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PING Pro Andy Sullivan Launches Auction To Support The NHS

Jack Rayner — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 08:48:01 +0000

PING Pro Andy Sullivan Launches Auction To Support The NHS

Gainsborough, UK (24th August, 2020): PING Pro, Andy Sullivan, is paying tribute to the NHS heroes who have worked tirelessly during the Covid-19 pandemic by putting a one-of-a-kind PING tour bag up for auction.

The bag, which features a panel designed by UK-based business CMYK – Design, Copy & Print, has been used by Sullivan during each event that he has played in the European Tour’s UK Swing, part of the reworked schedule for 2020. This included his seven-shot victory in the English Championship at Hanbury Manor.

Featuring a rainbow design, which has become synonymous with public support for the NHS during the Covid-19 crisis, the bag will go up for auction today to coincide with this week’s UK Championship at The Belfry; the final leg of the UK swing. The auction finishes next Monday, August 31^st at noon.

“It’s impossible to put into words how thankful and proud we as a nation are of our amazing NHS staff,” commented Sullivan. “The work that they carry out every day is an example to us all, and what they have done over the past few months has been nothing short of superhuman.

“Auctioning off this bag is my way of saying a small thank you to each and every one of our NHS heroes, so I hope that we can raise as much money as possible for such a great cause.”

All proceeds raised from the auction will go towards NHS Charities Together, a membership organisation representing, supporting, and championing NHS Charities. In particular, the Covid-19 Urgent Appeal is helping NHS staff, volunteers and patients tackle the Covid crisis, and has so far raised over £130m.

To find out more, or to place a bid in the auction, visit https://givergy.uk/golfbagauction.

For further information on NHS Charities together, visit www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/.

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Kellock marshalled game well as ex-Army officer denies Attoe a hat-trick

Andrew Griffin — Sun, 09 Aug 2020 00:00:37 +0000

Ex-Royal Green Jackets officer Rupert Kellock from Sunningdale GC, won the English Seniors Amateur title at Woodhall Spa by three shots. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

SURREY’S Rupert Kellock held his nerve and holed the crucial putts to march to victory in the English Senior Amateur Championship.

As befitted a former Army officer, Kellock played with military precision on the back nine to earn a deserved three-shot victory.

He denied defending champion Ian Attoe the chance to complete a hat-trick in the process.

And Kellock held off a challenge from fellow England senior international Trevor Foster and Maxstoke Park’s Stephen Creed.

The ex-Royal Green Jacket began the final round a shot adrift of three-time winner Attoe – who was going for three in a row – and Sussex’s Andrew Smith, from Royal Ashdown Forest.

However, a one-over par round of 74 around a baked and windswept Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa Golf Club, in Lincolnshire, allowed Kellock to achieve his career highlight.

His finishing total was two-over par after previous rounds of 70 on the Hotchkin and a 76 on the Bracken Course at England Golf’s headquarters.

Kellock – a member at Sunningdale Golf Club – won with a flourish. Birdies at 12, 16 and 18 allowed him to add his own national title to the Welsh crown he won in 2018.

After the victory, Kellock admitted: “It’s terribly pleasing and I’m dead chuffed as they would say.

“It’s always great to win anything and to win the national title is fantastic.

“It’s the largest national title I’ve won and to have beaten Ian Attoe, who has dominated this event for five years makes me very proud.

“I hit the ball a lot better than I scored and was quite comfortable as I was hitting the ball so well. The problem was I wasn’t quite sure what the other scores were.

“Anyway, you play one shot at a time and get on with it and the fact was I was hitting the ball really well makes life so much easier – middle of the fairway, middle of the green, two putts and walk on.”

Pars like birdies on tricky Hotchkin

ON a day when the wind dominated proceedings and made the front nine particularly treacherous for the leading players, pars were treated like birdies.

Kellock started with three pars, but four dropped shots between the fourth and the 10th holes were a setback.

The nerves were steadied however, with a brilliant iron into the short 12th hole. The ball danced around the hole and finished a foot from the cup.

After that tap-in birdie, Kellock found himself tied for the lead with Accrington’s Foster who had started the day three shots behind the leaders.

Foster had dropped only one shot to par at the turn and a birdie at 13 actually put him a shot clear of Kellock again.

But then came Kellock’s nerveless finish capped by a six-foot putt on 18 which caught the right lip of the hole and tumbled for a closing birdie.

Worplesdon’s Attoe couldn’t quite produce the form of the first two days in order to claim a third title on the spin.

The 61-year-old had been struggling with the putter all week and he couldn’t find the touch on the greens when he needed it most.

Iron play was key for Sunningdale’s Kellock

KELLOCK’S closing stretch of holes left him thrilled and in particular the iron play which left him with excellent opportunities for birdies when others were simply grateful for par.

On making birdie at two of the final three holes, Kellock said: “It’s very satisfying as I’d three putted from 20 feet on 14 for a par which was disappointing.

“On the 16th, I hit it to 18 inches and on the 18th I had a two-putt birdie. It was a very, very nice way to finish.

“It sounds very good to be introduced as a champion and I’d like to be English national champion again next year as well.”

Attoe took the prize as the leading player in the 60-64 age group while Kent’s John Wright, from Wildernesse GC, finished first in the over 65s with a 12-over total, having started with an excellent 70, before adding scores of 86 and 74.

Next year’s championship will be held at Blackmoor Golf Club and the Army Golf Club in Hampshire.

•For scores at the English Senior click here.

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Attoe: Seniors game’s never been so strong as Woodhall’s Wharton is dangerman again

Andrew Griffin — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 11:00:54 +0000

Worplesdon GC’s Ian Attoe is aiming for a third English Seniors Championship win in a row when he returns to Woodhall Spa after he played in last week’s English Amateur. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

DEFENDING champion Ian Attoe believes the quality and strength in depth will be on show at this week’s English Seniors Championship.

Last week Attoe took his hat off to fellow “golden oldie” Paul Wharton who – at the age of 59 – made the quarter-finals of the English Amateur Championships at his home club Woodhall Spa.

Attoe, from Surrey, is certain that there is plenty more good golf to come from Wharton and the other 143 competitors taking part in the over 55s championship as England Golf’s headquarters takes centre stage again.

The Lincolnshire venue will stage the 54-hole strokeplay event less than a week after Gloucestershire’s Jack Cope was crowned English Men’s champion – while Ludlow’s Emily Price took the Women’s title for the first time.

The English Seniors will be played on both the Bracken and Hotchkin courses as were last week’s two national championships.

Thursday’s round will be on the Hotchkin and Friday’s on the Bracken.

A cut will be made with the top 60 players completing for the trophy on Saturday on the Hotchkin – rated one of the best parkland courses in the UK.

Lincolnshire return for champion

ATTOE is out to make it a hat-trick of wins after success at Sherwood Forest and Coxmoor, in 2018, and last year at Holme Hall and Elsham, also in Lincolnshire.

That might be easier said than done – especially if Wharton plays to form around the Woodhall Spa courses he knows so well as a member, and if the rest of the field also rise to the occasion.

“It was great to see Paul – a fellow England team-mate – do so well last week,” said 61-year-old Attoe. “He just showed what can be done.

“The Hotchkin can be a fierce test. But Paul and some others showed that there is a score to be made out there.

“The standard of the seniors’ game is going up and up.

“In the past there might not have been some particularly good scores that have won it. But I think even though it’s two tough tracks this week, the scoring will be good.

“There’s so much quality in the field that I could list a whole host of players who could challenge.”

And as for his own chances, the Worplesdon GC member added: “I played some shots last week in the men’s amateur that gives me hope going into this. I didn’t score very well, but there were signs.

“This is a special championship – if you are only going to win one event the whole season then this is it.

“Every year I look to play well and aim for the top three or four – and I’ve been lucky enough to win it three times.

“I like Woodhall Spa as a venue – I’ve played it a lot over the years in the central England men’s events and it has two terrific courses.”

Paul Wharton is a team-mate of England Senior international Ian Attoe and has the advantage of playing on his home course at Woodhall Spa this week. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

Seniors championship offers friendly rivalry

A FEATURE of the seniors amateur championship over the years has been the camaraderie off the course.

And while there will be changes to the norm for this year – because of coronavirus crisis – the spirit of friendly rivalry will not diminish.

England Seniors international Attoe added: “The disrupted season certainly affected my motivation to practise when I wasn’t sure there would be any tournaments to aim for.

“We were all extremely fortunate get out playing social golf at our clubs from May. But there was nothing competitive to aim for at that stage.

“I’m extremely pleased England Golf have been able to re-schedule this event and given us old boys something to focus on.

“It is fiercely competitive, but it’s also played in an extremely friendly atmosphere.

“In regular times we all spend almost as much time enjoying each other’s company in the clubhouse as we do out on the course.

“But I’m sure we will all still enjoy our week.”

•To follow live scoring at the English Seniors click here.

Attoe who won his first English Seniors
crown at Worplesdon in 2015

Attoe was fourth player to defend English Seniors crown in nearly 40 years

IAN Attoe became just the fourth player to successfully defend England’s Over 55s title in 39 years in 2019.

He joined Alan Squires, Roy Smethurst, and Sussex’s Doug Arnold in achieving the feat – although Smethurst, from Cheshire’s Crewe GC, is the only player to have done it twice, in 2004/5 and 2000/1.

Lancastrian Squires, from Saddleworth, is the only player to have won the trophy three years in a row since the competition was founded in 1981.

Smethurst has the most wins – four in that period – while Attoe joins Sonning Common’s David Lane, Squires, Arnold, and Cheshire’s G M Edwards, who all have three each.

Attoe’s first win came at his home club Worplesdon, back in 2015.

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Jack proves he can Cope by joining Willett, Casey and Faldo as English champion

Andrew Griffin — Sun, 02 Aug 2020 19:00:18 +0000

The Players Club’s Jack Cope claimed the English Amateur Championship by beating Royal Lytham’s Callan Barrow 4&3 at Woodhall Spa. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

JACK Cope revealed a deep sense of pride at adding his name to an illustrious list of winners at the English Men’s Amateur Championship.

The Gloucestershire golfer’s name now sits on the imposing trophy alongside Masters champion Danny Willett, Ryder Cup winners Paul Casey, Tommy Fleetwood, Nick Faldo, David Gilford and Mark James.

Cope lifted the famous trophy after a 4&3 victory over Lancashire’s Callan Barrow in a 36-hole final that produced some outstanding moments of golf in the Lincolnshire sunshine.

Cope showed skill and nerve to fend off his friend and rival around the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa Golf Club, the home of England Golf.

The Bristolian was five-up at lunch, shooting seven-under without a blemish on his card.

Barrow – a member at Royal Lytham and St Anne’s Golf Club – can consider himself with a mountain to climb despite shooting two-under over the first 18 holes.

However, Cope’s ball-striking and his touch on the greens proved decisive.

And after racing six holes clear as they turned for home in the afternoon, the Players Club member was finally able to shake off his friend with three holes to spare.

Former England junior international Cope, who celebrated his 21^st birthday on Friday, was clearly emotional at the end of six days of competition.

In the strokeplay qualifying, only fellow Gloucestershire team-mate Joe Long headed Cope with a nine-under total three better than Cope over 36 holes.

And in the matchplay, Cope was superb and deserved to end the week as champion to succeed last year’s teenage sensation Conor Gough, from Stoke Park.

‘Thrilled to be named champion’

COPE could not quite believe what he had just achieved after being handed the trophy at Lincolnshire’s “Home of England Golf.”

“I’m absolutely thrilled to hear it,” admitted Cope after being announced as the winner, two years after he finished third in the Brabazon Trophy at Frilford Heath.

“It’s been a gruelling week, but I’m thankful and proud.

“The morning round was very good. I was seven-under and bogey free.

‘And this afternoon, I kept my wits about me as Cal is an exceptional golfer and he made it a very good game.”

The significance of joining the likes of Sir Nick Faldo, Fleetwood, Willett, Casey – and amateur legends like Gerald Micklem and Sir Michael Bonallack, who claimed the title a record five times – had yet to sink in.

“It feels fantastic – I’m very honoured to be alongside the names on the trophy,” added Cope, who had a spell away from the game recently after breaking his arm.

“The last two years have been exceptionally tough on-and-off the golf course, and I have to thank my parents, coach Russell Covey and Gloucestershire County Union,” Jack said.

“I hope this a big leap in the right direction. I always knew I had ability, but it’s about producing it when it counts.

“I played the West of England fourball at the weekend before this and was asked about my form. I said a big win was close the way I was playing.

“I finished second in the stroke and won the matchplay,” added Cope, who became the youngest-ever Gloucestershire champion in 2017, aged 17.

Callan Barrow was two-under over the first 18 holes, but found himself trailing by five holes in the English Amateur Championship final. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

Cope was quick out of the traps going five-up

BARROW and Cope racked up a total of 10 birdies between them in the morning’s play.

Cope was quick out the traps and was four-up through seven holes thanks to birdies at the third, fifth, sixth and seventh.

Barrow had barely put a foot wrong, but the quality on show from his 21-year-old opponent was impressive.

A quality iron into the par three, eighth hole allowed Barrow to roll home a birdie putt from 15 foot and he followed that up with two more on the ninth and 10^th holes to peg back Cope’s lead to just one.

But Cope won both the 13^th and 14^th to restore his grip on the match and he never let it go.

Barrow’s 10-footer down the slope at 18 grazed the hole, while Cope knocked his in from eight feet to take a five-hole lead into lunch.

Yet the Lancashire man refused to give up. He birdied the first hole of the afternoon to get one back, but then lost the next.

A birdie two at the fifth offered hope again, but Barrow couldn’t quite reel in his man.

Even though he found himself six down with nine to play in the afternoon Barrow’s fighter’s instinct took over.

A birdie at 10 and then another 14 kept the match alive. But a par four on the 15^th sealed with a tricky six-foot putt down the slope clinched the title for Cope.

Jack Cope will have the chance to complete a rare English double later this month.
Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

Can Jack be the lad at Brabazon too?

COPE will now look to carry his form into the Brabazon Trophy later this month at Sherwood Forest.

He will head to Nottinghamshire bidding to become just the fourth player to win both major trophies in the same season – and the first since Mark Foster in 1995.

Cope appeared to play all this week without nerves.

“I’m glad it looked like that but it didn’t feel like that,” he said with a smile. “My attitude was the main thing.

“I just kept plugging away and tried to keep hitting good golf shots.”

“Cal’s a great guy and a great golfer. That’s the way it goes. I just played exceptionally well.”

•For full scores from the championship click here.

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Price is right for Emily as she becomes seventh player to complete English double

Andrew Griffin — Sat, 01 Aug 2020 19:00:14 +0000

Ludlow GC’s Emily Price joined the likes of Trish Johnson, Rebecca Hudson and Julie Hall by winning the English Women’s Amateur Championship – beating Lily May Humphreys. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAHY

LUDLOW’S Emily Price celebrated the biggest win of her career after coming from behind to defeat Lily May Humphreys in the English Women’s Amateur Championship final.

Price claimed a 4&3 victory over the England international in a thrilling 36-hole final, at Woodhall Spa Golf Club, in Lincolnshire.

The Shropshire star also became just the seventh player to win both the English Women’s Amateur and Strokeplay title in their career.

That matches the likes of LET stars Trish Johnson and Rebecca Hudson, as well as Scottish-based pro Julie Otto.

She won three national championships as Julie Hall (nee Wade), to go with her two strokeplay victories between 1987 and 1995.

However, the 2020 final score did not tell the full story of a game that ebbed and flowed. And one that perhaps turned with one putt on the 18^th hole of the morning round.

After being two-down to 18-year-old Humphreys for most of the back nine, Price clawed a hole back at the 16^th.

But she found trouble off the tee at the par five, 18^th hole.

However, a smart bunker shot followed by a brilliant wedge and a 15-foot birdie putt saw her head into lunch all-square and with a spring in her step.

A par-birdie start after lunch edged Price into a lead that she never surrendered. Victory was sealed on the 33rd hole on the Hotchkin Course.

For Humphreys, there was deep disappointment a year after losing to Ellen Hume in the final.

However, the Essex golfer – who won the Sunningdale Foursomes before the COVID-19 lockdown came in March – can be proud of her efforts at the home of England Golf.

The glory, though, belonged to Price who cradled the trophy – first played for in 1914 – as she described the best win of her career.

Essex’s Lily May Humphrey’s lost in the final for a second year in a row. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

‘Birdie at the 18th hole was pivotal’

WHEN asked if her birdie on 18 in the morning was significant, the new champion admitted: “Yes – 100 per cent.

“To come in not one-down and to hole a decent length birdie gave me momentum and positive energy,” said Price.

“Lily came out and was playing unbelievable. I was two-down and scraped it back on 18 to get all-square.

“Then I started hot in the afternoon and kept the momentum going.

“The aim was fairways, greens and two putts for pars. I finished three-under which was ok.”

Price underlined her star potential as a 16-year-old by winning the English Women’s Strokeplay Championship in 2016.

Now the sky’s the limit for Price as she prepares to return to Ohio’s Kent State University, in America, for the final two years of her golf scholarship.

After being introduced as the 2020 English Women’s Amateur champion, she said with a smile: “It sounds amazing and feels even better.

“To come and take the win after a very long week is unbelievable. And to perform the way I have is the best feeling you can ever get as a player,” she said.

“It’s been a few years since I won – a distant memory. But it feels good to be holding this and having won an event of this calibre, now I’m 20 years old.

“It will really help boost me and get me going for the rest of the season.”

Great to be back playing golf says new champ

AT the start of the week 66 of the top women amateurs in the country teed it up for two rounds of strokeplay. The top 16 made it through to the knockout stages.

In a safe and secure environment – and with the men’s amateur championship running alongside the women’s for the first time in England Golf’s history – players were able to concentrate on their game.

Price spoke on behalf of the golfers when she said: “It’s been great to get back out there – all of us haven’t played in so long.

“The event has been set up great by England Golf and Woodhall Spa Golf Club and the players have appreciated it – as well as managing boys and girls at the same event.

“It’s been great to have the boys here too and see so many competing.”

•For the full results from Woodhall Spa, click here.

Dorset’s Hayley Davis who won the English Amateur Championship in 2010 at Broadstone

Davis was last player to complete English double

THE other players to complete the English Women’s Amateur and Strokeplay double are Dorset’s Hayley Davis, Yorkshire’s Emma Duggleby, and Lancashire’s Fiona Brown.

Davis, from Ferndown, claimed the English Women’s at nearby Broadstone in 2010 – four years before winning the Strokeplay crown at Tandridge, in Surrey. She is now an LET Access Tour player.

Hudson and Duggleby were Yorkshire and England team-mates and dominated the women’s amateur ranks in the late 1990s and early 21st century.

Hudson’s English Women’s win came at West Sussex in 2001, a year after her strokeplay success at Silloth-on-Solway.

Duggleby won the Strokeplay at Broadstone in 1998. The biggest win of her career came two years later at Hunstanton. It also denied Hudson any chance of the double in the same year.

Johnson, who played for Middlesex before turning pro, is the only player to have won both titles in the same year.

Suffolk’s Julie Wade, a member at Felixstowe Ferry, won the English Strokeplay in 1987 at Northumberland GC. She claimed her first national crown at Little Aston a year later.

Her second Strokeplay came in 1993 at Kings Norton, in Coventry, after her first marriage. Hall then won the English Amateur back to back in 1994 and ‘95, at The Berkshire and Ipswich GC respectively.

Only four women have won the English Championship back to back – the last was Bronte Law in 2014 and 2015.

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Close House now Lee’s home so it’s natural for Westwood to host British Masters again

Andrew Griffin — Sat, 18 Jul 2020 05:00:26 +0000

Lee Westwood with his caddy and fiancé Helen Storey playing in last year’s Betfred British Masters at Hillside. Next week he will host the event for a second time at Close House.
Picture by GETTY IMAGES

LEE Westwood will become the first player to host the Betfred British Masters on two occasions when the tournament returns to Close House, near Newcastle-upon-Tyne, next week.

The third European Tour event since a four-month absence because of the coronavirus pandemic, also marks the start of its new six-event UK Swing.

Play gets under way on Wednesday with a Saturday finish as the European Tour avoids clashing with Sky’s coverage of the final day of the Premiership football season, on Sunday afternoon.

The former World No. 1 was host the last time the Betfred British Masters was played at the North East venue in 2017.

And he’ll be joined in the field by the last three winners as he aims to clinch the British Masters title for the second time – following his victory at The Belfry, in 2007.

Westwood enjoyed an impressive start to 2020, before the season was suspended in March due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

The Worksop wonder won the season’s first Rolex Series event – the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, in January,

That was his 25^th European Tour title. Westwood currently sits second in the Race to Dubai Rankings.

The Betfred British Masters marks the full resumption of the European Tour’s 2020 season, following two dual-ranking events in Austria.

All tournaments in the reshaped 2020 season will be subject to stringent safety and testing protocols.

Westwood ‘delighted’ to be host

“I’m delighted to be hosting again,” said 10-time Ryder Cup player Westwood, who has relocated to Newcastle from his native Nottinghamshire.

Lee Westwood has been the touring pro attached to Close House, since 2011

“I did it in 2017 – three years ago here at Close House – and I really enjoyed it. I learned a lot about what goes in to running a golf tournament. So it was interesting to see things from a different perspective.

“It’s a tough job and a tiring one at that. It was tough to do it that week and play golf too.

“I sort of ran out of steam towards the end, but it is going to be different this year.

“No crowds, a little less media and things like that, which will allow me to focus more time on trying to win the golf tournament this time round.

“It’s great that the Betfred British Masters is the first event to kick off the UK Swing. Betfred have been an incredible sponsor.

“They have stuck with us all through it, and they are very excited to be involved again this year.

“My preparation has gone well. The first few weeks we were in lockdown and we weren’t allowed to play golf,.

“So I had a big break from it then. But since golf courses have opened up again, and we are able to get back out on the golf course, I have played most days, probably three or four times a week.

“I have played a lot of golf of late and certainly no one will have played the golf course as much as I have.”

Kinhult would love to win Masters again

ONE man aiming to derail Westwood’s bid to lift the trophy again is defending champion Marcus Kinhult.

Marcus Kinhult interviewed on TV after his victory at Hillside in the British Betfred Masters a year ago

The Swede birdied the final two holes at Hillside Golf Club last season.

He finished one shot ahead of a group of players including 2018 champion Eddie Pepperell – who is also in the field.

Also bidding for a second British Masters title is Paul Dunne, who triumphed in style at Close House in 2017.

The Irishman produced a fantastic closing round of 61 to hold off a late charge from Rory McIlroy, and win his first European Tour title.

Close House will also witness a historic moment next week. The legendary Miguel Ángel Jiménez is set to make his 706^th European Tour appearance.

The 56-year-old Spaniard will equal Sam Torrance’s all-time record.

Wylie Foundation first to benefit from ‘Golf for Good’

THE Sir Graham Wylie Foundation has once again been appointed as the tournament’s official charity partner.

Sir Graham Wylie, the owner of Close House, will see the European Tour’s Golf for Good project support his own charitable foundation during the 2020 British Masters

Foundation patron Westwood will throw his support behind the work of founder Sir Graham Wylie, who also owns the venue.

He is one of the North East’s best-known entrepreneurs and philanthropists.

The European Tour launches its ‘Golf for Good’ initiative, which will run across the six-week UK Swing, at Close House.

A total of £500,000 will be distributed to local charities at each venue – including next week’s good cause.

The other charities will be chosen by the leading 10 players in a mini-Order of Merit, running across the UK Swing.

‘Golf for Good’ will underpin the rest of the European Tour season. It aims to give back in three key areas:–
Supporting communities where the European Tour plays
Rewarding true heroes, such as frontline workers
Promoting the many health benefits golf offers.

The 13th hole at Close House’s Westwood Colt Course, which will stage the Betfred British Masters for a second time from July 22-25.

•Westwood’s association with Close House came in 2011 when he opened the Colt Course, which will host the British Masters.

He also became the club’s touring pro.

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Woodhall Spa to host both English Men’s and Women’s Amateur Championships

Andrew Griffin — Thu, 23 Apr 2020 04:00:46 +0000

Mill Green’s Ellen Hume who was crowned English Women’s Amateur Championship at Saunton Golf Club last summer. Picture by LEADERBOARD PHOTOGRAPHY

ENGLAND Golf will attempt to break new ground this summer by holding its men’s and women’s national championships at the same time at one venue – at its Lincolnshire headquarters at Woodhall Spa.

The national governing body had revealed its plan to try to salvage some events from the season wrecked by the COVID-19 crisis.

Both the English Men’s and Women’s Amateur Championships will now be held at England Golf’s HQ at Woodhall Spa – dubbed by many as the country’s finest inland golf course – subject to Government approval.

Both the renowned Hotchkin and Woodhall’s Bracken course will be utilised for both championships, IF England Golf can resume play as planned in the last week of July.

That is the traditional date for the men’s event – while the women’s has been moved from the end of May, having orginally been scheduled to be played at Sheringham, in Norfolk.

The Brabazon Trophy also moves from the end of May to a new date in August – Sherwood Forest, in Nottinghamshire, will remain the host.

The McGregor Trophy – the English Boys U16 Championship – remains at Haworth, but moves back a fortnight to the end of July.

And the Carris Trophy – the English Boys U18s – will switch from St George’s Hill, in Surrey, to Broadstone, in Dorset, and will now be played from August 25-27.

Revised schedule if lockdown allows

England Golf stressed the release of a revised 2020 championship schedule remains a provisional plan and is subject to “further change in accordance with the latest government and expert medical advice on the COVID-19 outbreak.”

A spokesman said: “England Golf’s priority at this time remains to assist the national effort to combat the threat of Coronavirus and ensure we protect our NHS and save lives during the pandemic.

“However, should there be a relaxation to the restrictions on public life in the weeks ahead, our aim is to make sure we are well placed to serve our community of elite and handicap golfers.”

A total of 16 England Golf events have been provisionally rescheduled for late summer and early autumn.

Eight events remain in their original place in the 2020 calendar.

A further three events have yet to be allocated new dates and will be added to the schedule in due course.

The spokesman added: “Unfortunately, it has been necessary to cancel 31 of our national and regional events.”

Woodhall Spa’s Hotchkin Course is one of England’s finest – and will host both men’s and women’s national championships in August, England Golf has announced

Single venue mirrors professional game

COMBINING the English Men’s and Women’s Amateur Championships mirrors moves in the professional game to play some European Tour events at the same venue in recent seasons.

Both events will utilise both of Woodhall Spa’s courses – but will see the women’s event limited to 66 players.

And after 36 holes of strokeplay the top 16 women qualifiers will progress into the matchplay phase – with the 36-hole final being played on the Saturday.

The men’s event – which normally attracts a field of 288 entries – will see the top 64 qualifiers progress into the matchplay as normal on the Wednesday.

The 36-hole final will be played on the Sunday, a day later than the women’s, to accommodate two extra knockout rounds.

In 2019, Hertfordshire’s Ellen Hume won the English Women’s Amateur at Saunton Golf Club by defeating 2017 champion Lily May Humphreys, from Essex, at the 19^th hole.

Stoke Park’s Conor Gough emerged triumphant in the men’s event – beating England team-mate Callum Farr, from Northamptonshire County, at Hankley Common.

The 16-year-old, who went on to play for Great Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup, just missed out on breaking Harry’s Ellis’s record as the youngest winner at 16, set in 2012.

Stoke Park’s Conor Gough will now defend his English Amateur crown at Woodhall Spa, the home of England Golf, in August. Picture by ANDREW GRIFFIN / AMG PICTURES

The English Men’s and Women’s Seniors Championships are following suit by moving to the same venue on the same date.

Oxfordshire’s Frilford Heath – which has three championship courses, the Red, the Green and the Blue, and which are regularly used for European and EuroPro Tour Qualifying Schools – will host them between August 11 and 13.

The English Boys Final is the biggest casualty in the championship, having been cancelled – the regional qualifiers are normally held during the Whitsun half-term holiday.

The full list of provisional and revised dates and venues for the 24 events currently remaining on the 2020 schedule is:–

28 JULY – 1 AUGUST: ENGLISH WOMEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP, WOODHALL SPA GC (HOTCHKIN & BRACKEN)
28 JULY – 2 AUGUST: ENGLISH MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP, WOODHALL SPA GC (HOTCHKIN & BRACKEN)
28-30 JULY: ENGLISH U16 & U14 GIRLS’ AMATEUR STROKEPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP, THORNDON PARK GC
28-30 JULY: ENGLISH U16 BOYS’ AMATEUR STROKEPLAY – MCGREGOR TROPHY – HEWORTH GC
4-6 AUGUST: ENGLISH U14 BOYS’ AMATEUR STROKEPLAY – REID TROPHY – PRESTBURY GC
11-13 AUGUST: ENGLISH SENIOR MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP FRILFORD HEATH GC (BLUE)
11-13 AUGUST: ENGLISH SENIOR WOMEN’S AMATEUR STROKEPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP, FRILFORD HEATH GC (GREEN)
12 AUGUST: ENGLISH WOMEN’S PAR THREE CHAMPIONSHIP, AMPFIELD GC
18-20 AUGUST: ENGLISH WOMEN’S OPEN AMATEUR STROKEPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP, BURNHAM & BERROW GC
18-21 AUGUST: ENGLISH MEN’S OPEN AMATEUR STROKEPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP – BRABAZON TROPHY – SHERWOOD FOREST GC
25-27 AUGUST: ENGLISH U18 BOYS’ AMATEUR STROKEPLAY – CARRIS TROPHY – BROADSTONE GC
25-27 AUGUST: ENGLISH U18 GIRLS’ AMATEUR STROKEPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP, SANDY LODGE GC
11-13 SEPTEMBER: EUROPEAN SENIORS CHAMPIONSHIP, WOODHALL SPA GC (HOTCHKIN)
14-18 SEPTEMBER: ENGLISH WOMEN’S COUNTY FINALS (NEW FORMAT TBC), SPALDING GC
25-27 SEPTEMBER: ENGLISH MEN’S COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP (NEW FORMAT TBC), SEACROFT GC
6-9 OCTOBER: ENGLISH SENIOR MEN’S COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP (NEW FORMAT TBC), TORQUAY GC

SENIOR SERIES
4 AUG: STOWMARKET GC
26 AUG: ST MELLION GC
5 OCT: SOUTH STAFFORDSHIRE GC
TBC – HESKETH GC

GOLF CAPTAINS
5 AUG: STOWMARKET GC
27 AUG: ST MELLION GC
23 SEPT: BROADWAY GC
29 SEPT: MOORTOWN GC
6 OCT: SOUTH STAFFORDSHIRE GC
TBC – HESKETH GC
NORTHANTS COUNTY GC

All England Golf coaching sessions remain cancelled

ALL England Golf regional and national squad coaching sessions for men, women, boys and girls remain cancelled until further notice.

Individual coaching sessions – apart from those done remotely by video call – have also been cancelled, England Golf said.

The post Woodhall Spa to host both English Men’s and Women’s Amateur Championships appeared first on Golf North.

England Golf postpone Brabazon Trophy and both English Seniors events

Andrew Griffin — Wed, 18 Mar 2020 19:00:01 +0000

Charl Schwartzel won the Brabazon Trophy at Royal Cinque Ports in 2002 – the 2020 English Open Amateur Strokeplay Championship at Sherwood Forest in late May has been cancelled Picture by ANDREW GRIFIFN / AMG PICTURES

ENGLAND Golf have postponed all championships and coaching scheduled to take place up until early June as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

They include the Brabazon Trophy at Sherwood Forest and the first international match of the season between England and France at Ganton, which hosted the Walker Cup in 2003.

All England coaching for their men’s, women’s and junior squads – both at national and regional level – have also been cancelled for the foreseeable future.

Top women’s events to be postponed include the English Senior Women’s Amateur at Peterborough Milton and the English Women’s Amateur at Sheringham, in Norfolk – both in May.

England men’s Seniors Championship which was due to be played at Luffenham Heath and Burghley Park, in Lincolnshire, in early June, has also been called off.

The following England Golf and co-sanctioned events are affected:–

Golf Sixes – Centurion Club, St Albans, Hertfordshire 30-31 March 30-21
Senior Series and Golf Captains – St Mellion, Cornwall, April 29-30
Senior Series and Golf Captains – Hesketh, Lancashire, May 6-7
Brabazon Trophy South Qualifier – East Sussex National, May 12
Brabazon Trophy North Qualifier – Hessle, Yorkshire, May 12
England v France – Ganton, Yorkshire 9-10 May 9-10
English Senior Women’s Amateur – Peterborough Milton, May 11-15
England Golf Medal (South) – Knole Park, Kent, May 17
Golf Captains – Northants County, May 20
Brabazon Trophy – Sherwood Forest, Notts, May 21-24
English Women’s Amateur – Sheringham, Norfolk, May 27-31
England Golf Medal (Midlands North) – Stanton-on-the-Wolds, Gloucestershire, May 28
English Seniors Amateur Championship – Luffenham Heath, Rutland, & Burghley Park, Lincolnshire, June 3-5
Senior Series and Golf Captains – Stowmarket, Suffolk, June 3-4
England Golf Medal (East) – Colne Valley, Essex, June 7.

England Golf’s director of championships James Crampton said: “It is with regret that all England Golf events have been postponed until Sunday, June 7.

“Further information about potentially rescheduling some of these events for later in the year will be provided in due course.

“England Golf also recommends the postponement of all county and regional competitions during this time.

“While England Golf are encouraging golfers to continue playing the game, the intricacies associated with championship golf such as players travelling to events, staying in hotels and the additional personnel associated with the management of the events makes it impossible to ensure the safety and welfare of all concerned.”

All current entrants into England Golf events during this period of postponement will be contacted directly by the championship department with further information.

The decision has also been made to cancel all England Golf regional and national squad coaching sessions for men, women, boys and girls until further notice.

Individual coaching sessions can continue provided they comply with the stringent government and expert advice on social distancing, an England Golf spokesman said.

Events relating to championships and performance squads remain under constant review and timely updates will be issued via England Golf’s website and social media platforms, he added.

England Golf will continue to communicate any changes through our website, social platforms and via direct correspondence to their affiliated counties, clubs and golfers.

It is vital that everyone continues to follow best practice when it comes to dealing with the current outbreak of coronavirus.

•Last year’s Brabazon Trophy was won by 16-year-old Ben Schmidt, from Rotherham GC, who broke Sandy Lyle’s record set as a 17-year-old in 1975 – and 70 years after Hampshire’s Sir Paddy Hine became the first teenager to win the English Open Amateur Strokeplay, at Southampton’s Stoneham GC, when he was just 17.

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England Golf update: COVID-19

Jack Rayner — Wed, 18 Mar 2020 17:14:56 +0000

England Golf update: COVID-19

In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, England Golf has today announced a number of key decisions relating to all of our championships and wider golfing activities.

All championship and performance events have been postponed until 7 June.
With the health and wellbeing of all golfers, staff and volunteers paramount in our thinking, we have issued a comprehensive guidance document to clubs and golfers on how best to proceed in these unprecedented times
England Golf’s AGM and national participation events scheduled for the spring have been postponed
New working practices for staff have been adopted to ensure we remain fully operational and available to assist counties, clubs and golfers in the weeks and months ahead

For full details on all these important announcements please click below:

Championships and Performance

Guidance for Golf Clubs and Golfers

Event Postponements and How to contact England Golf

These remain extremely difficult and unprecedented times for the game of golf as well as the country in general.

England Golf remains committed to helping our golfing community adapt to the necessary changes and for golfers to continue to play the game in a safe environment and according to government and public health guidelines.

The pace of change and the constant updating of government and medical advice means that a continual process of re-assessment of decisions and guidelines must be undertaken.

England Golf will continue to communicate any changes through our website, social platforms and via direct correspondence to our affiliated counties, clubs and golfers.

It is vital that everyone continues to follow best practice when it comes to dealing with the current outbreak of coronavirus.

For expert medical advice please refer to the following websites:

World Health Organisation: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

Public Health England: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/public-health-england

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England Golf Statement Regarding Coronavirus

Jack Rayner — Wed, 18 Mar 2020 10:39:52 +0000

England Golf Statement Regarding Coronavirus

England Golf – in light of the developing situation with the COVID-19 outbreak – has today issued the following guidance to all our affiliated golf clubs and golfers.

We fully recognise the need to adhere to the expert advice available and as such we would point all our clubs in the direction of the guidelines set out in detail by Public Health England via their website.

Details on how best to cope with the virus can also be found via the World Health Organisation website which will provide rolling updates and the best ways to mitigate against the spread of the infection.

NHS England also provide updated and expert advice via their website.

All golf clubs should note, act upon and continually monitor the advice and guidance issued by these expert authorities in relation to the current coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

It is important that we all work together, following the advice of qualified professionals, in controlling the spread of COVID-19.

This remains a very fluid situation and England Golf will continue to take their lead from the government and public health authorities when it comes to safeguarding our clubs and members and offering practical and necessary steps to ensure the health and wellbeing of golfers and golf club staff.

England Golf chief executive Jeremy Tomlinson said: “The expert practical advice that is available from the health authorities and national government should remain the first point of reference for all our golf clubs and golfers.

“This is clearly a fluid and developing situation and we will continue to monitor events as they progress and pass on the relevant information to our stakeholders.

“By working in alignment with those who are specialists in this field, we will be able to take the necessary precautions and provide the correct measures to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak.”