With the South of Ireland Championship at the end of July taking on extra significance this year, June won’t be the be all and end all. But it could still be a defining month for a handful of Irish hopefuls looking to break into the GB&I Walker Cup frame for Lahinch in September.
Three major competitions are being staged this month starting tomorrow at the Home of Golf for the St Andrews Links Trophy, before the Amateur Championship (15-20) and the European Amateur Championship (24-27) round off three pivotal events for Walker Cup selection and of course Open Championship qualification.
Eleven Irish players tee it up on the New Course on Friday before tackling the Old Course across the following 54 holes and they include newly minted East of Ireland champion Stuart Grehan, David Howard, Jonathan Keane, Keith Egan, Colm Campbell, Gavin Tiernan, Gavin O’Neill, Fionn Dobbin, Sean Keeling, Matthew McClean and Thomas Higgins.
Since its inception in 1989, the St Andrews Links Trophy has attracted the world’s top amateur golfers, many of whom have gone on to enjoy success on the PGA and European Tours, notably Ernie Els, Lee Westwood, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy, Padraig Harrington, Justin Rose, Rory McIlroy, Aldrich Potgieter and Francesco Molinari.
The event has been kind to the Irish in recent years, Alex Maguire lifted the trophy in 2023 on his way to representing Great Britain and Ireland at the Walker Cup in St Andrews later that summer as well as spring boarding his bid to a debut at the Open Championship in Hoylake.
Last year, teenager John Doyle emerged as a left field Walker Cup candidate after getting a wildcard entry into the tournament and being beaten in a playoff. This week he swaps the clubs for a pen and paper as his Leaving Cert begins.
Since its inception in 1989, the St Andrews Links Trophy has attracted the world’s top amateur golfers, many of whom have gone on to enjoy success on the PGA and European Tours, notably Ernie Els, Lee Westwood, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy, Pádraig Harrington, Justin Rose, Rory McIlroy, Aldrich Potgieter and Francesco Molinari.
The R&A World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) ranks the St Andrews Links Trophy as one of the strongest amateur tournaments in the world, based on strength of field, and it is arguably one of the strongest outside the Amateur Championship in the UK and Ireland.
This will be key event for Walker Cup qualification in September but it also forms one of the three Open Amateur Series.
The player that receives the most World Amateur Golf Ranking points across the St Andrews Links Trophy, The Amateur Championship and the European Amateur Championship this summer will be a awarded a spot The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Leave a comment