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Brabazon Trophy – 2026 Preview & Results

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24th May 2026

Round 4

Tom OSBORNE (ENG), 24, completed a wire-to-wire victory with an even par final round of 71. His 268 (-16) total was 2-shots better than runner-up Eliot BAKER (ENG).

With his second major win of the year Osborne is building a compelling case for inclusion in this year’s GB&I Walker Cup team.

Eliot put his international teammate under real pressure down the stretch with birdies on the 12th, 15th and 16th holes and only bogeyed the last whilst pushing to force a play-off.

Bence BERTENYI (HUN) -9 finished 3rd, Oliver LEWIS-PERKINS (ENG) -8 4th and Harley SMITH (ENG) -7 5th after final round count-back.

GB&I players Jack DIMENT (ENG) -7, Jake SOWDEN (ENG) -7, Lewy HAYWARD (ENG) -6 and Matt MCCLEAN (IRL) -5 will all take confidence for the other big events that lie ahead with their top 10 finishes.

Shot of the day went to Moortown member Oliver CAGE (ENG) who enjoyed a hole-in-one on 187 yard 17th hole.

Harry COX (ENG), who finished on -4, won The George Henriques Salver, a prize awarded to the leading GB&I player(s) in the Championship under the age of 20.

Cole SELF (ENG) won The Scrutton Jug, the trophy awarded for the combined best score in the Berkshire Trophy and the Brabazon Trophy.

Final Results (Graphic: England Golf / Golf Genius)

Click here to view the – 2026 Brabazon Trophy Leaderboard

ME.

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23rd May 2026

Round 3

A bogey free 2-under par 69 saw leader Tom OSBORNE (ENG) move on to -16. Osborne has had only one bogey in the three rounds he has played so far.

The Lindrick-man will take a 5-shot lead in to the final round over Eliot BAKER (ENG) -11 who recorded a 67 on Day 3. Baker was one of five players to record 67, the low round of the day.

Melvin MULLER (NED) -9, Oliver LEWIS-PERKINS (ENG) -8, John DOYLE (IRL) -7 and Caolan BURFORD (WAL), Bence BERTENYI (HUN), Kris KIM (ENG) and Lewy HAYWARD (ENG) all -6 will hope to make a run at the title tomorrow but they will clearly need some help from the leader to pull it off.

Round 3 Leaderboard (Graphic: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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22nd May 2026

Round 2

Tom OSBORNE (ENG), now on -14, extended his lead to 7-shots after shooting a 5-under 66 in Round 2.

Eliot BAKER (ENG) bounced back strongly on Day 2 with a 65 to move up into 2nd place on -7. Baker’s was the joint-best round of the day matched only by Chase OBERLE (AUS) who rose to tied 9th on the leaderboard.

England Men’s Squad members Osborne and Baker contested the Final of the Spanish International Amateur in March with the former coming out on top.

Kris KIM (ENG), Oliver LEWIS-PERKINS (ENG), Lewy HAYWARD (ENG) and Jack DIMENT (ENG) are all tied 3rd on -6 after 36 holes.

Jamie DEAN (WAL) who was tied 2nd overnight withdrew due to injury ahead of Round 2.

66 players made the top 60 and ties cut which fell at 144 (+2).

Round 2 Leaderboard (Graphic: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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21st May 2026

Round 1

Tom OSBORNE (ENG) shot a course record 62 at Moortown G.C., -9 being the lowest score ever recorded in the competition, in the opening round of the Brabazon Trophy to take a 3-shot lead. The local man won the Yorkshire County Championship at the host venue in 2022 so has plenty of experience on the course.

Harley SMITH (ENG) and Jamie DEAN (WAL) are tied 2nd on -5 after they both posted 65’s.

One shot further back are Alex JAMES (WAL), Oliver MARTIN (ENG) and Luke KELLY (ENG).

45 players recorded an under par score on Day 1 with a further 16 recording an even par 71.

Round 1 Leaderboard (Graphic: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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19th May 2026

The 80th English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy will be played at Moortown Golf Club, between Thursday 21st and Sunday 24th May 2026.

Turkish Airlines has become the headline sponsor of the Championship with effect from this year.

I will be updating this article with a scores link and daily reports once play commences.

Format

This four day competition consists of 72 holes of stroke play golf with 18 holes being played daily.

A 36 hole cut will reduce the field to the leading 60 competitors and ties.

In the event of a tie for the Championship there will be a sudden death play off.

All other places will be determined by a card count-back, starting with the final round and working backwards from there.

Field

144 competitors from 17 different countries will contest the 2026 Brabazon Trophy Championship.

With the NCAA U.S. college golf season, where the majority of the leading International and GB&I players are now engaged, not finishing until early June the Brabazon’s field quality is increasingly being impacted. The WAGR Power Ranking has been falling since 2022. It was 617.0619 in 2022, 467.2656 in 2023, 454.8860 in 2024 and 384.3262 in 2025.

The majority of the field were exempt with starting places offered to a number of national golf federations and to those players who have performed well in other recent Championships.

Biagio Andrea GAGLIARDI (ITA) will be defending the title he won last year at Hankley Common G.C.

Other notable players competing include (in alphabetical order) Eliot BAKER (ENG), John DOYLE (IRL), Andrew HASWELL (ENG), Hamish FARQUHARSON (AUS), Wolfgang GLAWE (GER), Lewy HAYWARD (ENG), Tom HUGHES (ENG), Kevin JEGERS (EST), Luke JENKINS (ENG), GUS LAFEBER (NED), Dawson LEW (CAN), Matt MCCLEAN (IRL), Aaron MOODY (ENG), Tom OSBORNE (ENG), Dylan SHAW-RADFORD (ENG), Harley SMITH (ENG), Jake SOWDEN (ENG), Henry STYLES (ENG), Gavin TIERNAN (IRL), Erik TJÄRNBERG (SWE), Jamie VAN WYK (ENG) and Scott WOLTERING (NED).

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Three 18 hole regional Qualifying Tournaments were staged on 12th May 2026. 49 players ultimately progressed from the Midland, Northern and Southern Qualifiers.

Here is a summary of the three Qualifiers and a list of all the players who progressed: –

MIDLAND – Droitwich G.C. – Results
16 Qualifiers / 115 players
Andrew Isaacs (ENG), Alex Emms (ENG), Max Reynolds (ENG), Matthew Haynes (ENG), Ted Hodgkinson (ENG), Daniel Smith (ENG), Dempsie McFadyen (ENG), Kieran McCarthy (ENG), Jack Diment (ENG), Marco Cruse (ENG), Shreyas Sanmathy (ENG), Charlie McKinney (WAL), Theo Baker (WAL), Bryn Thomas (WAL) Alt. , Sam Norman (ENG) Alt. and James Hodgson (ENG) Alt.

NORTHERN – Bishop Auckland G.C. – Results
16 Qualifiers
– Kai Laing (SCO), Alex James (WAL), Jamie Duguid (SCO), Luke Kelly (ENG), Cole Self (ENG), Jack Richardson (ENG), Charlie Daughtrey (ENG), George Davies (ENG), Joshua Stephens (ENG), Nathan Ali (ENG), Campbell Kerr (AUS), Habib Khan (ENG), Lucas Martin (ENG), Alex North (ENG) Alt., Archie Palmer (ENG) Alt. and Nathan Wilkinson (ENG)

SOUTHERN – Royal Ashdown Forest G.C. – Results
17 Qualifiers
Charlie Croker (ENG), Dylan Hussey (ENG), Tommy Evans (ENG), Scott Pym (ENG), Jenson Bull (ENG), Ryan Craig (ENG), Lucas Weisberg (ENG), Oliver Martin (ENG), Danial Parsons (ENG), Henry Linley (ENG), Ashley Watkins (ENG), Daniel Roberts (ENG), Toby Knevett (ENG), Charlie Rusbridge (ENG), Frankie Morton (ENG) Alt., Charles Morgasn (ENG) Alt. and Marcus Smith (ENG) Alt.

Tee Times

Play on the opening two days will commence at 7.00am with the final three-ball heading out at 3.30pm; all from the 1st tee.

Click here to view the – 2026 Brabazon Trophy Tee Times

Prizes

The Winner receives the magnificent gold Brabazon Trophy shown below.

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The Champion’s Prize and The Brabazon Trophy (Photo: Golf Bible)

Prize vouchers will be awarded to those players finishing in the top five.

The event has been included in this year’s inaugural European Amateur Order of Merit Ranking and the winner will also receive an exemption into a HotelPlanner Tour professional event later in the year.

Two other prizes are connected to the Brabazon Trophy competition: –

The George Henriques Salver is awarded to the leading GB&I player in the Championship under the age of 20.

The Philip Scrutton Jug is awarded to the player returning the best aggregate scores in The Brabazon Trophy and The Berkshire Trophy. The latter was played on 16-17 May and won by Aaron MOODY (ENG) who is also competing this week.

Moortown Golf Club

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

Off the Championship Tees the course can be stretched to 7,001 yards and a par of 71. It has a Course Rating of 74.8 and a Slope Rating of 141.

It is a classic English heathland course which features firm, fast-running fairways, an abundance of heather and subtly contoured greens.

Moortown hosted the first Ryder Cup match on British soil in 1929 and since then has staged numerous professional and amateur tournaments.

10th Hole Moortown G.C. (Photo: Moortown G.C.)

Weather Forecast – on Tuesday 19th May 2026

The weather forecast suggests the Championship will be predominantly dry with temperatures warming up nicely over the weekend.

Thur 21st May – Cloudy / Wind 12 mph SW / Temp. Min. 11°C, Max. 17°C.
Fri 22nd May – Sunny AM / Showers PM / Wind 10 mph SW / Temp. Min. 15°C, Max. 26°C.
Sat 23rd May – Light Rain / Wind 8 mph W / Temp. Min. 11°C / Max. 25°C.
Sun 24th May – Sunny / Wind 5 mph W / Temp. Min. 11°C / Max. 24°C.

England Golf Event Website

Click here to view the – England Golf / Golf Genius Brabazon Trophy Website

2025 Brabazon Trophy

Biagio Andrea GAGLIARDI became the first Italian to win the Brabazon Trophy when he took the 2025 title at Hankley Common with a 276 (-8) score.

Biagio Andrea Gagliardi (Photo: England Golf / Leaderboard Photography)

Freddie TURNELL (ENG) -6 finished 2nd, Mattias VARJUN (EST) -5 3rd on count-back, Eliot BAKER (ENG)-5 4th and Billy DOWLING (AUS) -4 5th.

Final Brabazon Trophy Results (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

Freddie TURNELL (ENG) also won The George Henriques Salver awarded to the highest finishing Under 20 GB&I player.

Recent Results

Click below to view the results over the last three years: –

Hankley Common – 2025 Brabazon Trophy Results

Hollinwell – 2024 Brabazon Trophy Results

Sunningdale – 2023 Brabazon Trophy Results

History, Past Winners and Records

The English Amateur International Trophy competition was first played in 1947.

In 1957 the official title was changed to the English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship.

The current trophy was donated by Lord Brabazon of Tara in 1948 and the event has come to be widely known as the Brabazon Trophy.

Click here to view the full list of – Brabazon Trophy Past Winners

The first player to successfully defend the title was Ronnie WHITE who won at Birkdale in 1950 and nearby Formby in 1951.

Shortly afterwards Philip SCRUTTON won the Brabazon three times in four years (1952, ‘54 & ‘55).

Sir Michael BONALLACK has four wins to his name. The first came at Royal Cinque Ports in 1964 and the last at Hillside in 1971. At Moortown in 1969, with play-offs having been discarded at this time, he shared the title with Rodney FOSTER.

Other well known British winners of the Brabazon include Gordon BRAND Jnr, Sandy LYLE (2), Peter MCEVOY, Ronan RAFFERTY and Ronnie SHADE (3).

Other notable winners include well known pros Ignacio GARRIDO (1992), Peter HANSON (1998) and Charl SCHWARTZEL (2002), Jordan SMITH (2013) and Sam BAIRSTOW (2021).

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2026, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

France v. England Men’s International Match – 2026 Preview & Results

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Sunday 17th May 2026

England beat France by 13.0 points to 11.0 at Chantilly to win the 38th Men’s International Match between the two countries.

The Winning England Team (Photo: Tomos Stevens / FF Golf)

The clean sweep in the opening foursomes series proved to be decisive for the visitors.

Jamie VAN WYK (ENG) was the star man. He was the only player on either side to finish unbeaten and he also secured the winning point on Sunday afternoon.

Day 2

Morning Foursomes

France won the Day 2 Foursomes session 2.5-1.5 to narrow the match score (6.5-9.5) by 1 point.

Max HOPKINS (ENG) headed into the Singles as the only player with three wins to their name on both sides.

Day 2 Foursomes Results (Graphic: FF Golf / Golf Genius)

Afternoon Singles

France won the Day 2 singles session 4.5-3.5 but a late singles win from Jamie VAN WYK (ENG) in Game 6 following a half from Jake SOWDEN (ENG) ensured England got over the finishing line. Tom OSBORNE (ENG) and Luke JENKINS (ENG) secured the two other all-important wins on the final afternoon.

Ben BOLTON (ENG) withdrew from the Day 2 singles due to injury giving Hugo LE GOFF (FRA) a walkover win.

Day 2 Singles Results (Graphic: FF Golf  / Golf Genius)

Click here to view the – England v. France 2026 Match Results

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Saturday 16th May 2026

At the end of Day 1 England led France by 8.0-4.0, a healthy margin founded on a clean sweep in the morning foursomes.

Eliot BAKER, Max HOPKINS, Jake SOWDEN and Jamie VAN WYK all contributed two Saturday wins for England at Chantilly.

Day 1

Morning Foursomes (T1)

Day 1 Foursomes Results (Graphic: FF Golf / Golf Genius)

Afternoon Singles (T2)

Day 1 Singles Results (Graphic: FF Golf  / Golf Genius)

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Preview

England will play France in Chantilly this weekend in the 38th Men’s International Match between the two countries.

The last match, played at Moortown G.C. in Leeds in May 2024, was won by France.

Format

8 man teams from each country will play 4 foursomes and 8 single matches on both Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th May.

With a total of 24 points to play for the winning team needs to secure 12.5 points to win the match outright. As France won the 2024 match they will also retain the trophy in the event of a 12-12 tie. Having said that there has never previously been a tie in the history of the contest.

The biennial match is normally played on an alternate home and away basis.

Teams

The playing of this fixture in mid-May hampers selection nowadays as both teams have an increasing number of potential players competing on the U.S. college circuit.

Here are the two eight man teams with each player’s current World Amateur Golf Ranking (as at 8th May) in brackets after their name: –

England
Eliot Baker (38)
Ben Bolton (171)
Lewy Hayward (580)
Max Hopkins (1,011)
Luke Jenkins (849)
Tom Osborne (165)
Jake Sowden (851)
Jamie Van Wyk (587)

Total WAGR = 4,252

Eliot Baker and Ben Bolton are the returning England player from two years ago.

France
Callixte Alzas (321)
Noa Auch-Roy (466)
Octave Bailo (1,249)
Oscar Couilleau (55)
Tom De Herrypon (510)
Lev Grinberg (90)
Hugo Le Goff (69)
Tao Pemerika (612)

Total WAGR = 3,372  

Callixte Alzas, Noa Auch-Roy, Oscar Couilleau and Tom De Herrypon are France’s returning players from the 2024 match.

Venue

Chantilly Vineuil’s Old Course, one of the best courses in Europe, is hosting the 2026 match.

Located 28 miles north of Paris and set amongst the forest of Ile de France it plays to 7,047 yards and a par of 71.

Weather Forecast

A cloudy weekend with occasional light showers is forecast for the match.

Sat  16th May – Cloudy / Wind 10 mph W / Temp. Min. 7°C / Max. 15°C.
Sun 17th May – Light Showers / Wind 12 mph SW / Temp. Min. 8°C / Max. 14°C.

Match History

This International Match was first played in 1934, originally starting with 6 players per side before moving to 8 in 1949.

It lapsed after the 1962 match at Ganton Golf Club but was resurrected in 1982 at Chantilly with a new format which has been retained to this day.

Frilford Heath Golf Club, hosts of the 1984 match, donated a silver salver which the winning team retains.

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England v. France Match Salver (Photo: Alexis Orloff / FF Golf)

To date England have won 31 of the matches with France winning just 6, the last one being in 2024 at Moortown.

2024 International Match

France beat England 13.5.-10.5 in the 37th Men’s International Match played at Moortown G.C. to record their sixth win in this biennial series.

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France Team (Photo: Federation of French Golf

Four French and two English players won three of the four matches they played.

Screenshot 2024-05-13 at 10.07.07

Click here to view the – England v. France 2024 Match Results

Past Results

Heading into this year’s contest the overall match record is Played 37, England 31 Wins and France 6 Wins.

Match

Year

 Venue

England

France

Winner
38 2026 Chantilly
37 2024 Moortown 10.5 13.5 France
36 2022 St-Nom-la-Bretèche 13.5 10.5 England
2020 Cancelled
35 2018 Vidauban 13 7 England
34 2016 Formby 14 10 England
33 2014 Fontainebleau 13 11 England
32 2012 Roch. & Cobham 15 9 England
31 2010 Chantilly 11 13 France
30 2008 Frilford Heath 14 10 England
29 2006 Golf du Medoc 16.5 7.5 England
28 2004 Royal St. George’s 11.5 12.5 France
27 2002 Chantilly 17.5 6.5 England
26 2000 Chart Hills 17.5 6.5 England
25 1998 Les Bordes 11.5 12.5 France
24 1996 Sunningdale 9 15 France
23 1994 Nimes 17 7 England
22 1992 Royal Lytham 18 6 England
21 1990 Morfontaine 16.5 7.5 England
20 1988 Berkshire 16 8 England
19 1986 Hossegor 14.5 9.5 England
18 1984 Frilford Heath 16 8 England
17 1982 Chantilly 13 11 England

 1963-1981 No matches were played 
16 1962 Ganton 7.5 4.5 England
15 1960 Chantilly 7.5 4.5 England
14 1959 West Hill 8.5 3.5 England
13 1956 Chantilly 10 2 England
12 1954 Berkshire 11 1 England
11 1952 Deal 8 4 England
10 1950 Morfontaine 8.5 3.5 England
9 1949 Deal 5 4 England
8 1948 St. Cloud 5.5 3.5 England
7 1947 Wentworth 8 1 England

 1940-1946 No matches were played 
6 1939 Morfontaine 5 4 France
5 1938 Sunningdale 8.5 0.5 England
4 1937 Chantilly 7 0 England
3 1936 Deal 5.5 3.5 England
2 1935 St. Germain-en-Laye 5.5 3.5 England
1 1934 Wentworth 5.5 3.5 England

N.B. Matches 1–8 had 6 players and matches 9-35 had 8 players

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2026, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

Men’s European Nations Championship – 2026 Preview & Results

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18th April 2026

Round 4

Team (best 3 from 4 scores count)

ENGLAND (-31) completed a wire-to-wire victory in the European Nations Championship Team competition. On three of the four days England recorded the best team score which helped them to a comfortable 14-shot win.

England (Photo: England Golf)

FRANCE (-17) finished 2nd, NETHERLANDS (-7) 3rd, ITALY (-6) 4th and IRELAND (-2) 5th at the challenging RCG Sotogrande course.

WALES (+16) 11th and SCOTLAND (+21) 13th both fell down the Team leaderboard after posting disappointing +9 scores on the final day.


Click here to view the – 2026 ENC Men’s Team Results

Individual

Eliot BAKER (ENG) -15 birdied all five of his closing holes to win the Individual title by 3-shots.

Eliot Baker (Photo: England Golf)

Scott WOLTERING (NED) -12 finished 2nd, Ben BOLTON -11 3rd and Filippo PONZANO (ITA) & Hugo LE GOFF (FRA) -7 tied 4th.

Caolan BURFORD (WAL) -5 was tied 8th, Stuart GREHAN (IRL) & Tom OSBORNE (ENG) -4 tied 10th and Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) +1 tied 16th.

Click here to view the – 2026 Men’s ENC Individual Results

ME.

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17th April 2026

Round 3

Team (best 3 from 4 scores count)

ENGLAND (-21) will take a 7-shot lead into the final round of the European Nations Championship Team competition after they posted -4 score in Round 3.

On a tougher scoring day FRANCE (-14), now in 2nd place, closed the gap with a best of the day -8 team score. ITALY (-6) dropped to 3rd, NETHERLANDS (-5) stayed 4th and ESTONIA (-2) rose to 5th at RCG Sotogrande.

After 54 holes IRELAND (+1) are tied 7th, WALES (+7) are 11th and SCOTLAND (+12) 12th.

Individual

Scott WOLTERING (NED) -11 continues to lead the Individual competition from English pair Eliot BAKER -10 and Ben BOLTON -9.

Caolan BURFORD (WAL) -8 is 4th,  Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) -2 tied 12th, Tom OSBORNE (ENG) -1 tied 14th and Stuart GREHAN (IRL) Ev tied 16th.

ME.

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16th April 2026

Round 2

Team (best 3 from 4 scores count)

ENGLAND (-17) again produced the best score of the day (-7) to extend their lead in the European Nations Championship Team competition to 10 shots.

After 36 holes ITALY (-7) are 2nd, FRANCE (-6) 3rd, NETHERLANDS (-5) 4th and CZECH REPUBLIC (-2) 5th at RCG Sotogrande.

WALES (-1) enjoyed a good day to move up to 8th whilst IRELAND & SCOTLAND (+4) dropped down the leaderboard finishing Round 2 tied 11th.

Individual

Scott WOLTERING (NED) followed up his opening 67 with a 68 to remain in the Individual lead on -9.

Ben BOLTON (ENG) -8 2nd and Eliot BAKER (ENG) -7 3rd continue to drive the English score.

Caolan BURFORD (WAL) -5 is tied 5th and Tomi BOWEN (WAL), Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) & Kris KIM (ENG)  -2 are all tied 11th.

ME.

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15th April 2026

Round 1

Team (best 3 from 4 scores count)

ENGLAND (-10) made a dream start to the 2026 European Nations Championship and after 18 holes enjoy a 7-shot lead.

At the close of Day 1 FRANCE (-3) and GERMANY & ITALY (-2) are the only other countries that are under par at RCG Sotogrande.

SCOTLAND (+1) are tied 5th, IRELAND (+3) tied 8th and WALES (+5) tied 10th.

Individual

Scott WOLTERING‘s (NED) 5-under 67 was the best round of the day.

Eliot BAKER and Ben BOLTON led the English scoring effort with 68’s (-4).

England had the luxury of being able to use either Tom OSBORNE‘s (ENG) or Kris KIM‘s (ENG) 70 (-2) card to make up their team score. Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) led the Scots with his own 70 too.

John DOYLE (IRL), 71  (-1) was the only other home nation player to shoot under par in Round 1 with Caolan BURFORD (WAL) and Caolan RAFFERTY (IRL) having to settle for even par 72’s.

ME.

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15th April 2026

The Men’s European Nations Championship (ENC), also known as the European Nations Cup, starts on Wednesday 15th April at Real Club de Golf Sotogrande in Andalucía, Spain.

R.C.G. Sotogrande is the permanent home of the ENC and this will be the 18th playing of the event.

It is a 72 hole stroke play Team and Individual competition.

Field
15 four-man teams (60 players) will play for the Team prize.

Teams representing Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Scotland, Spain, Sweden and Wales will be joined by one from the host club, RCG Sotogrande.

Austria, Finland and Switzerland, who all played last year, have not entered teams in 2026.

There is also an Individual prize on offer to the field.

The following players have been selected to represent the four competing home nations in 2026: –

England – Ben BOLTON, Eliot BAKER, Kris KIM, Tom OSBORNE

Ireland – John DOYLE, Stuart GREHAN, Matt MCCLEAN, Caolan RAFFERTY

Scotland – Andrew DAVIDSON, Alexander FARMER, Ross LAIRD, Dominic MCGLINCHEY

Wales – Tom BASTOW, Tomi BOWEN, Caolan BURFORD, Iestyn MCAVOY

A Women’s ENC, made up of 13 three player teams, also takes place alongside the Men’s competition. England and Ireland are competing this year.

Format and Prizes
72 holes of stroke play, with 18 holes played daily, will be contested by all of the players. There is no cut.

In the Team event the best three 18-hole scores from the four players count towards the overall total.

In the case of a tie for 1st place it will be resolved by the best player score being discarded and if the tie persists, the second best score discarded and so on. If scores are still tied a team member will be nominated and a sudden death play-off will be contested. Other ties will not be resolved.

The Individual prize is awarded to the lowest scoring player. Ties for 1st place will be broken via a sudden death play-off. Any remaining ties will be broken by the best results of the last 18, 27, 36, etc., holes.

Winning Team members each receive a replica of the Nations Trophy. The Individual champion receives a trophy and a bright yellow jacket.

Venue and Course
Real Club de Golf Sotogrande was opened in 1964 and was originally designed by Robert Trent Jones. One of the best courses in Continental Europe it first held the Spanish Open in 1966, won that year by Roberto de Vicenzo.

In 1970 The Sherry Cup, the precursor of the European Nations Championship / Cup, was established. Former Individual winners of this include Padraig Harrington and Sergio Garcia. (see below for the full list of past Individual winners).

In 1973 a Women’s event started to be played alongside the Men’s.

In 1983 Sotogrande hosted the Spanish Amateur Championship with Jose Maria Olazabel victorious.

Sotogrande was awarded royal patronage by HM King Juan Carlos I in 1994.

Between 1996 and 2001, in tandem with nearby San Roque GC, the course hosted the European Tour’s Qualifying School.

In 2006 The Sherry Cup was rebranded as the European Nations Cup and in 2017 become known as the European Nations Championship played for the Sotogrande Cup.

In 2011, ahead of it’s 50th anniversary, the Club decided to embark upon a major course renovation appointing Roger Rulewich and David Fleury. With the work on greens, bunkering and drainage taking place in 2015 and early 2016 the ENC moved temporarily to the nearby La Reserva Club de Golf for two years. Since 2017 the competition has been played on the renovated course.

The Black Tee Championship Course at Sotogrande plays 6,492m with a par of 72. The front nine measures 3,163m and the back 3,329m.

Weather Forecast
The forecast looks very good. High winds, often stronger in the afternoon, can cause problems given the numerous water hazards on the course.

Wednesday 15th – Sunny.  Min. 15°C / Max. 22°C; Wind S 9mph
Thursday 16th – Sunny. Min. 15°C / Max. 21 °C; Wind E 12mph
Friday 17th – Sunny. Temp. Min. 15°C / Max. 21°C; Wind E 18mph
Saturday 18th – Sunny. Temp. Min. 15°C / Max. 21°C; Wind E 15mph

Past ENC Winners

The home nations have an excellent record in this event.

Team Competition

2025  England     2025 ENC Men’s Team Results

The England Team (Photo: England Golf)

2024  Ireland     2024 ENC Team Results
2023  England     2023 ENC Team Results
2022  Spain     2022 ENC Team Results
2021  Cancelled
2020  Cancelled
2019  England     2019 ENC Team Results
2018  England     2018 ENC Team Results
2017  Wales    2017 ENC Team Results
2016  Ireland    2016 ENC Team Results
2015  England
2014  Scotland
2013  England
2012  France
2011  England
2010  England
2009  England
2008  Scotland
2007  Denmark

Past Sherry Cup Team Winners (started 1998)

2006  Spain
2005  Spain
2004  England
2003  England
2002  Wales
2001  England
2000  England
1999  Germany
1998  Spain

Individual Competition

2025 Kevin Jegers (EST)     2025 ENC Men’s Individual Results
2024 James Ashfield (WAL)     2024 ENC Men’s Individual Results
2023 Albert Hansson (SWE)     2023 ENC Men’s Individual Results
2022 Jaime Montojo (ESP)     2022 ENC Men’s Individual Result
2021  Cancelled
2020  Cancelled
2019  Tom Sloman (England)     2019 ENC Individual Results
2018  Todd Clements (England)    2018 ENC Individual Results
2017  Jack Davidson (Wales)    2017 ENC Individual Results
2016  Jack Hume (Ireland)    2016 ENC Individual Results
2015  Mario Galliano (Spain)
2014  Guido Migliori (Italy)
2013  Adrien Saddier (France)
2012  Robin Kind (The Netherlands)
2011  Julien Brun (France)
2010  Nino Bertasio (Italy)
2009  Sam Hutsby (England)
2008  Shane Lowry (Ireland)
2007  Rory McIlroy (Ireland)

Past Sherry Cup Individual Winners

2006  Nigel Edwards (Wales)
2005  Gary Wolstenholme (England)
2004  Francesco Molinari (Italy)
2003  Gary Wolstenholme (England)
2002  Lee Harpin (Wales)
2001  Gary Wolstenholme (England)
2000  Gary Wolstenholme (England)
1999  Marcel Siem (Germany)
1998  Sergio Garcia (Spain)
1997  Sergio Garcia (Spain)
1996  Alvaro Salto (Spain)
1995  José María Zamora (Spain)
1994  Francisco Cea (Spain)
1993  Francisco Valera (Spain)
1992  Frederic Cupillar (France)
1991  Padraig Harrington (Ireland)
1990  Alvaro Prat (Spain)
1989  Diego Borrego (Spain)
1988  Yago Beamonte (Spain)
1987  Yago Beamonte (Spain)
1986  Borja Queipo de Llano (Spain)
1985  José L. Padila (Spain)
1984  John Marks (England)
1983  José L. de Bernardo (Spain)
1982  Borja Queipo de Llano (Spain)
1981  Veit Pagel (Germany)
1980  Jesús López (Spain)
1979  Veit Pagel (Germany)
1978  José L. de Bernardo (Spain)
1977  F. Jiménez (Spain)
1976  Alberto Croze (Italy)
1975  Veit Pagel (Germany)
1974  Veit Pagel (Germany)
1973  Alberto Croze (Italy)
1972  E. de la Riva and J. Gancedo (Spain)
1971  Alberto Croze (Italy)
1970  Henric Adam (England)

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2026, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

Men’s Home Internationals – 2025 Preview & Results

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All Graphics, Tables and Scoring shown below are shared courtesy of England Golf and Golf Genius.

Friday 8th August 2025

ENGLAND won the 2025 Men’s Home Internationals completing a clean sweep against Wales on the final day.

England Men’s Team (Photo: England Golf)

Individual Performances

Eliot BAKER (ENG), Alexander FARMER (SCO), Caolan BURFORD (WAL) and Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) were the leading performers for each home nation at Woodhall Spa G.C.

Day 3

IRELAND 6.5 – 5.5 SCOTLAND

IRELAND narrowly beat SCOTLAND thanks to a slightly better performance in the morning Foursomes. David HOWARD picked up two wins for the Irish on Day 3 whilst Alexander FARMER and Ross LAIRD completed an excellent competition for the Scots with strong contributions.

ENGLAND 6.5 – 5.5 WALES

ENGLAND were made to work hard for their final win by WALES who were rewarded for their efforts by securing 3rd position in the final standings. Eliot BAKER, Tom OSBORNE and Jamie VAN WYK were the key men for the hosts in their final game whilst Caolan BURFORD and Tomi BOWEN finished off a strong week with another good points haul for the Welsh.

Click here to view the – Men’s and Women’s Home Internationals Scores

ME.

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Thursday 7th August 2025

Day 2 

ENGLAND now have one hand on the Men’s Raymond Trophy after securing their second win of the competition. WALES will need to beat them on Day 3 by four or more points to cause an upset. IRELAND will hope to avoid defeat to SCOTLAND tomorrow to avoid a whitewash.

WALES 4.5 – 7.5 SCOTLAND

Unbeaten trio Alexander FARMER (SCO), Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) and Jack MCDONALD (SCO) led Scotland to a comfortable win against Ireland. Ioan ROWE (WAL) ended Ross LAIRD‘s (SCO) three match unbeaten run but four other tight games ultimately went against the Welsh.  

ENGLAND 8.0 – 4.0 IRELAND

After the morning Foursomes were halved England secured victory over Ireland with a dominant Singles series. Seb CAVE, Eliot BAKER and Jake SOWDEN all picked up to wins for the English on Day 2. There was a surprisingly big win for Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) against his potential Walker Cup teammate Dominic CLEMONS (ENG). Tiernan is now four wins from four at Woodhall Spa.

ME.

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Wednesday 6th August 2025

Day 1

ENGLAND and WALES got off to winning starts in this year’s Men’s Home Internationals with narrow victories over SCOTLAND and IRELAND respectively.

IRELAND 5.5 – 6.5 WALES 

Tomi BOWEN (WAL) and Caolan BURFORD (WAL) led Wales to a welcome victory over Ireland for whom Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) was unbeaten.

ENGLAND 7.0 – 5.0 SCOTLAND

Jamie VAN WYK (ENG) picked up two wins and SEB CAVE (ENG) a win and a half for England as they overcame Scotland where an unbeaten Ross LAIRD (SCO) put up the most resistance.

ME.

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1st August 2025

This year’s Men’s Home Internationals will be played at Woodhall Spa G.C. in Lincolnshire, England on 6th-8th August 2025.

IRELAND will be defending the Raymond Trophy which they won at Murcar Links in Scotland last year.

This article will focus on the Men’s Home Internationals and will be updated with score links and daily reports once the competition starts.

Combined Event

In 2022 The R&A and four Home Golf Unions decided to combine the Women’s and Men’s Home Internationals into one mixed event.

The R&A first introduced this type of change in August 2021 when they took control of and combined both the Boys’ and Girls’ Home Internationals and Senior Men’s and Women’s Home Internationals at Woodhall Spa.

Whilst the mixed R&A Women’s and Men’s Home Internationals are now given primary importance the International Trophy and Raymond Trophy are still presented to the leading country in the women’s and men’s matches.

The R&A stepped back from running all of the Home Internationals in 2024 returning their organisation to each host nation. 

Hopefully this means that we can now look to remove the mixed element completely and return to the separate men’s and women’s competitions which have a lot of history and tradition and in my opinion should not have been interfered with.

2025 Men’s Players

The four national golf unions have selected the following players to represent their countries this year. I have added their World Amateur Golf Rankings as at 30th July 2024 in brackets.

ENGLAND  
Eliot BAKER – Tiverton, 22 (108)
Ben BOLTON – Enville, 18 (355)
Seb CAVE – Coxmoor, 21 (133)
Dominic CLEMONS – Gog Magog, 23 (39)
Lewy HAYWARD – Marlborough,19 (705)
Tom OSBORNE – Lindrick, 23 (162)
Jake SOWDEN – The Oaks, 21 (1,199)
Freddie TURNELL – Burnham & Berrow, 20 (129)
Jamie VAN WYK – Royal Lytham & St. Annes, 24 (996)

Tyler Weaver (11), Luke Poulter (32), Charlie Forster (52), Jack Bigham (54), Matthew Dodd-Berry (ENG) (113), Harley Smith (127), Sam Easterbrook (158), Zach Little (217) and Daniel Hayes (244) are WAGR top 250 English players not competing. 

IRELAND 
Colm CAMPBELL – Warrenpoint (980)
John DOYLE – Fota Island (554)
Keith EGAN – Carton House (1,165)
Stuart GREHAN – County Louth (495)
Thomas HIGGINS – Roscommon (414)
David HOWARD – Fota Island (1,778)
Jonathan KEANE – Lahinch (4,506)
Seán KEELING – Roganstown (330)
Gavin TIERNAN – County Louth (530)

Caolan Rafferty (151) and Matthew McClean (211) are are WAGR top 250 Irish players not competing.

SCOTLAND 
Andrew DAVIDSON – Crail (337)
Alexander FARMER – Kilmacolm (1,184)
Ross LAIRD – Glenbervie (725)
Jack MCDONALD – Roxburghe (1,131)
Dominic MCGLINCHEY – Renaissance (1,273)
Sam MUKHERJEE – Gullane (1,718)
Gregor TAIT – Aldeburgh (763)
Chris ROBB – Meldrum House (N/R – Re-instated Amateur)
James WOOD – Bathgate (1,138)

Cameron Adam (25), Connor Graham (45) and U.S.-based Niall Shiels Donegan (94) are WAGR top 250 Scottish players not competing.

WALES
Tom BASTOW – Isle of Purbeck (871)
Tomi BOWEN – Welshpool (250)
Caolan BURFORD – Rhuddlan (1,437)
Sean DAVID – Pyle & Kenfig (2,381)
Jamie DEAN – Carmarthen (2,076)
Alex JAMES – Royal Lytham & St. Annes (2,611)
Tom MATTHEWS – Aldersley Green (1,064)
Iestyn MCAVOY – Glynhir (916)
Ioan ROWE – Royal Porthcawl (4,723)

U.S.-based Jonathan Bale (126) and Matt Roberts (386), who has recently stepped back from the amateur game, are highly WAGR-ranked players missing for Wales.

Since the team selections were announced the English, Scottish and Welsh Closed Amateur Championships have been completed. As is becoming the norm none of the three 2025 champions were selected by their countries – in the last 3 years just one of the nine champions has played in the Home Internationals.

Venue – Woodhall Spa Golf Club

The Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa is one of the world’s leading heathland courses, having recently benefitted from a major renovation be leading architect Tom Doak.

The course, which was originally designed by Harry Vardon, is located on an undulating piece of land and is memorable for it’s superb par 3’s, deep bunkers and patches of gorse and heather.

It plays to 7,024 yards off the Blue Tees and a par of 73. It has a Course Rating of 75.3 and a Slope Rating of 152.

Match Format

Following the move to a combined Home Internationals event the men’s teams were reduced from 11 to 9 players.

Each country plays every other team over the three competition days.

Men’s matches now consist of 4 foursomes and 8 singles. This is 1 foursomes and 2 singles less than the historic format.

One point is awarded for a win in each foursomes and singles with a half point for a tied match. Each team will be awarded one match point for winning an overall match and a half point for a tie.

The final team positions are determined according to the highest number of match points earned. Ties are broken by reviewing the total number of individual game points.

The winning team receives the Raymond Trophy.  

The Raymond Trophy

The Men’s Home Internationals were first played in 1932 and this year’s staging will be the 84th playing of this prestigious event.

Since 1952 the winning team has received The Raymond Trophy which is named after its donor, the late Raymond Oppenheimer. Oppenheimer was an English administrator, golfer and team captain who was very prominent in the amateur game in the 1940’s and 1950’s.

In the 83 competitions played to date England have won 40, Scotland 21, Ireland 14 and Wales 1. The remaining 7 were tied before it was decided that ties would be resolved by using game points.

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The Raymond Trophy (Photo: Ayrshire Golf Blog)

2025 Weather Forecast (as at 1st August 2025)

The forecast is currently looking very good for the three competition days: –

Wed. 6th Aug. – Sunny / Wind 9 mph W / Temp. Min 13º, Max 22º
Thurs. 7th Aug. – Sunny Intervals / Wind 14 mph SW / Temp. Min 13º, Max 24º
Fri. 8th Aug. – Sunny / Wind 11 mph W / Temp. Min 12º, Max 24º

2024 R&A Men’s Home Internationals

Ireland won the Raymond Trophy at the 2024 Men’s Home Internationals winning all three of their games and accumulating 25.5 points at Murcar Links. 

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Ireland Women and Men’s Mixed Team (Photo: Chris Young / Scottish Golf)

Each match consisted of four morning Foursomes and eight afternoon Singles.

Screenshot 2024-08-09 at 20.58.03

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

Historic Results

Click here to view all of the – Men’s Home Internationals Historic Results

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

The St. Andrews Trophy – 2025 Preview & Results

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Friday 25th July 2025

Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) won The 35th St. Andrews Trophy match against Continent of Europe by 16.5-8.5 points at Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro in Madrid, Spain.

GB&I now have 27 wins in the 35 matches played with Europe having seven and there being one tie in 2016.

Only requiring 1.5 points from the nine Singles played in the final session Tyler WEAVER (ENG) and Luke POULTER (ENG) wasted no time in securing victory for GB&I with wins in the opening two games.

Commenting afterwards an elated GB&I captain Dean Robertson said “The team produced phenomenal golf. To win all four series was more than my expectations. The teamwork was magical, preparation great and I couldn’t be more proud of them all. We’ll enjoy this, reflect, and then we’ll build on this for our trip across the Atlantic.”

The GB&I Team (Photo: Aitor Alcalde / R&A / R&A via Getty Images)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) was the star man for GB&I winning all four of his games. Luke POULTER (ENG), Eliot BAKER (ENG) and Tyler WEAVER (ENG) also strongly contributed to GB&I’s victory.

Claes THRANE BORREGAARD (DEN), Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) and Hugo LE GOFF (FRA) all won both of their singles, putting up the most resistance for a well beaten Continent of Europe team.

Click here to view the – 2025 St. Andrews Trophy Match Results

Day 2 PM Singles

GB&I ensured they would win all four sessions by taking the Day 2 afternoon Singles series 5.0-4.0.

Play commenced at 1.30pm CEST (12.30am BST) with all nine players on both sides competing.

Day 2 Singles Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Tyler WEAVER (ENG) maintained his unbeaten record in this year’s match with a comprehensive 6&5 victory over Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) who handed the initiative to Weaver early on and was simply not in the form to ever recover it.

Weaver v. Jakubčík Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

A victorious Luke POULTER (ENG) and Gunnlauger Arni SVEINSSON (ISL) halved both par 5’s on the back nine with eagles. On the 18th Poulter holed a long bunker shot to follow Sveinsson in after he had holed a mammoth put before him.

Poulter v. SveinssonScoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER), who is one of the few European players who can leave Spain with his head held high, beat the previously unbeaten Connor GRAHAM (SCO) in some style in Game 3 with another solid performance.

Graham v. Wiedemeyer Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Hugo LE GOFF (FRA), who had trailed for most of the round, chose the optimum time to take the lead – the 18th green – as he robbed Charlie FORSTER (ENG) of a first singles win.

Forster v. Le Goff Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Norway’s Claes Thrane BORREGAARD took advantage of a poor start by Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) and despite a valiant fight back by the Gog Magog member was able to hold on for a 1 Hole victory. Borregaard’s three consecutive birdies on 13, 14 and 15 proved crucial in the end.

Clemons v. Borregaard Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Eliot BAKER (ENG) battled impressively to secure his win against home player Sergio JIMENEZ ROMERO. Birdies on the 16th and 18th holes enabled the Devonian to complete an unbeaten record and notably deliver two singles wins.

Baker v. Jimenez Romero Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) ensured every member of the GB&I team won a game in this year’s St. Andrews Trophy match with a solid 3&2 win against Alfons BONDESSON (SWE). Tiernan led from the first hole and never looked like relinquishing his point throughout.

Tiernan v. Bondesson Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

A more consistent Richard TEDER (EST), determined to secure his first win over the match, got the better of Stuart GREHAN (IRL) by 2&1 in Game 8.

Grehan v. Teder Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) completed a four-out-of-four win record for GB&I with an error free performance against Kristian HJORT BRESSUM (DEN) who will be rueing his play around the turn where he essentially handed the win to the in-form Scotsman.

Adam v. Hjort Bressum Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Day 2 AM Foursomes

GB&I matched their Foursomes performance of yesterday winning the Day 2 series 3.5-0.5.

Trailing 11.5-4.5 after this session any hope Continent of Europe had of retaining the trophy they won with ease last year at Royal Porthcawl was effectively ended.

Play on Friday started at 8.30am CEST (7.30am BST) at Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro on the outskirts of Madrid.

GB&I captain Dean Robertson understandably made no changes to his successful Day 1 pairings with Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) again left out.

Sergio JIMENEZ ROMERO (ESP) was dropped by captain Carlos de Corral from the Continent of Europe’s Foursomes line up. De Corral also chose to tweak his pairings with Gunnlauger Arni SVEINSSON (ISL) joining Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) and new-boy Alfons BONDESSON (SWE) paired with Hugo LE GOFF (FRA).

Day 2 Foursomes Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Tyler WEAVER (ENG) & Connor GRAHAM (SCO) finally overcame Gunnlauger Arni SVEINSSON (ISL) & Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) on the 18th hole in what was generally a high class match with plenty of birdies.

Weaver & Graham v. Jakubčík & Sveinsson Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

A strong finish from Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) & Richard TEDER (EST) nearly helped them successfully turnaround their game against Luke POULTER & Charlie FORSTER but the English pair were able to salvage a good half with a crucial birdie on the par 5 18th.

Poulter & Forster v. Wiedemeyer & Teder Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Six birdies from Eliot BAKER (ENG) & Stuart GREHAN (IRL) ensured they won Game 3 against Hugo LE GOFF (FRA) & Alfons BONDESSON (SWE) by 2 Holes albeit the final one on the 18th was much needed to close this one out.

Baker & Grehan v. Le Goff & Bondesson Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) & Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) beat the out of sorts Danish pairing of Kristian HJORT BRESSUM & Claes THRANE BORREGAARD in the final morning game. Whilst Adam & Clemons were unable to match the closing birdie that the three GB&I pairings all achieved ahead of them they had already done enough to earn the final Foursomes point.

Adam & Clemons v. Hjort Bressum & Borregaard Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

ME.

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Thursday 24th July 2025

Day 1 PM Singles

GB&I extended their lead to four points after winning the Day 1 afternoon Singles series 4.5-3.5.

Play started at 1.30pm CEST (12.30am BST) with Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) and Kristian HJORT BRESSUM (DEN) left out of the GB&I and Continent of Europe Singles line-ups by the two captains, Dean Robertson and Carlos de Corral.

Day 1 Singles Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Tyler WEAVER (ENG), who was 4Up with eight holes to play, will be disappointed not to have brought home a full point for GB&I in his game against debutant Alfons BONDESSON (SWE). To his credit Bondesson fought back well and was able to to take advantage of some poor play on the back nine from the Englishman.

Weaver v. Bondesson Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

After a slow start Luke POULTER (ENG) produced six birdies to overcome European Amateur champion Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) who had an up-and-down day in Madrid. This was Poulter’s second point of the day and the Florida Gator is certainly making a positive impression.

Poulter v. Jakubčík Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Connor GRAHAM (SCO) proved to be too good for Spain’s Sergio JIMENEZ ROMERO in Game 3. The Texas Tech rising sophomore strung five birdies together on the front nine to take control of this encounter and despite a few hiccups coming home secured a solid 3&1 win.

Graham v. Jimenez Romero Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

France’s Hugo LE GOFF, winner of the 2025 Lytham Trophy, is a quality player and far from the ideal opponent for Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) to be drawn against on his GB&I debut. Le Goff was four under par with no bogeys recorded for the 17 holes he required to complete a 2&1 win for the Continent’s first win of the afternoon.

Tiernan v. Le Goff Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Three birdies in a row from the 12th helped Eliot BAKER (ENG) run out a 4&3 winner against Gunnlaugur Arni SVEINSSON (ISL) who was far to inconsistent in his play to gain any momentum in this particular game.

Baker v. Sveinsson Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Claes THRANE BORREGAARD (DEN) edged a close match against Charlie FORSTER (ENG) with a clutch birdie on the par 5 18th.

Foster v. Borregaard Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) enjoyed a fast start to his match against Richard TEDER (EST) with four birdies in their opening six holes. Playing with confidence after his great summer the Northwestern man secured a comfortable 4&3 win.

Adam v. Teder Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) posted an eagle and three birdies in an error free performance that saw him overcome re-instated amateur Stuart GREHAN (IRL) by 3&2 in the final game of the day.

Grehan v. Wiedemeyer Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Day 1 AM Foursomes

GB&I made a good start to The 35th St. Andrews Trophy match winning the morning Foursomes series 3.5-0.5 in Madrid, Spain.

Play started at 8.30am CEST (7.30am BST) at Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro with Gavin TIERNAN (IRL) and Alfons BONDESSON (ESP) left out of the Foursomes line-ups by the two captains, Dean Robertson and Carlos de Corral.

Day 1 Foursomes Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

The strong pairing of Tyler WEAVER (ENG) & Connor GRAHAM (SCO) delivered a 2&1 win for GB&I against Sergio JIMENEZ ROMERO (ESP) & Filip JACUBČÍK (CZH) in Game 1. Having taken a 3Up lead after seven holes the Anglo-Scottish pair saw the match out with relative ease.

Weaver & Graham v. Jimenez Romero & Jakubčík Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Luke POULTER (ENG) & Charlie FORSTER (ENG) delivered six birdies on route to a 2&1 victory against Gunnlaugur Arni SVEINSSON (ISL) & Hugo LE GOFF (FRA) who did little wrong in a competitive encounter.

Poulter & Forster v. Sveinsson & Le Goff Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

A poor finish from Stuart GREHAN (IRL) & Eliot BAKER (ENG), where they dropped two shots in the closing three holes and most importantly a critical one on the par 5 18th, handed a half to the Danish pair Claes THRANE BORREGAARD & Kristian HJORT BRESSUM in Game 3.

Grehan & Baker & Borregaard & BressumScoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) & Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) made up for GB&I’s disappointment in the preceeding game by producing a superb birdie on the 18th hole to secure a 1 Hole win against Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) and Richard TEDER (EST) who fought back well from a sloppy front nine.

Adam & Clemons v. Wiedemeyer & Teder Scoreboard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

ME.

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22nd July 2025

The 35th St. Andrews Trophy match will be contested on Thursday 24th and Friday 25th July at Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro in Madrid, Spain.

This amateur men’s team match has been played biennially between Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) and the Continent of Europe since 1956.

It was originally established by The R&A to give more European players the chance to play at the highest level and GB&I players more team match play experience for the Walker Cup which is held in alternate years with this competition.

Due to changes being made to the international golf calendar the 2025 match unusually takes place only a year after the last one and in the same year as the Walker Cup.

The St. Andrews Trophy was put forward for the match by the Royal and Ancient G.C. of St. Andrews in 1963.

2025 Teams

Each team has nine players.

The golfing calendar is extremely busy at this time of year and therefore player availability can be impacted by other opportunities. Recent history shows that this is a particular issue on the Continent of Europe’s side albeit this year they appear to have a strong side out.

Great Britain & Ireland Team

The R&A Selection Committee, including Captain Dean Robertson (Scotland), 55, announced their nine man team on 4th July.

With the Walker Cup match coming up in September Robertson, who is Head of Golf at the University of Stirling, will be looking for a victory to instil some confidence in his team as well as increasing the chances of him remaining in post beyond the match in Cypress Point.

GB&I’s 2025 team will consist of six new and three returning players.

Each player’s nationality, current WAGR, selection route and event history is shown below.

Cameron ADAM (21) – Scotland, #29, WAGR Top 5 (Debut, 2025)

Eliot BAKER (22) – England, #121, Captain’s Pick (Debut, 2025)

Dominic CLEMONS (23) – England, #44, WAGR Top 5 (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

Charlie FORSTER (22) – England, #57, Captain’s Pick (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

Connor GRAHAM (18) – Scotland, #40, WAGR Top 5 (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

Stuart GREHAN (32) – Ireland, #627, Captain’s Pick (2nd Appearance, 2016, ’25)

Luke POULTER (21) – England, #41, Captain’s Pick* (Debut, 2025)

Gavin TIERNAN (19) – Ireland, #583, Captain’s Pick (Debut, 2025)

Tyler WEAVER (20) – England, #14, WAGR Top 5 (Debut, 2025)

* Luke Poulter was the 5th highest ranked GB&I player on WAGR on 2nd July 2025 but did not meet the minimum divisor of 18 proviso so this selection spot was transferred over to an additional Captain’s pick.

Three GB&I players in the WAGR Top 100 were not selected, namely, Jack BIGHAM (England) #54. Matthew DODD-BERRY (England) #96 and Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (Scotland) #97.

Great Britain & Ireland Team (Graphic: RFEG)

Continent of Europe

Carlos de Corral (Spain), 45, took over the captaincy of the Continent of Europe team in 2024, winning his first game in charge at Royal Porthcawl.

De Corral is a very experienced team captain leading Spanish teams on numerous occasions. He is the Sports Director at the Madrid Golf Federation and will be very well versed on the host course.

His team was announced by the European Golf Association (EGA) on 24th June (six players in First Wave) and 17th July (three players after the European Amateur Championship).

Like GB&I, Europe’s team will consist of six new and three returning players this year.

Each player’s nationality, current WAGR, selection route and event history is shown below.

Alfons BONDESSON – Sweden, #90, First Wave (Debut, 2025)

Kristian HJORT BRESSUM – Denmark, #71, Second Wave (Debut, 2025)

Filip JACUBČÍK– Czech Republic, #6, Second Wave (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

Sergio JIMENEZ ROMERO – Spain, #74, First Wave (Debut, 2025)

Hugo LE GOFF – France, #55, First Wave (Debut, 2025)

Gunnlaugur Arni SVEINSSON – Iceland, #15, First Wave (Debut, 2025)

Richard TEDER – Estonia, #80, Second Wave (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

Claes Thrane BORREGAARD – Denmark, #95, First Wave (Debut, 2025)

Tim WIEDEMEYER – Germany, #35, First Wave (2nd Appearance, 2024, ’25)

The leading European players, according to WAGR Top 100, who are not playing this year are Michael MJAASETH (Denmark) #23, Daniel SVARD (Sweden) #52, Peer WERNICKE (Germany) #63, Benjamin REUTER (Netherlands) #65, Wolfgang GLAWE (GER) #67 and Lev GRINBERG (Ukraine) #91.

It is perhaps a little surprising that no Italians have been selected given that their 6-man team won the European Men’s Amateur Team Championship two weeks ago in Killarney, beating Denmark in the Final.

Continent of Europe Team (Photo: RFEG)

Match Format 

The St. Andrews Trophy is played over two days and consists of a number of match play foursomes and singles games.

Thursday 25th July AM – Foursomes x 4
Thursday 25th July PM – Singles x 8
Friday 26th July AM – Foursomes x 4
Friday 26th July PM – Singles x 9

The additional Singles game on Day 2 was introduced in 2016.

With a maximum total of 25 points available and one point awarded for each match a team will be required to accumulate 13 points to secure an outright victory.

As the holders Continent of Europe can retain the Trophy by reaching 12.5 points.

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The St. Andrews Trophy (Photo: Suomen Golfliitto / Finnish Golf Union)

Venue – Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro

Founded in 1895 Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro is one of Spain’s most prestigious clubs and has hosted many national and international amateur and professional tournaments over the years.

It has hosted the Spanish Open 15 times and the Madrid Open 26 times.

The Club has also hosted the Eisenhower Trophy, the Bonallack Trophy, the European Amateur Championship and the European Mid-Amateur Championship. The latter event in 2017 was won by the Continent of Europe’s team captain Carlos de Corral.

The Club enjoys two 18 holes, The Arriba (Upper) and The Abajo (Lower), both laid out on rolling tree lined terrain. The Arriba, which is being used this week, is generally considered the weaker of the two course. It plays to around 7,042 yards and a par of 72.

This will be the first time that the St. Andrews Trophy match has been played in Spain since 1990 when GB&I won at El Saler.

Weather Forecast – as at 3.00pm on Tuesday 22nd July 2025

The weather forecast for Madrid looks excellent this week: –

Thur 24th July – Sunny. Wind 13mph NE. Temp. Max. 15°C / Min. 30°C.
Fri 25th July – Sunny. Wind 11mph NE. Temp. Max. 16°C / Min. 30°C.

2024 Match – Royal Porthcawl Golf Club, Wales

Continent of Europe won the 34th St. Andrews Trophy match against Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) at Royal Porthcawl G.C. by 16.0-9.0.

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Continent of Europe (Photo: Cameron Smith / R&A / R&A via Getty Images)

It was Europe’s sixth win in total, only their second away victory and their biggest ever surpassing their 15.5-9.5 triumph in Finland in 2018.

Luis MASAVEU (ESP) from the Continent of Europe was the only player to complete a 100% 4-from-4 record over the two days. His compatriot Pablo EREÑO PÉREZ was also undefeated, winning all three of the games he was selected for.

GB&I’s Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) and Connor GRAHAM (SCO) won both of their Singles and finished the match with three wins in total.

Click here to view the – 2024 St. Andrews Trophy Match Results

Past Results

In the 34 encounters to date GB&I have won the St. Andrews Trophy 26 times.

Europe have seven wins to their name albeit four of them have come recently in 2010, 2012, 2018 and 2024.

The match in 2016 was tied for the first time  with GB&I, who were the trophy holders, retaining the trophy.

Click here to view a summary of the – Historic St. Andrews Trophy Results

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

June 2025 Men’s Amateur Rankings

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4th July 2025

Throughout the year I analyse the main golf rankings to help us assess the performances of Great Britain and Ireland’s leading players as well as the status of events they compete in.

This information is maintained on the Rankings page of the GolfBible website and is updated quarterly.

The latest update covering the June 2025 Quarter period has now been added.

I have selected Eliot BAKER (ENG) as My Player of the Quarter based on his very consistent play throughout the period, topped off with a superb win in the Scottish Men’s Open Championship.

Eliot Baker (Photo: Scottish Golf)

Here is a summary of Eliot’s performances between April and June 2025: –

European Amateur Championship – 21st
The Amateur Championship – 17th
St. Andrews Links Trophy – 44th
Scottish Men’s Open Championship – 1st (-20 at North Berwick, 7-shot win)
Brabazon Trophy – 3rd
Lytham Trophy – 11th
Spain vs. England Mixed International Match – Won (P4 W3 H0 L1)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) ran Eliot close with his St. Andrews Links Trophy win and victory in the 3-event Amateur Open Series.

Pease click this link to be redirected to my Rankings page – GolfBible Rankings

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

The European Amateur Championship – 2025 Preview & Results

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28th June 2025

Round 4

A final round 67 (-5) helped 21 year old Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) to a 3-shot victory in the 2025 European Men’s Amateur Championship. His winning score was 280 (-8) and he becomes the first Czech player to win the title. This is the most prestigious win for the Czech star who will shortly commence his senior season at University of Arizona and can look forward to improving his current WAGR #9 ranking next week.

With the win Jakubčík earned an exemption into The 153rd Open Championship which will be played at Royal Portrush G.C. next month.

Filip Jakubčik (Photo: European Golf Association)

Kristin BRESSUM (DEN) earned the silver medal on 283 (-5) and Sakke SILTALA (FIN) the bronze medal on 284 (-4).

Bressum and Siltala were joined by Wolfgang GLAWE (GER), WAGR #96, and Matteo CRISTONI (ITA) 285 (-3), WAGR #284, tied 4th, in earning an exemption into Final Qualifying for The Open Championship next Tuesday. Glawe subsequently declined the invitation.

Cameron ADAM (SCO) was the leading GB&I player finishing tied 9th on 287 (-1). Following on from his win in the St. Andrews Links Trophy earlier this month he won The Open Amateur Series to also earn a spot in The Open Championship.

Zach LITTLE (ENG), Charlie FORSTER (ENG) & Stuart GREHAN (IRL) all finished tied 12th on 288 (Ev), Jenson FORRESTER (ENG) & Seb CAVE (ENG) 290 (+2) tied 18th and Freddie TURNELL (ENG) & Eliot BAKER (ENG) 291 (+3) tied 21st.

Defending champion Tommy MORRISON (USA) saved his best to the last round at Vasatorp G.C., an eight birdie 6-under 66 lifting him up to tied 12th.

The average Round 4 score was 72.39 (+0.39) with 24 players breaking par on Saturday and a further eight shooting an even par 72.

Final Results (Graphic: European Golf Association / GolfBox)

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2025 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

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27th June 2025

Round 3

Finn KOELLE (GER), Kristian BRESSUM (DEN) and Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) finished Day 2 tied for the lead on 213 (-3). Whilst Bressum and Jakubcik could only manage 1-over 73’s Koelle took advantage with a 2-under 70.

After Round 3 just six players are now under par for the Championship with Sakke SILTALA (FIN) -2 and Nevill RUITER (NED)  and Matteo CRISTONI (ITA) -1 the nearest challengers to the three co-leaders.

Cameron ADAM (SCO) & Stuart GREHAN (IRL) Ev are tied 7th and Charlie FORSTER (ENG), Seb CAVE (ENG) and Jenson FORRESTER (ENG) +1 tied 9th.

60 players made the top 60 and ties 54 hole cut which fell at 224 (+8).

The average Round 3 score was 76.09 (+4.09) with just five players breaking par and three managing a par 72 on another tough day in Sweden.

Round 3 Leaderboard (Graphic: European Golf Association / GolfBox)

ME.

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26th June 2025

Round 2

Sakke SILTALA (FIN) recorded five birdies in his second round 68 (-4) to move into the 36 hole lead with a 139 (-5) total.

Kristian BRESSUM (DEN) and Filip JAKUBČÍK (CZH) share 2nd place on 140 (-4). Bressum delivered the best round of the week so far on Day 2 with a bogey free 65 (-7), a full 10 shots better than his Round 1 score. Jakubcik’s 69 was a bit more up-and-down, including an eagle and four birdies but also three bogeys.

From a GB&I perspective Stuart GREHAN (IRL) -3 is tied 4th, Charlie FORSTER (ENG), Jenson FORRESTER (ENG) & Seb CAVE (ENG) -1 are tied 9th and Eliot BAKER (ENG) & Zach LITTLE (ENG) Ev are tied 18th.

100 players made the 36 hole top 96 and ties first cut which fell at +9. Dion REGAN (WAL) showed good heart in making this cut. After an 84 in Round 1 he bounced back today with a 68 to finish on -8. A total of 27 GB&I players lived to fight another day in Sweden.

The average Round 2 score was 73.43 (+1.43), a full four shots lower than yesterday. 42 players broke par compared with 10 in Round 1 and 21 shot a par 72 compared with 5 yesterday. Whilst Day 1 saw no scores in the 60’s an easier scoring day for Round 2 saw 16.

Round 2 Leaderboard (Graphic: European Golf Association / GolfBox)

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25th June 2025

Round 1

Jack GILBERT (USA), Gerardo GOMEZ (MEX) and Kayun MUDADANA (AUS) all shot 2-under 70’s on Day 1 at Vasatorp G.C. to share the early lead in the European Amateur.

Seb CAVE (ENG) and Stuart GREHAN (IRL) -1, Zach LITTLE (ENG) & Jenson FORRESTOR (ENG) Ev and Thomas HIGGINS (IRL), Tom OSBORNE (ENG) & Harley SMITH (ENG) +1 are the leading GB&I players.

The average Round 1 score was 77.43 (+5.43). Just 10 of the 144 players broke par with a further 5 shooting par 72.

Round 1 Leaderboard (Graphic: European Golf Association / GolfBox)

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24th June 2025

The 38th European Amateur Championship will be played at Vasatorp G.C. in Sweden between 25th-28th June 2025.

This prestigious Championship is run by the European Golf Association (EGA), assisted each year by the host nation; this year being the Swedish Golf Fderation.

This will be the fourth occasion that Sweden has hosted the European Amateur. It has previously been staged at Karlstad (1996), Skövde G.C. (2004) and Halmstad G.C. (2011).

Vasatorp Golf Club (Photo: EGA)

Competition Format

The European Amateur is a 72-hole stroke play competition with 18-holes played daily over four days.

There will be two cuts applied to the field during the Championship. After 36 holes only players with the 96 lowest scores and ties will progress and then after 54 holes only the 60 lowest scores and ties will qualify for the final round.

A 3 hole aggregate score play off will decide the winner in the event of a tie. If this doesn’t separate the players then a sudden death play-off will commence over the same holes.

A card count-back (last 36, then 18, then 9, etc,) will be used to resolve a tie for 2nd and 3rd place.

Entries

144 players from 41 countries will contest the 2025 Championship.

All of the players in the field must have handicaps of 0.0 or better with the entry ballot applied based on the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

Exemptions were available to the defending champion, a single nomination from each EGA member nation, four nominated players from the host nation, Sweden, competitors in the Bonallack Trophy, St. Andrew’s Trophy and Jacques Léglise Trophy matches, the 2025 South American Amateur champion and the 2025 European Mid-Amateur champion.

There are 34 GB&I entries, namely Cameron ADAM (SCO), Eliot BAKER (ENG), Tom BASTOW (WAL), Jack BIGHAM (ENG), Ben BOLTON (ENG), Tomi BOWEN (WAL), Seb CAVE (ENG), Sebastian DESOISA (GIB), Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG), Jenson FORRESTER (ENG), Charlie FORSTER (ENG), Conor GOUGH (ENG), Connor GRAHAM (SCO), Stuart GREHAN (IRL), Daniel HAYES (ENG), Thomas HIGGINS (IRL), Monty HOLCOMBE (ENG), Seán KEELING (IRL) Kris KIM (ENG), Aidan LAWSON (SCO), Oscar LENT (ENG), Zach LITTLE (ENG), Matthew MCCLEAN (IRL), Dominic MCGLINCHEY (SCO), Tom OSBORNE (ENG), Dion REGAN (WAL), Matt ROBERTS (WAL), Charlie RUSBRIDGE (ENG), Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (SCO), Harley SMITH (ENG), Henry STYLES (ENG), Gregor TAIT (SCO), Freddie TURNELL (ENG) and Tyler WEAVER (ENG).

The leading international entries (WAGR Top 100) are Christiaan MAAS (RSA), defending champion Tommy MORRISON (USA), Filip JAKUBCIK (CZH), Connor WILLIAMS (USA), Michael Alexander MJAASETH (NOR), Luke POTTER (USA), Daniel BENNETT (RSA), Daniel SVÅRD (SWE), Hugo LE GOFF (FRA), Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER), Peer WERNICKE (GER), Benjamin REUTER (NED), Luke SAMPLE (USA) and Wolfgang GLAWE (GER).

Vasatorp Golf Club, Sweden

Vasatorp Golf Club, which has hosted numerous national and international tournaments in the past, is located on the eastern side of Helsingborg.

The Tournament Course, an open and undulating heathland layout with some water hazards, was designed by Arthur Hills and Steve Forrest in 2008.

The layout stretches up to 6,735m and plays to a par of 72 from the back tees.

Vasatorp Golf Club (Graphic: EGA)

Weather Forecast (as at 24th June)

Conditions are expected to be generally good, albeit with some rain likely and relatively strong winds.

Weds 25th June – Light Rain Showers. Wind 16 mph NW. Min. 10°C / Max. 19°C.
Thurs 26th June – Sunny Intervals. Wind 10 mph SE. Min. 15°C / Max. 20°C.
Fri 27th June – Sunny Intervals. Wind 18 mph NW. Min. 13°C / Max. 21°C.
Sat 28th June – Sunny Intervals. Wind 15 mph W. Min. 13°C / Max. 22°C.

Prizes

Gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded to the top 3 finishers.

The silver Championship Trophy, shown below, is held by the winning player’s national golf authority.

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The European Amateur Championship Trophy (Photo: EGA)

The Open Championship

The champion earns an exemption into The Open Championship in a few weeks time, this year being played at Royal Portrush G.C. in Northern Ireland.

The Open Amateur Series Winner – the player who gains the most WAGR points in the St. Andrews Links Trophy, the Amateur Championship and the European Amateur Championship – (as long as they don’t win either the Amateur or European Amateur) will also earn a spot at Royal Portrush.

Players who finish in 2nd to 4th places in this year’s European Amateur will also be offered a place in Final Qualifying which takes place next Tuesday, the 1st July. Any ties for 2nd-4th will be decided in favour of the highest ranked player in WAGR.

Other Championships

The USGA also grants exemptions to the winner into the U.S. Amateur Championship, the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship (if U19) and into Final Qualifying for the 2026 U.S. Open Championship (subject to remaining an amateur).

Further Information

Click here to view the – EGA European Amateur Championship Website

2024 European Amateur Championship

Tommy MORRISON (USA) won the 2024 European Amateur Championship at The Scandinavian G.C. in Denmark becoming the first American to win the title. He finished a three hole aggregate play-off on -2, one better than Ireland’s Max KENNEDY and three better than his compatriot Preston SUMMERHAYS.

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Tommy Morrison (Photo: European Golf Association)

Max Kennedy’s Scorecard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Calum SCOTT (SCO) finished in 4th place on -7 and newly crowned Amateur champion Jacob Skov OLESEN (DEN), Santiago de la FUENTE (MEX) & Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) -6 were all tied 5th.

GB&I players Liam NOLAN (IRL) -4 11th and Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (SCO), Dylan SHAW-RADFORD (ENG) & Charlie FORSTER (ENG) -1 tied 16th finished in the top 20.

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2024 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

History

The competition was first contested in 1986 at Eindhoven G.C. Initially it was held biennially before moving to an annual fixture from 1990.

Former winners who have gone on to enjoy successful professional careers include Stephen GALLACHER (1994), Sergio GARCIA (1995), Gregory HAVRET (1999), Carl PETTERSSON (2000), Rory MCILROY (2006), Victor DUBUISSON (2009), Nicolai HØJGÅRD (2018) and Matthias SCHMID (2019 & 2020).

In addition to Gallacher and McIlroy other GB&I past winners include Jim PAYNE (1991), Paddy GRIBBEN (1998), Stephen BROWNE (2001), Brian MCELHINNEY (2003), Matthew RICHARDSON (2004), Rhys PUGH (2012) and Ashley CHESTERS (2013 and 2014) and Alfie PLANT (2017).

Ashley Chesters and Matthias Schmid are the only two-time winners and the only players to have retained the trophy.

Click here to view the – European Amateur Championship Past Winners and Venues

Rory McIlroy – 2006 Champion (Photo: European Golf Association)

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

The St. Andrews Links Trophy – 2025 Preview & Results

Posted on by

8th June 2025

Play-Off

Cameron ADAM (SCO) won the 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy after a sudden death play-off with John DOYLE (IRL).

Adam won on the first play-off hole – the 1st on the Old Course – with a two putt par 4 after the young Irishman three putt bogeyed the hole.

The man from The Royal Burgess Golfing Society in Edinburgh also won The Ian Forbes Memorial Cup which is awarded for the best aggregate score on the first two days of the tournament. He shot a 68 on the Jubilee Course in Round 1 and a 64 on the Old Course. in Round 2 for a 132 (-12) total.

Cameron Adam (Photo: Adam Family)

Round 4

Cameron ADAM (SCO) and John DOYLE (IRL) both finished the 72 hole tournament on 271 (-17).

17 year old Doyle completed rounds of 66 (-6) and 65 (-7) to come from outside the top 20 on the final day. Doyle teed off 1 hour and 44 minutes ahead of Adam this afternoon. Despite winning both the Irish Boys’ and Munster Men’s Amateur Open Championships this season Doyle was only ranked 1,524th coming into the event.

Having posted the low round this morning Doyle went one better this afternoon with a 65 which included 10 birdies. This was the joint low round this afternoon with France’s Gaspar GLAUDAS matching his effort.

The far more experienced Adam (WAGR #73), who had to play catch up all afternoon, showed great poise to play a bogey free final round of 68 and secure the birdie he needed on the 72nd hole to force the play-off.

Cameron Adam and John Doyle’s Final Scorecards (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Mark STOCKDALE (ENG) -14 finished 3rd, Harley SMITH (ENG) -12 4th, Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (SCO) -12 5th, Christiaan MAAS (RSA) -11 6th, Ugo MALCOR (FRA) -11 7th and Thomas HIGGINS -11 8th.

Final Results – Top 20 (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

The average Round 4 score was 71.41 (-0.59). 37 players shot par or better on Sunday afternoon.

Click here to view the – 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy Results

Round 3

Thomas HIGGINS (IRL) moved into the lead on -14 after a 5-under 67 in this morning’s third round.

Thomas Higgins’ Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Cameron ADAM (SCO) fell into 2nd place with an up and down 71 which included an eagle, three birdies and four bogeys. This was 2 shots better than his playing partner Niall SHIELS DONEGAN who finished the 54 holes tied 6th after a 73.

John DOYLE (IRL) played his way into the tournament and 3rd place with the best morning round; a bogey free 66 with just 31 shots required on the back nine.

John Doyle’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Timothy CHAN (HKG) 67, Mark STOCKDALE (ENG) & Harley SMITH (ENG) both 68 and Diego PATROCINIO LOURENCO (FRA) & Kayun MUDANDA (AUS) both 69 all moved up the leaderboard with under par rounds.

The average Round 3 score from the 53 players who made the cut was 71.53 (-0.47). 36 players shot par or better on Sunday morning.

Round 3 Leaderboard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

ME.

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7th June 2025

Round 2

Cameron ADAM (SCO) will take a 2-shot lead into the final day of the St. Andrews Links Trophy after he shot a superb 8-under 64 on the Old Course in Round 2.

Cameron Adam Round 2 Scorecard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Adam’s 132 (-12) total is 2-shots better than his fellow Scot and current Northwestern University teammate Niall SHIELS DONEGAN who stayed in touch with his own 6-under 66.

Niall Shiels Donegan Round 2 Scorecard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Thomas HIGGINS (IRL) and Kris KIM (ENG) both shot 7-under 65’s on the Old Course to move into the top 5.

Ominously Christiaan MAAS (RSA), ranked 10th in WAGR, moved up into 4th after a 67 today.

Overnight co-leader Ugo MALCOR -7 slipped to tied 5th but remains in the mix. The other co-leader Loran APPEL could only manage a 75 on Day 2, just making the cut on the 142 (-2) number.

Round 2 Leaderboard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

The average Round 2 score was 71.98 (-0.02). There were 72 rounds below par on Saturday with a further 14 of par.

53 players made the top 40 and ties cut and can now look forward to a final 36 holes on the Old Course.

Amongst those to miss out were Jack BIGHAM (ENG) -1, Matthew DODD-BERRY (ENG) Ev, Zach LITTLE (+2), Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG) +3, Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) +4, Matt ROBERTS (WAL) +5, Tommy MORRISON (USA) +5 and defending champion Seb CAVE (ENG) +5.

ME.

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6th June 2025

Round 1

Ugo MALCOR (FRA) and Loran APPEL (NED) both shot 5-under 67’s around the Jubilee Course to share the early lead at the St. Andrews Links Trophy.

Ugo Malcor and Loran Appel Round 1 Scorecards (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Lauri ROSENDAHL (FIN), Louis ANCEAUX (FRA), Cameron ADAM (SCO), Filippo PONZANO (ITA), Niall SHIELS-DONEGAN (SCO) and Josh HILL (ENG) are all 1-shot further back.

The average Round 1 score was 73.15 (+1.15).

48 players recorded under par scores in the opening round. A further 21 players finished the day on Even par. One of the latter group, Paraguay’s Erich FORTIAGE, enjoyed a hole-in-one on 146 yard par 3 5th.

Round 1 Leaderboard (Graphic: St Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

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3rd June 2025

144 golfers will tee off on Friday 6th June in the 36th St. Andrews Links Trophy.

This three day event has become one of the ‘majors’ in men’s amateur golf helped by its venue and timing.

I will be updating this article with daily reports once play gets underway.

Competition Format

The Links Trophy is a 72 hole scratch stroke play competition played annually over the St. Andrews Links in early June.

The Old Course (Photo: St. Andrews Links – The Home of Golf)

The field is primarily determined by reference to the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and finished off with various National Golf Union and St. Andrews Links Trust nominations.

This year Round 1 will be played on the Jubilee Course and Round 2 on the Old Course. The New Course is sometimes used for Round 1 as it was last year.

The Jubilee Course plays 6,735 yards to a par of 72. The front nine is 3,186 yards long whilst the tougher back nine is 3,549 yards, both playing to pars of 36. It has a Course Rating of 74.1 and a Slope of 135.

The Old Course has been set up at 7,171 yards for the event and has a par of 72. Both nines have a par of 36 and have similar yardages – the front is 3,535 yards long whilst the back is longer at 3,636 yards. It has a Course Rating of 75.6 and a Slope of 143.

Following a top 40 and ties cut on Saturday the leading players will play a final 36 holes on the Old Course on Sunday.

The winner will be the player who returns the lowest 72 hole aggregate score.

In the event of a tie a sudden death play-off will be held over holes 1 and 18 on the Old Course.

Ties for all other places will be decided by count back – the lowest score for the last 18 holes or the last 9 or 6 or 3 or 1 hole if necessary.

The Field

As this is the first event that is taking place in Great Britain & Ireland after the U.S. college season has ended the field is stronger than we have seen in recent weeks.

The DRVN.Golf Power Estimator is estimating a WAGR rating of 728.6450 for this year’s event*. This compares favourably with 717.2064 in 2023 and 675.4594 in 2024.

[*The Actual WAGR Power Number was 729.8928]

30 different countries will be represented in Fife in 2025.

The 20 highest ranked players in the field are Tommy MORRISON (USA) #9, Christiaan MAAS (RSA) #10, Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) #45, Luke COLTON (USA) #51, Jack BIGHAM (ENG) #55,  Tim WIEDEMEYER (GER) #68, Cameron ADAM (SCO) #73, Luke SAMPLE (USA) #87, Matthew DODD-BERRY (ENG) #102, Segundo OLIVA PINTO (ARG) #108, Lev GRINBERG (UKR) #124, defending champion Seb CAVE (ENG) #127, Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (SCO) #154, Rintaro NAKANO (JAP) #161, Gerardo GOMEZ (MEX) #173, Harley SMITH (ENG) #175, Jacob MELIN (SWE) #185, Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG) #186, Eliot BAKER (ENG) #188 and Alexis LERAY (FRA) #193.

GB&I notables Charlie FORSTER (ENG), Connor GRAHAM (SCO), Ross LAIRD (SCO), Luke POULTER (ENG) and Tyler WEAVER (ENG) are all competing in The Arnold Palmer Cup USA v. International team match at Congaree G.C.

Jonathan BALE (WAL), who is US-based, Seb DESOISA (GIB), Calum SCOTT (SCO), who is turning pro shortly, and Freddie TURNELL (ENG) are the only GB&I players in the WAGR Top 500 who are not competing.

Tee Times

Click here to view the – 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy Tee Times

Weather Forecast (as at Tuesday 3rd June)

The current weather forecast looks poor; cool with some rain and strong breezes expected every day.

Friday 6th June – Sunny AM / Light Rain PM. Wind 18 mph SW. Temp. Min. 8°C / Max. 16°C.
Saturday 7th June – Light Rain. Wind 9 mph S. Temp. Min. 7°C / Max. 14°C.
Sunday 8th June – Sunny AM / Light Rain PM. Wind 16 mph W. Temp. Min. 6°C / Max. 16°C.

Tee times in Rounds 1 and 2 will start at 7.00am and end at 3.10pm so as with any links course the draw could play a part in proceedings.

Prizes

The winner receives The St Andrews Links Trophy and a commemorative medal.

The runner-up and third place finisher also receive medals.

Reducing cash prizes from £700 to £125 are also awarded to the top 10 finishers.

In addition to the main prizes The Ian Forbes Memorial Cup is awarded for the best aggregate score on the first two days of the Championship, together with £150 cash.

The Open Championship

Introduced in 2023 The Open Amateur Series, which offers an exemption into The Open Championship, is again being run by The R&A.

The player who gains the most WAGR points in the 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy, Amateur Championship and European Amateur Championship will earn a spot at Royal Portrush in July.

Competition Website

For more information click here to view the – 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy Tournament Website

Click here to view the – 2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy Leaderboard

2024 St. Andrews Links Trophy

Seb CAVE (ENG) completed a wire-to-wire victory in the 35th St. Andrews Links Trophy with a 281 (-6) total. The English Midlander shot 66 (New), 69 (Old), 75 (Old) and 71 (Old) to secure the coveted title.

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Seb Cave (Photo: St. Andrews Links Trust)

Harley SMITH (ENG) came 2nd ahead of Calum SCOTT (SCO) 3rd on count back after they both completed the tournament on 283 (-4).

Simon HOVDAL (SWE) was one shot behind Cave playing the 18th but a double bogey, having surprisingly pulled his tee shot left and out of bounds, relieved the pressure on the winner and saw the Swede tumble down to 4th place on -3.

Paul BEAUVY (FRA) was 5th on count back from Hovdal with Lars VAN DER VIGHT (NED) -2 6th. The Dutchman’s 67 this afternoon was the best final round score.

Josh HILL (ENG), Will HOPKINS (ENG) and Cameron ADAM (SCO) all finished on -1 to make the top 10.

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2025 St. Andrews Links Trophy – Top 20 Results (Graphic: St. Andrews Links Trust / Golf Genius)

Click here to view the – 2024 St. Andrews Trophy Results

Past Winners

Click here to view a full list of the – St Andrews Links Trophy Past Winners

Only Craig WATSON (1992 and 1998), the former GB&I Walker Cup captain, and Barclay HOWARD (1994 and 1996) have won the title twice.

The most famous winner is Justin ROSE who won in 1997.

Interestingly given the normally cosmopolitan nature of the fields the Links Trophy has only been won by players from outside GB&I on four occasions – Australia’s Stuart BOVIER (1990), Daan HUIZING from The Netherlands (2012), Federico ZUCCHETTI from Italy (2015) and Connor MCKINNEY (AUS) from Australia (2022).

Huizing, who had won the 2012 Lytham Trophy by 11 shots just a few weeks earlier, set a scoring record of -23 in 2012 (65 New, 64, 68 and 67 all Old) and won by an astonishing 14 shots.

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All Rights Reserved.

Scottish Men’s Open Championship – 2025 Preview & Results

Posted on by

1st June 2025

ROUND 4

Eliot BAKER (ENG) won the Scottish Men’s Open Championship at North Berwick by 7-shots, continuing the recent English dominance in this competition.

Three consecutive bogeys from the 2nd hole by Billy DOWLING (AUS) no doubt helped to settle leader Eliot BAKER (ENG) into the final round. Baker would go on to make four birdies himself on the front nine, going out in 33 shots, and when he eagled the 11th the Championship was effectively over as a contest. To his credit Baker, who also won the Portuguese International Amateur Championship earlier this year, saw out the remaining holes with ease.

Emil RIEGGER (USA) and Marian LUDWIG (GER) both finished with 67’s to secure 4th and 5th place respectively. Daniel HAYES (ENG) finished 6th on -8 after posting a 70 and 69 on the final day.

Tom OSBORNE (ENG), Timothy CHAN (HKG), Dian KRUGER (RSA), Ben BROWN (ENG), Mike GRAY (SCO), Morgan BLYTHE (ENG) and George CANNON (SCO) all finished the 72 holes on -7 to make up the top 13.

Final Results (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

Click here to view the – 2025 Scottish Men’s Open Championship Leaderboard

ROUND 3

Eliot BAKER (ENG) moved into a 1-shot lead at the Scottish Men’s Open Championship with a 7-under 64. He started the final round on -16.

Eliot Baker’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

Billy DOWLING (AUS) came home in 31 shots for a 67 to remain firmly in the mix on -15.

Dowling’s compatriot Kayun MUDADANA posted a 68 to start the final circuit on -11.

George CANNON -9 is 4th after a 69 and Emil RIEGGER (USA) -7 5th after a 70.

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31st May 2025

ROUND 2

Billy DOWLING (AUS) backed up his opening 64 with a solid 4-under 67 to take a 2-shot lead into the final round of the Scottish Men’s Open Championship.

Eliot BAKER (ENG) -9 is 2nd and Kayun MUDADANA (AUS) -8 3rd after they impressed on Saturday with a 66 and 64 respectively at North Berwick.

Scottish trio George CANNON -7 4th and Gregor TAIT -6 & Andrew DAVIDSON -6 tied 5th are nicely in the mix heading into the final day.

43 players made the top 40 and ties cut which fell at 143 (+1).

Round 2 Leaderboard (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

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30th May 2025

ROUND 1

Billy DOWLING (AUS) took the early lead in the Scottish Men’s Open Championship with a nine birdie 64 (-7) around North Berwick’s West Links.

Billy Dowling’s Round 1 Scorecard (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

Morgan BLYTHE (ENG) -6 and George CANNON (SCO) -5 played their way into 2nd and 3rd places respectively. Blythe enjoyed eight birdies in his round whilst Cannon delivered a bogey-free 66.

Eliot BAKER (ENG), Herman HUUS (NOR) and Harry THOMAS (ENG) are all tied 4th on -4.

On a good scoring day 31 players finished their rounds with an under par score with a further 22 shooting even par 71’s.

Round 1 Leaderboard (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

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27th May 2025

The 58th Scottish Men’s Open Stroke Play Championship starts on Friday 30th May at North Berwick Golf Club.

North Berwick G.C. (Photo: North Berwick G.C. Website)

Format

This open scratch amateur competition consists of 72 holes of stroke play.

18 holes will be played on both Friday 30th May and Saturday 31st May.

A 36 hole cut will then take place with only the leading 40 competitors and ties qualifying for the final two rounds which will be played on Sunday 1st June.

In the event of a tie for the Championship there will be a sudden death play off. All other ties will be resolved via card count back.

Field

144 competitors will start the 2025 Championship.

The field will be made up of (1) the 55 entrants with the highest WAGRs, (2) the next 55 players with the lowest WHS Handicap Index, (3) up to 12 Scottish Golf nominations and (4) a minimum of 24 players via the Pre-Qualifying event (see below).

Matt MCCLEAN (SCO) #149, Marian LUDWIG (GER) #263, Eliot BAKER (ENG) #289, Daniel HAYES (ENG) #308, Atin WADE ARTHUR (RSA) #320, Andrew DAVIDSON (SCO) #333, Aidan LAWSON (SCO) #384, Scott WOLTERING (NED) #390, Kayun MUDADANA (AUS) #405, Billy DOWLING (AUS) #406, Guus LAFEBER (NED) #442, Declan O’DONOVAN (AUS) #483, Ivan VERSTER (RSA) #518 and Jack BUCHANAN (AUS) #534 are the highest WAGR ranked players in the field.

The busy amateur schedule means that the Championship continues to struggle to attract a top class field despite often hosting it on some of the world’s best courses. The Scottish Open is being played adjacent to the U.S. NCAA Division I National Championship and East of Ireland Amateur Open Championship, after the Brabazon Trophy and before the St. Andrews Links Trophy and Amateur Championship.

The drvn.golf WAGR Power Estimator is suggesting a field strength number of c.285.0000* for the 2025 event. By way of comparison the Championship’s Power was 306.7519 in 2024 (Muirfield), 252.0597 in 2023 (Meldrum House) and 601.8878 in 2022 (Cruden Bay).

* Actual WAGR Event Power confirmed as 291.9717

Pre-Qualifying

Scottish Golf, for the fourth time, held an 18 hole Pre-Qualifying event. This year it took place on Tuesday 27th May at Haddington G.C.

Kenneth GLEN (SCO), Mason ROLOFF (USA) and Adam GILES (SCO), who all posted 69’s (-2), were the co-medalists leading 28 players into the main event. The cut fell at +2 with 6 of the 11 players on that number progressing after count back. The players who missed out will now have to make do with places on the reserve list.

Click here to view the – 2025 Scottish Men’s Open Championship Pre-Qualifying Results

Tee Times

Play on Friday and Saturday will commence at 7.00am with the final three-ball setting out at 3.20pm.

Click here to view the – 2025 Scottish Men’s Open Championship Tee Times

North Berwick

The Championship is being played on North Berwick’s West Links course.

The North Berwick Golf Club was formed in 1832 which led to organised golf first being played over this unique piece of land.

The Championship tees can stretch the course to 6,579 yards with a par of 71. The par 4 13th “Pit”, which plays to a green behind a wall, the 14th “Perfection”, the par 3 15th “Redan” and the 16th “Gate” with it’s deep gully in the green are the signature holes.

Between 1935 and 1975 the annual Scottish Boys’ Championship, inaugurated by North Berwick G.C. and later taken over by Scottish Golf, took place over the West Links. Many other major events have been staged here since, including Final Qualifying for The Open Championship on six occasions (last 2013), The Ladies’ British Amatuer Stroke Play Championship (2017), The Seniors’ Amateur StrokePlay Championship (2019) and The Scottish Boys Open Championship (2020).

Prizes

The Winner receives the distinctive silver Championship Trophy and a Crystal Award.

Crystal Awards are also given to the runner-up and third place finisher.

Weather Forecast (as at Tuesday 27th May)

The weather forecast suggests the Championship will be played largely in sunny conditions, albeit with dome rain expected on the all-important final day.

Fri 30th May – Sunny Intervals / Wind 18 mph W / Temp. Min. 10°C / Max. 17°C,
Sat 31st May – Sunny Intervals / Wind 15 mph S / Temp. Min. 10°C / Max. 18°C
Sun 1st June – Rain Showers / Wind 19 mph SW / Temp. Min. 9°C / Max. 16°C

2024 Results

Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) won the 2024 Scottish Men’s Open Championship with a 260 (-24) total.

His final day 65 (-6) and 62 (-9) saw him take the title at Muirfield by an astonishing 17 shots.

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Dominic Clemons (Photo: Scottish Golf)

Jordan BURNAND (RSA) -7 finished 2nd on last round count back, Kai KOMULAINEN (AUS) -7 3rd, Jamie NIELSEN (DEN) -6 4th and Matteo CRISTONI (ITA), who had a final round hole-in-one on the 16th, -4 5th.

Jack MCDONALD -1 8th was the highest finishing Scot with Charlie FORSTER (ENG) Ev also finishing in the top 10.

Just eight of the 44 players who made the cut finished under par after 72 holes.

Screenshot 2024-06-02 at 19.08.36

Final Results (Graphic: Scottish Golf)

Click here to view the – 2024 Scottish Men’s Open Championship Results

Past Winners

The Scottish Men’s Open Amateur was first contested in 1967 and has an impressive list of past winners. Here are some of them: –

2011 – Andy Sullivan (ENG)
2009 – Tommy Fleetwood (ENG)
2004 – Richie Ramsay (SCO)
2003 – Gary Wolstenholme (ENG)
1997 – Barclay Howard (SCO)
1996 – Alastair Forsyth (SCO)
1995 – Stephen Gallacher (SCO)
1992 – Dean Robertson (SCO)
1991 – Andrew Coltart (SCO)
1985 – Colin Montgomerie (SCO)
1981 – Philip Walton (IRE)
1980 – Gordon Brand Jr (ENG)
1975 and 1984 – Charlie Green (SCO)
1971, 1974 and 1979 – Ian Hutcheon (SCO)
1970 – Dale Hayes (RSA)
1968 – Ronnie Shade (SCO)
1967 – Bernard Gallacher (SCO)

A full list of the past winners can be viewed here – Scottish Open Amateur Winners

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.

Brabazon Trophy – 2025 Preview & Results

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24th May 2025

ROUND 4

Biagio Andrea GAGLIARDI (ITA) shot a final round 70 to win the 2025 Brabazon Trophy by 2-shots with a 276 (-8) total. He is the first Italian to win this prestigious trophy.

Biagio Andrea Gagliardi (Photo: England Golf / Leaderboard Photography)

Freddie TURNELL (ENG) moved up to 2nd place with a 69, the joint best round of the day.

Eliot BAKER (ENG) and Mattias VARJUN (EST) both finished Round 4 with 1-over 72’s to complete the Championship in tied 3rd place.

Australian Billy DOWLING finished strongly with a 69 to take 5th place. Harley SMITH (ENG) -3 finished 6th and Jack MCDONALD (SCO), Ben BOLTON (ENG) & Kayun MUDADANA (AUS) -2 tied 7th.

Final Brabazon Trophy Results (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

Freddie TURNELL (ENG) won The George Henriques Salver awarded to the highest finishing Under 20 GB&I player.

Final George Henriques Salver Results (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

Click here to view the – 2025 Brabazon Trophy Results

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24th May 2025

ROUND 3

Biagio Andrea GAGLIARDI (ITA) moved into the lead on 206 (-7) at Hankley Common after shooting a 2-under 69 on Day 3.

Mattias VARJUN (EST) and Eliot BAKER (ENG) are tied 2nd on -6 after they posted a 70 and 71 respectively.

A best of the week and new course record 63 (-8), which included 10 birdies, from Australian Kayun MUDADANA saw him jump up the leaderboard to tied 4th. He was joined by Ben BOLTON (ENG) and Freddie TURNELL (ENG) who benefitted from a 68 and 71 in Round 3.

Three other English players, Harry CROCKETT, Jake SOWDEN and Harley SMITH finished the day tied 7th alongside Sweden’s Simon HOVDAL on 210 (-3).

Mason HOWELL (USA) shot a blemish free 64, the second best round of the week, to move into tied 12th. Whilst there was no hole-in-one for the American today he did manage an eagle on the 13th and five other birdies in his third round.

Round 3 Leadboard (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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23rd May 2025

ROUND 2

Eliot BAKER (ENG) and Tom HUGHES (ENG) maintained their share of the lead on 136 (-6) after they both recorded 1-under par 70’s at Hankley Common on Day 2 of the Brabazon Trophy.

Simon HOVDAL (SWE), tied for 3rd, became the fifth player to shoot a 66 in the Championship with his bogey free effort in Round 2.

Biagio Andrea GAGLIARDI (ITA) 67 and Mattias VARJUN (EST) 69 moved up the leaderboard to join the Swede on 137 (-5) for the 36 holes played.

Freddie TURNELL (ENG) is 6th on 139 (-3) after he posted a 68 and now sits alongside compatriots Harley SMITH 70 and Jake SOWDEN (ENG) 71 as well as in form Welshman Matt ROBERTS 72.

Scoring on Friday proved harder than yesterday with just 19 players going under par and 10 playing to the par of 71. This compared with 25 and 16 players doing so respectively in Round 1.

60 players advanced to the weekend after the top 60 and ties cut fell at a higher than expected 147 (+5).

17 year old Mason HOWELL (USA) recorded a hole-in-one on the 167 yard par 3 2nd hole which helped him make the cut on the mark.

Round 2 Leadboard (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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22nd May 2025

ROUND 1

Ville VIRKKALA (FIN), Eliot BAKER (ENG) and Tom HUGHES (ENG) share the Round 1 lead at the Brabazon Trophy after they all recorded 66’s at Hankley Common.

Virkkkala played his opening nine holes in a 6-under 30 shots before three bogeys on his back nine took a little of the shine of his round.

Baker and Hughes both enjoyed eagles in their rounds; the Tiverton man’s came at the the 598 yard par 5 8th hole whilst Formby’s Hughes achieved his on the shorter 496 yard par 5 13th.

Matt ROBERTS (WAL) started and finished his rounds with bogeys but six birdies in between saw him finish the day tied for 4th alongside Richard TEDER (EST) and Alexander FARMER (SCO). Teder holed his approach on the short par 4 17th for an eagle whilst Farmer enjoyed seven birdies in his opening circuit.

From the field of 114 players 25 players recorded under par rounds with a further 16 shooting a par 71.

Round 1 Leadboard (Photo: England Golf / Golf Genius)

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20th May 2025

The 79th English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy will be played at Hankley Common Golf Club, between Thursday 22nd and Sunday 25th May 2025.

I will be updating this article with a scores link and daily reports once play commences.

Format

This four day competition consists of 72 holes of stroke play golf with 18 holes being played daily.

A 36 hole cut will reduce the field to the leading 60 competitors and ties.

In the event of a tie for the Championship there will be a sudden death play off.

All other places will be determined by a card count-back, starting with the final round and working backwards from there.

Field

144 competitors from 17 different countries will contest the 2025 Brabazon Trophy Championship.

With the NCAA U.S. College golf season, where the majority of the leading International and GB&I players are now engaged, not finishing until the end of May the field quality is understandably impacted.

Just four of GB&I’s top 20 WAGR-ranked players are competing. The third highest ranked, Dominic CLEMONS (ENG) #44, who played in the US Open Qualifier at Walton Heath (on 19th May) – 30 miles away from Hankley Common – has chosen to skip the event.

The DRVN.golf Power Estimator suggests the event will have a WAGR Power figure of c.368.0000 in 2025 (Actual: 384.3262). This continues the decline seen in recent years where the number was 617.0619 in 2022, 467.2656 in 2023 and 454.8860 last year.

The majority of the field were exempt with starting places offered to a number of national golf federations and to those players who have performed well in other recent Championships.

The top 20 WAGR-ranked players in the field are Richard TEDER (EST) #148, Matt MCCLEAN (IRL) #149, Tom OSBORNE (ENG) #191, Harley SMITH (ENG) #192, Michele FERRERO (ITA) 207, Tomi BOWEN (WAL) #225, Freddie TURNELL (ENG) #227, Magnus BECKER FREDERIKSON (DEN) #249, Simon HOVDAL (SWE) #274, Eliot BAKER (ENG) #289, Matt ROBERTS (WAL) #334, Scott WOLTERING (NED) #390, Conor GOUGH (ENG) #393, Kayun MUDADANA (AUS) #405, Billy DOWLING (AUS) #409, Ben BOLTON (ENG) #468, Mason HOWELL (USA) #472, Charlie RUSBRIDGE (ENG) #473, Oscar HOLM BREDKJÆR (DEN) #488 and Kris KIM (ENG) #507.

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Three 18 hole regional Qualifying Tournaments were staged on 13th May 2025. 51 players automatically qualified from each of the Midland, Northern and Southern Qualifiers. A further number will make the final start sheet after being called up from the Alternates / Reserves list.

Ties for the last qualifying place at each venue were determined by card countback.

Here is a summary of the Qualifying results and a list of all the players who progressed: –

MIDLAND – Burton-on-Trent G.C., Nottinghamshire – Results
6,510 yards – Par 71
111 players / 17 Qualifiers

Medalists – Philipp KRONE (ENG) 68 -3
Other Qualifiers – Jack DRURY (ENG), Matthew STRUDWICK (ENG), Bailey HIRD (ENG), Olly ALLISON (ENG), Joe CLARKE (ENG), Tim HOLLIS (ENG), Jack PETERS (ENG), Max WEAVER (ENG), Daniel BARDSLEY (ENG), Leyton HARDWICK (ENG), Max HOPKINS (ENG), Louie BLOXHAM (ENG), Edward LINLEY (ENG), Ben A. WILLIS (ENG), Daniel BUTTERISS (ENG) and Charlie DAUGHTERY (ENG)

NORTHERN – Fleetwood G.C., Lancashire – Results
6,521 yards – Par 72
101 players / 16 Qualifiers

Co-Medalist – Andrew HASWELL (ENG) 67 -5
Other Qualifiers – Luke KELLY (ENG), Oliver CATON (ENG), Tom HUGHES (ENG), Cameron THOBURN (ENG), Tai NAYLOR (ENG), George WHITEHEAD (ENG), Ben BROWN (ENG), Daniel ROBERTS (ENG), Sam MUKHERJEE (SCO), Thomas GRIMES (ENG), Matthew DOLLING (ENG), Jamie MANN (SCO), Cole SELF (ENG), Kieran MCCARTHY (ENG) and Matthew LEVER (ENG)

SOUTHERN – Long Ashton G.C., Somerset – Results
6,347 yards – Par 71
118 players / 18 Qualifiers

Medalist – Nathan MOORE (ENG) 64 -7
Other Qualifiers – Joss EDWARDS (ENG), George SAUNDERS (ENG), Milan REED (ENG), Charlie ROBB (ENG), William PARTNER (ENG), Lewy HAYWARD (ENG), Henry DALY (ENG), Andrew ISAACS (ENG), Ryan WILLIAMS (WAL), William PONTIN (WAL), Luke JENKINS (ENG), Dewi JOHN (WAL), Zac MUDFORD (ENG), Jonah FERNANDES (ENG), Aled GREVILLE (WAL), Rory BROWNE (ENG) and James BATH (ENG)

Tee Times

Play on the opening two days will commence at 7.00am with the final three-ball heading out at 3.30pm.

Click here to view the – 2025 Brabazon Trophy Tee Times

Prizes

The Winner receives the magnificent gold Brabazon Trophy shown below.

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The Champion’s Prize and The Brabazon Trophy (Photo: Golf Bible)

Prize vouchers will be awarded to those players finishing in the top five.

Two other prizes are connected to the Brabazon Trophy competition: –

The George Henriques Salver is awarded to the leading GB&I player in the Championship under the age of 20.

The Philip Scrutton Jug is awarded to the player returning the best aggregate scores in The Brabazon Trophy and The Berkshire Trophy. The latter was played on 17-18 May and won by Jake SOWDEN (ENG) who is also competing this week.

Hankley Common Golf Club

Hankley Common G.C. in Tilford, near Farnham in Surrey was first opened as a nine hole course in May 1897. A further nine holes were added by James Braid in 1923/24 but it was only after Harry Colt undertook some remodelling and replaced three holes in 1935 that it started to be recognised as one of England’s best inland courses.

It sits on a huge piece of heathland which allows the holes to meander across the property often in isolation. The area has been designated as a ‘site of special scientific interest’ due to its range of trees and abundant wildlife.

Off the back tees the course measures 6,904 yards and plays to a par of 71, there being only one par 5 on the back nine.

The uphill par three 7th is the ‘signature hole’ but in truth their are many memorable holes on the property.

There are a number of roads, paths and tracks on the course all of which have been deemed integral with no free relief available.

Hankley Common has hosted a number of major events through the years most recently the English Men’s Amateur Championship (Closed) in 2019, which was won by Conor Gough, and the R&A Men’s Home Internationals in 2021.

4th Tee, Hankley Common G.C. (Photo: Golf Bible) 

Weather Forecast – on Tuesday 20th May 2025

The weather forecast suggests the Championship will be predominantly dry with some sun and modest breezes. Saturday and early Sunday morning are expected to  see some rain.

Thur 22nd May – Sunny / Wind 9 mph NW / Temp. Min. 8°C, Max. 18°C.
Fri 23rd May – Sunny Intervals / Wind 12 mph SW / Temp. Min. 8°C, Max. 16°C.
Sat 24th May – Light Rain / Wind 15 mph SW / Temp. Min. 11°C / Max. 17°C.
Sun 25th May – Sunny Intervals / Wind 14 mph W / Temp. Min. 12°C / Max. 17°C.

England Golf Event Website

Click here to view the – England Golf / Golf Genius Brabazon Trophy Website

2024 Brabazon Trophy

Gregor GRAHAM (SCO) won the 2024 Brabazon Trophy at Hollinwell G.C. becoming the fifth Scotsman to collect this prestigious title.

Due to poor weather the Championship was played over 48 holes with Graham winning with a -9 total.

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Gregor Graham (Photo: England Golf / Leaderboard Photography)

Daniel HAYES (ENG) finished 2nd on -8, Wilhelm RYDING (SWE) 3rd on -8, fast finishing Wilmer EDERO (SWE) 4th on -7 and Eliot BAKER (ENG) 5th on -7.

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2024 Brabazon Trophy Results (Graphic: England Golf / Golf Genius) 

Daniel HAYES (ENG) won The George Henriques Salver, awarded to the leading GB&I player in the Championship under the age of 20. Harley SMITH (ENG) -6 was 2nd and Ben BOLTON (ENG) -5 3rd. All three return to the Championship in 2025.

Recent Results

Click below to view the results over the last three years: –

Hollinwell – 2024 Brabazon Trophy Results

Sunningdale – 2023 Brabazon Trophy Results

Saunton – 2022 Brabazon Trophy Results

History, Past Winners and Records

The English Amateur International Trophy competition was first played in 1947.

In 1957 the official title was changed to the English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship.

The current trophy was donated by Lord Brabazon of Tara in 1948 and the event has come to be widely known as the Brabazon Trophy.

Click here to view the full list of – Brabazon Trophy Past Winners

The first player to successfully defend the title was Ronnie WHITE who won at Birkdale in 1950 and nearby Formby in 1951.

Shortly afterwards Philip SCRUTTON won the Brabazon three times in four years (1952, ‘54 & ‘55).

Sir Michael BONALLACK has four wins to his name. The first came at Royal Cinque Ports in 1964 and the last at Hillside in 1971. At Moortown in 1969, with play-offs having been discarded at this time, he shared the title with Rodney FOSTER.

Other well known British winners of the Brabazon include Gordon BRAND Jnr, Sandy LYLE (2), Peter MCEVOY, Ronan RAFFERTY and Ronnie SHADE (3).

Other notable winners include well known pros Ignacio GARRIDO (1992), Peter HANSON (1998) and Charl SCHWARTZEL (2002), Jordan SMITH (2013) and Sam BAIRSTOW (2021).

ME.

Copyright © 2014-2025, Mark Eley. All rights reserved.