English Golf Union Press Release

Strong English squad for European
Nations event at Sotogrande

The English Golf Union has named a highly experienced four-man squad to contest the European Nations Championship at Sotogrande Golf Club in Spain from April 2 to 5.
The four-day championship, formerly known as the Sherry Cup and last year as the Grey Goose Cup, will see England represented by internationals Matthew Cryer, Ed Richardson and Gary Wolstenholme plus Elite Squad member Gareth Evans.
Although Evans, who is based at Northcliffe Golf Club, has yet to be capped by England, the 28 year old is a former Yorkshire champion who has enjoyed a successful time over the past two years at home and abroad.
Beside his county crown in 2006, Evans also won the English county champions' event at Woodhall Spa while last year he finished sixth in the South of England stroke-play championship , eighth in the Welsh Open stroke-play and reached the last 16 of the Spanish Amateur. He also helped Yorkshire retain the English county championship.
Cryer, 32, from Coventry, has been a full international since 2005. A semi-finalist in the English and Italian amateur championships and runner-up in the Russian amateur in 2006, he lost to Willett in last year’s English amateur final before winning the British mid-amateur title.
He was also second in the Midland Open Amateur, third in the South of England Stroke Play and sixth in the Lytham Trophy. In January this year, Cryer won the Avondale Medal in Australia with Wolstenholme in third place.
Richardson, 39, a former Kent champion, is a past winner of the West of England stroke-play and the Midland Open amateur. He was capped by England for the first time in the 2005 Home Internationals and has played 15 matches for his country.
In late 2006, Richardson partnered Seve Benson to victory in the Juan Carlos Tailhade Cup in Buenos Aires while last year he was runner-up in the Italian amateur championship and reached the quarter finals of the British mid-amateur. Recently he was a quarter-finalist in the Spanish amateur.
Wolstenholme, 47, England’s most capped player - he made his debut in 1988 - completed 200 appearances when he played against Spain last May. The winner of numerous tournaments at home and abroad, he was awarded an MBE in the 2007 New Year Honours List.
Now based at Carus Green Golf Club and representing Cumbria, Wolstenholme added to his vast tally last year by winning the New South Wales Amateur as well as retaining the European Mid Amateur Championship and in January returned to Australia to win the Lakes Medal.
He was recently fourth in the Portuguese Amateur Championship.
The European Nations Championship is competed for over 72 holes with the best three cards each day counting towards the team event. An individual competition runs simultaneously with the Nations Championship, the champion collecting a trophy and the Amateur Masters Jacket.
If the Championship ends in a tie, the teams involved will nominate one player to compete in a sudden death play-off.
England last won the Championship in 2004 and for the past three years they have finished third twice and equal second last year, but Wolstenholme has an impressive record in the individual contest with four victories. He won the individual title in 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005.