Saturday 30th June 2023

Jose BALLESTER (ESP) won the 2023 European Amateur Championship with a 267 (-21) total over 72 holes at Pärnu Bay Golf Links in Estonia.

With his wire-to-wire victory Ballester secured an exemption into the forthcoming 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool G.C.

Mads Laage, Jose Ballester and James Ashfield (Photo: European Golf Association)

Alex MAGUIRE (IRL), who took this week off, won the 2023 Open Championship Amateur Series. This new exemption into The Open from The R&A was given to the player who gained the most WAGR points in the St. Andrews Links Trophy, the Amateur Championship and the European Amateur Championship events.

Round 4

After starting with an eagle 3 on the opening hole Jose BALLESTER (ESP) ultimately had to settle for a final round 1-over 73 and a two shot win.

Jose Ballester’s Scorecard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Mads LAAGE (DEN) finished 2nd and James ASHFIELD (WAL) 3rd on 36 hole count back after they both finished on -19.

James Ashfield’s Scorecard (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Beyond Ashfield the other leading GB&I players were Jack BIGHAM (ENG) and Hugh FOLEY (IRL) -18, who tied 4th, James CLARIDGE (ENG), Gregor GRAHAM (SCO) & Mark POWER (IRL) -15, who tied 13th, and Calum SCOTT (SCO) & Will HOPKINS (ENG) -14, who tied 21st.

Here are the final results:-

Round 4 Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

The Round 4 average score was 72.73 (+0.73), the first day that par had collectively not been broken by the field. The wind was at its strongest on Saturday with some tricky hole locations adding to the challenge. There were 7 eagles and 703 birdies in Round 4.

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

ME.

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Friday 30th June 2023

Round 3

Jose BALLESTER (ESP) pulled away from the field with a Round 3 66 which took him on to -22. He will now head into tomorrow’s final round with a two shot lead.

Jose Ballester’s Rounds 1, 2 & 3 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Michael MJAASETH (NOR) 67 and Jack INGHAM (NED) 65 are the Spaniard’s nearest challengers on -20.

Zach CHEGWIIDEN (ENG) 68, Jack BIGHAM (ENG) 68, Gregor GRAHAM (SCO) 66 and James ASHFIELD (SCO) 71 are all tied 7th on -17 and collectively are the leading GB&I players.

Hugh FOLEY (IRL) -16 tied 13th, Will HOPKINS (ENG) -15 tied 16th and Mark POWER (IRL) -14 tied 18th are also in the top 20.

The 54 hole top 60 and ties cut fell at -9 with 65 players advancing to the final day.

Here is the Round 3 leaderboard showing all the players who made the cut and a few that just missed out: –

Leading Round 3 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

The Round 3 average score was 70.28 (-1.72), a reflection of the stronger winds the blew across the links on Day 3. There were 22 eagles and 658 birdies in Round 3.

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

ME.

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Thursday 29th June 2023 & Friday 30th June 2023

Round 2

A four hour rain and lightening delay in the afternoon meant that despite play continuing until 10.30pm local time the second round had to be completed early on Friday morning.

Tiger CHRISTENSEN (GER), James ASHFIELD (WAL) and Jose BALLESTER (ESP) share the 36 hole lead on 128 (-16).

Ashfield is the leading GB&I player after two rounds of 64 with only one bogey seen.

James Ashfield’s Rounds 1 & 2 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Daniel RODRIGUES (POR) and Michael MJAASETH (DEN) are 1-shot further back from the leaders on -15.

Hugh FOLEY (IRL) is in 6th place after shooting a 9-under 63 in Round 2.

Hugh Foley’s Rounds 1 & 2 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Zach CHEGWIDDEN (ENG) and Jack BIGHAM (ENG) are tied 7th after recording a 65 and 66 respectively on Thursday.

Will HOPKINS (ENG) is now tied 10th, alongside Mark POWER (IRL) and Matty WILSON (SCO), after matching Foley’s 63 in Round 2.

Will Hopkins’ Rounds 1 & 2 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG) 66 and Gregor GRAHAM (SCO) 69 are tied 16th, meaning there are nine GB&I players in the top 20.

The low round of the day belonged to James CLARIDGE (ENG) who shot a bogey-free 62 to bounce back strongly from his opening 72 and move up 83 places on the leaderboard to tied 21st.

James Claridge’s Rounds 1 & 2 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Here are the leading players after Round 2: –

Leading Round 2 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

The Round 2 average score was slightly lower than Round 1 at 69.41 (-2.59). There were 36 eagles and 673 birdies.

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

ME.

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Wednesday 28th June 2023

Round 1

Alejandro AGUILERA (ESP), Paul BEAUVY (FRA), Jose BALLESTER (ESP) and Jack INGHAM (NED) all shot bogey-free 62’s (-10) to share the Round 1 lead.

Alejandro Aguilera, Paul Beauty, Jose Ballester & Jack Ingham Round 1 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

As expected the 6,717 yards par 72 Pärnu Bay Golf Links proved to be far from a Championship test with 103 players from a starting field of 144 breaking par in the opening round. 58 players achieved -4 or better.

There was a two hour rain delay for the afternoon starters but thankfully the EGA were still able to complete the round. However, there were some concerns amongst the players affected that the re-start was scheduled too soon with thunder and lightening still evident in the area.

Michael MJAASETH (NOR) -9 is 5th and Quentin DEBOVE (FRA), Daniel RODRIGUES (POR), Gregor GRAHAM (SCO), Tiger CHRISTENSEN (GER) and James ASHFIELD (WAL) -8 tied 6th.

Jack BIGHAM (ENG) & Matty WILSON (SCO) -7 tied 11th, Zach CHEGWIDDEN (ENG) -6 tied 17th and Angus CARRICK (SCO), Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG), Mark POWER (IRL) & Hugh FOLEY (IRL) -5 tied 27th are the other leading GB&I players at the end of Day 1.

Here are the leading players after Round 1: –

Leading Round 1 Scores (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

The Round 1 average score was 69.63 (-2.36). There were 32 eagles and 674 birdies.

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

ME.

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26th June 2023

The 36th European Amateur Championship will be played at Pärnu Bay Golf Links in Estonia between 28th June and 1st July 2023.

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

This will be the second occasion that Estonia has hosted the European Amateur. The Estonian Golf & Country Club staged the event in 2016.

Competition Format

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

A cut takes place after 54 holes with the 60 lowest scores and ties qualifying 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,) is used to resolve ties for 2nd and 3rd place.

Entries

144 players from 37 countries will contest the 2023 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, Estonia, competitors in the Bonallack Trophy, St. Andrew’s Trophy and Jacques Léglise Trophy matches, the 2023 South American Amateur champion and the 2023 European Mid-Amateur champion.

There are 32 GB&I entries, namely James ASHFIELD (WAL), Josh BERRY (ENG), Jack BIGHAM (ENG), Tomi BOWEN (WAL), Jack BROOKS (ENG), Angus CARRICK (SCO),  Zach CHEGWIDDEN (ENG), James CLARIDGE (ENG), Paul CONROY (IRL), Will COXON (ENG), Enrique DIMAYUGA (ENG/PHI), Sam EASTERBROOK (ENG), Arron EDWARDS-HILL (ENG), Hugh FOLEY (IRL), Connor GRAHAM (SCO), Gregor GRAHAM (SCO), Jack HEARN (IRL), Joshua HILL (IRL), Will HOPKINS (ENG), Seán KEELING (IRL), Max KENNEDY (ENG), Matt MCCLEAN (IRL), Robert MORAN (IRL), Ollie MUKHERJEE (SCO), Liam NOLAN (IRL), Mark POWER (IRL), Calum SCOTT (SCO), Dylan SHAW-RADFORD (ENG), Niall SHIELS DONEGAN (SCO), Harley SMITH (ENG), Gregor TAIT (SCO) and Matthew WILSON (SCO).

Europe’s highest WAGR-ranked player John GOUGH (ENG) is playing in the British Masters at The Belfry this week.

Noteworthy overseas entries include Jose Luis BALLESTER BARRIO (ESP), Jonas BAUMGARTNER (GER), Pietro BOVARI (ITA), Mats EGE (NOR), Nicola GERHARDSEN (SUI), Albert HANSSON (SWE), Tobias JONSSON (SWE), Frederik KJETTRUP (DEN), Luis MASAVEU (ESP), Michael MJAASETH (NOR), Daniel DA COSTA RODRIGUES (POR), Bard SKOGEN (NOR) and Richard TEDER (EST).

Pärnu Bay Golf Links, Estonia

Pärnu Bay is a links style course designed by Finnish architect Lassi Pekka Tillander which opened for play in 2015.

As you can see from the photos it is located on a narrow coastal site and features wide fairways, expansive sandy waste areas and undulating greens.

The course is a relatively short 6,720 yards long and plays to a par of 72. It has five par 3’s, eight par 4’s and five par 5’s.

Weather Forecast

Weather conditions are generally expected to be good, albeit with the risk of afternoon showers.

Weds 28th June – Sunny / PM Showers. Wind 7 mph SE. Min. 13°C / Max. 24°C.
Thurs 29th June – Sunny / PM Showers. Wind 8 mph W. Min. 12°C / Max. 25°C.
Fri 30th June – Sunny. Wind 10 mph W. Min. 12°C / Max. 25°C.
Sat 1st July – Sunny / PM Showers. Wind 10 mph SW. Min. 12°C / Max. 22°C.

Prizes

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

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

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 Liverpool G.C. in England.

The Open Championship 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 the Amateur or European Amateur) will also earn a spot at Royal Liverpool.

The players finishing 2nd to 5th in this year’s European Amateur will be invited to compete in Final Qualifying.

Further Information

Click here to view the – EGA European Amateur Championship Website

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Tee Times

Click here to view the – EGA / Golfbox 2023 European Amateur Championship Leaderboard

2022 European Amateur Championship

Filippo CELLI (ITA) won the 2022 European Amateur Championship at El Saler Golf Club in Spain after rounds of 64, 74, 73 and 69. His 280 (-8) total gave him a 1-shot victory.

He became the fourth Italian winner of this prestigious trophy following in the footsteps of Massimo Scarpa (1992), Stafano Mazzoli (2015) and Luca Cianchetti (2016).

Rasmus NEERGAARD-PETERSEN (DEN) finished 2nd on 281 (-7), Calum SCOTT 3rd on 282 (-6) 3rd and Javier BARCOS GARBAYO (ESP) 4th on 283 (-5).

Calum Scott, Filippo Celli and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen (Photo: European Golf Association)

The other GB&I players to finish in the top 50 in 2022 were Harley SMITH (ENG) -1 tied 9th, Rob MORAN (IRL) Ev tied 18th, Callum BRUCE (SCO) +1 T23, James ASHFIELD (WAL) +2 tied 23rd and Josh HILL (ENG), Matt MCCLEAN (IRL) & Frank KENNEDY (ENG) +5 tied 44th.

 Leading Results (Graphic: EGA / Golfbox)

Click here to view the full – EGA / Golfbox 2022 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 very successful professional careers include Stephen GALLACHER (1994), Sergio GARCIA (1995), Gregory HAVRET (1999), Carl PETTERSSON (2000), Rory MCILROY (2006), Victor DUBUISSON (2009) and Nicolai HØJGÅRD (2018).

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 is the only two-time winner and the only player 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.

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