.

The England v. Spain Final Match Results

Earlier in the day SCOTLAND secured 5th place with a 3-2 win over France. Singles wins for Robert MACINTYRE (4&2), Craig HOWIE (4&3) and Conor SYME (3&2) won the match for the defending champions.

IRELAND finished 7th after a 3-2 win against Norway on the final day. As with Scotland three Singles wins were responsible for the narrow victory. Stuart GREHAN (4&3), Conor O’ROURKE (3&2) and John Ross GALBRAITH (2&1) did the business for the Irish.

WALES lost their final Flight B match 3-2 to Switzerland and were sadly relegated in last place.

Here’s my assessment of the individual GB&I performances at the European Men’s Amateur Team Championship: –

Screen Shot 2017-07-16 at 09.22.39

European Team Championship Results

Men’s – Diamond CC, Austria
Stroke Play Qualifier – Individual and Teams
Match Play Knockout – Flight A and Flight B

England won the Silver Medal, losing 4-3 to Spain in the Final.
Scotland finished 5th, Ireland 7th and Wales 16th (R).

Boys’ – La Manga, Spain
Stroke Play Qualifier – Individual and Teams
Match Play Knockout – Flight A and Flight B

Ireland finished 6th, England 8th and Scotland 13th.

Ladies’ – Mondago GR, Portugal
Stroke Play Qualifier – Individual and Teams
Match Play Knockout – Flight A and Flight B

England beat Italy 5.5-1.5 to secure the Gold Medal.
Ireland finished 9th and Scotland 11th.

Girls’ – St. Laurence GC, Finland
Stroke Play Qualifier – Individual and Teams
Match Play Knockout – Flight A and Flight B

England beat France 5-2 to secure the Bronze Medal.
Ireland were 10th and Scotland 14th.

ME.

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14th July 2017

ENGLAND beat Italy 6.5-0.5 in their Flight A Semi-Final today. They will play Spain in tomorrow’s Final after they overcame Sweden 4-3 in the other Semi.

England got off to a great start winning both of the morning Foursomes, perhaps helped by Italy choosing to rest their best player Luca Cianchetti. Harry ELLIS and Alfie PLANT (1 hole) paired up successfully as did Scott GREGORY and Matthew JORDAN (2&1).

Gian-Marco PETROZZI came into the Singles line up and with all of the Foursomes players sent out again Josh HILLEARD ended up sitting out the whole day. The decision was vindicated as England delivered an unbeaten Singles series. ELLIS beat Cianchetti (1 hole), GREGORY halved with Lorenzo Scalise, PLANT beat Stefano Mazzoli (2&1), JORDAN beat Philip Geerts (4&3) and PETROZZI saw off Alberto Castagnara (1 hole).

SCOTLAND beat Norway 3.5-1.5. Having lost the morning Foursomes much depended on their more experienced Singles line up. Pleasingly they all delivered. Robert MACINYTRE beat Jarle Volden by 2 holes, Liam JOHNSTON halved with Markus Braadlie, Craig HOWIE turned over Kristoffer Reitan by 2 holes and Conor SYME confirmed the unbeaten series with a 1 hole victory over Viktor Hovland. Scotland will play France, the conquerors of Ireland, tomorrow in a match to determine 4th and 5th places.

IRELAND lost to France 3-2. Colm CAMPBELL and Robin DAWSON won the Foursomes match but only Conor O’ROURKE could gain a point in the Singles series; he beat Pierre Mazier by 1 hole. Ireland will play Norway tomorrow to see who finishes 7th and 8th.

WALES were relegated to Division 2 after a disappointing 3-2 defeat to Belgium today. David BOOTE had to work hard for his 2 holes win over Cedric Van Wassenhove after a shaky start but only Tim HARRY could join him; Tim beat Alan De Bont 4&3. There was a surprising 7&5 loss for Jack DAVIDSON in the final game to Adrien Dumont De Chassart. Wales will hope to beat Switzerland tomorrow to avoid leaving Austria with the wooden spoon.

ME.

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13th July 2017

ENGLAND beat France 4-3 in their Flight A Quarter Final. Not for the first time in recent years it was Alfie PLANT who saved the day for the stroke play medalists. Having combined well with Harry ELLIS in the morning Foursomes for a 4&3 win he won the all-important deciding Singles by 1 hole. There were also good Singles wins for Scott GREGORY (3&2) and Matthew JORDAN (5&4) in the afternoon.

SCOTLAND, the defending champions, and IRELAND both lost their Quarter Finals and with them any hope of a medal.

Scotland left themselves too much to do against Sweden after losing both morning Foursomes. Robert MACINTYRE (4&3), Liam JOHNSTON (4&2) and Connor SYME (4&2) salvaged some pride in the afternoon Singles but ultimately couldn’t prevent a 4-3 defeat.

Ireland lost 4.5-2.5 to Italy. Stuart GREHAN and Paul MCBRIDE earned a useful point in the first Foursomes but only Conor O’ROURKE could win his Singles in the afternoon. Italy will now play England in the Semi-Finals.

WALES lost their Flight B match 3-2 against home nation Austria. Having lost the morning Foursomes David BOOTE (6&5) and Evan GRIFFITH (5&4) gave the Principality hope enjoying good Singles wins. However, it proved to be in vain as Jack DAVIDSON (1 hole) and Owen EDWARDS (19th) both came out on the wrong side of tight matches. Wales now need to guard against relegation in their remaining consolation fixtures.

ME.

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12th July 2017

The first stage of the European Men’s Amateur Team Championship came to a close at the Diamond Country Club in Austria today.

ENGLAND (-8) finished 1st in the 36 hole stroke play qualifying event where the 5 best scores from the 6 man team’s counted towards a national aggregate total.

IRELAND (+7) and SCOTLAND (+15) also qualified for the Flight A match play stage finishing 5th and 6th respectively.

WALES (+28) finished 10th and will therefore play in the Flight B match play stage. They must avoid finishing 14th or lower to stay in Division 1.

The Flight A match play consists of two morning foursomes games followed by 5 singles whilst the shorter Flight B matches have one foursomes and four singles. Teams continue to play each other over the next three days to determine the exact finishing positions.

Great Britain & Ireland’s leading contributors in the stroke play event were Paul MCBRIDE (IRE), Matthew JORDAN (ENG) and Alfie PLANT (ENG) who all finished tied 2nd on -3.

Harry ELLIS (ENG) shot the best score of the qualifier; a bogey free 65 (-7) in round 2 which included an eagle and 5 birdies. This helped the 2017 Amateur Champion to a tied 8th individual result on -2.

Connor SYME (-2) also tied 8th and was Scotland’s best individual. Craig HOWIE (+2) was Scotland’s next best performer in tied 20th,

Jack DAVIDSON (Ev / tied 12th) just pipped David BOOTE (+1 / tied 16th) to the top Welsh individual title. Both will be hoping for strong match play performances over the next few days as they press their cases for inclusion in our Walker Cup team.

ME.

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10th July 2017

The 34th European Men’s Amateur Team Championship will be played between Tuesday 11th and Saturday 15th July 2017 at Diamond Country Club, Atzenbrugg, in Austria.

Amateur teams from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales will all be competing this week.

Scotland are the double defending champions having won at Halmstad Golf Club, Sweden in 2015 and Chantilly, France last year.

The European Ladies’, Boys’ and Girls’ Team Championships are also being played elsewhere in Europe this week.

Format / Schedule

16 national teams of 6 players contest the European Men’s Amateur Team Championship.

The Championship is run by the European Golf Association, this year in association with the Austrian Golf Association.

The leading 13 teams from last year’s Division 1 Championship are joined by the host nation (if not otherwise qualified) and 2 or 3 promoted teams from the 2016 Division 2 Championship. Wales were one of the promoted teams last year.

Two rounds of stroke play qualifying are completed on the first two days, with the lowest five scores from each team counting.

Click here to view tomorrow’s – European Men’s Amateur Team Championship Round 1 Stroke Play Draw.

These results determine a seeded match play draw. The top 8 qualifying teams will play in a first flight, which will determine the medalists, with the others competing in a second flight. In Fight A it is therefore 1st v. 8th, 2nd v. 7th, 3rd v. 6th and 4th v. 5th.

Additionally the teams finishing 14th to 16th in the stroke play stage will be relegated to the Division 2 Championship for 2018.

The teams in Flight A play 2 foursomes and 5 singles whilst those in Flight B play 1 foursome and 4 singles.

A win earns 1 point, a draw half a point and a loss no points in all of the matches.

2017 Teams

The teams competing in the 2017 Championship are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Scotland, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland and Wales.

Czech Republic, Iceland and Wales were all promoted to the Division 1 Championship this year.

The 2017 home nation teams are made up of the following players: –

ENGLAND – Harry ELLIS, Scott GREGORY, Josh HILLEARD, Matthew JORDAN, Gian-Marco PETROZZI, and Alfie PLANT.

IRELAND – Colm CAMPBELL, Robin DAWSON, John Ross GALBRIATH, Stuart GREHAN, Paul MCBRIDE and Conor O’ROURKE.

SCOTLAND – Craig HOWIE, Liam JOHNSTON, Ryan LUMSDEN, Robert MACINTYRE, Jamie STEWART and Connor SYME.

WALES – David BOOTE, Ben CHAMBERLAIN, Jack DAVIDSON, Owen EDWARDS, Evan GRIFFITH and Tim HARRY.

In this Walker Cup year it will be interesting to see which players qualify well, who is paired together in the foursomes and finally how some of the singles pan out in the match play stage.

Diamond Country Club

The Diamond Country Club is generally accepted as being Austria’s best golf course.

It has hosted the Lyoness Open on the European Tour for many years and has recently extended this agreement until 2020.

It hosted the European Boys’ Team Championship last year.

The Diamond Country Club’s 18-hole championship course was created by Jeremy Pern. It is a parkland layout with numerous water hazards. It plays to 7,458 yards and a standard par of 72.

Weather Forecast

As at Monday 10^th July, 19.00pm the weather forecast generally looks good: –

Tue 11th July – Showers. Wind 10mph W. Temp. Max. 28°C / Min 21°C.
Wed 12th July – Sunny. Wind 6mph S. Temp. Max. 30°C / Min 20°C.
Thur 13th July – Sunny. Wind 14mph NW. Temp. Max. 24°C / Min 15°C.
Fri 14th July – Cloudy. Wind 7mph E. Temp. Max. 24°C / Min 17°C.
Sat 15th July – Cloudy. Wind 11mph N. Temp. Max. 23°C / Min 16°C.

2016 European Men’s Amateur Team Championship – Division 1

Scotland retained the Team Championship title at Golf de Chantilly in France with a 5-2 victory over Sweden in the final.

Scotland qualified 2nd on count back behind France with a 713 (+3) aggregate team score.

Prior to beating Sweden, Scotland despatched Spain 5.5-1.5 in their match play quarter final and Italy 5-2 in the semi finals.

The Victorious 2016 Scottish Team At Chantilly (Photo: European Golf Association)

Ireland, who qualified in 6th place on 720 (+10), lost their Flight A quarter final match 4.5-2.5 to Italy. They eventually finished 6th after beating Spain (3.5-1.5) but losing to France (4-1) in the consolation matches.

England had a disappointing tournament, initially qualifying in 10th place on 728 (+18). They then lost 3-2 to Switzerland in the Flight B match play before regaining some pride by beating Portugal (4.5-0.5) and Netherlands (3.5-1.5) to retain their Division 1 status with a 13th place finish.

Wales were promoted in the Division 2 competition led by a near perfect display by David BOOTE.

Here is my summary of the 2016 Individual performances: –

Screen Shot 2016-07-09 at 18.01.22

History / Previous Results

The European Men’s Amateur Team Championship was first played in 1959.

It was played every second year until 2007. Since then it has been played annually save for 2012 when no Championship was held.

To date England have won 11 times, Scotland 8, Ireland 6, Spain 3, Sweden 2 and Wales, Italy and France once each.

ME.

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