British amateur championship at Formby, Lancashire

Defending champion Saxton loses

five-hole lead to make early exit

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Having been five up after 10 holes, defending champion Reinier Saxton has been knocked out of the 114th Amateur Championship on the 19th hole by Spain’s Ignacio Elvira.
The Dutchman bogeyed five holes in a row from the 11th to let Elvira back into the match before a wayward drive at the 19th hole, followed by a chip out which caught a branch, caused Saxton to concede.
It was an unlikely victory for the three-time Spanish junior champion who had told his caddy on the 11th tee that there were only a couple of holes left at most. As the weather closed in, however, Elvira picked up his game, coming back in level-par 35.
“I started finding the fairway and hitting really good shots to the pin. If the weather keeps getting worse, I’ve got a good chance!”
Last year’s beaten finalist, Tommy Fleetwood, has secured his passage through to the last 32 with a two-hole win over Italy’s Andrea Pavan. Having gone one up with a birdie at the par-5 third, Fleetwood would retain the lead for the duration of the match.
“It was good enough,” said the 18-year-old. “I’ll have to improve if I want to win (the championship) but I feel like my best golf is still to come.”
Meanwhile, Australia’s Matt Jager continues to impress, winning today’s match against Wales’ Rhys Enoch 2 & 1. Three up-and-downs on the first three holes left the Formby course-record holder two up, a lead which he built upon to reach the turn with a four-hole advantage.
Enoch rallied to reduce the deficit to one down after 15, but a nine-iron to two feet at 16 and another birdie at the par-5 17 from Jager, ensured that it is the Australian who advances into tomorrow’s third round.
“My short game was good early on, I didn’t make a mistake on the front nine,” he explained. “After fourteen I was a bit frustrated, but in that weather you’re bound to make mistakes. I wasn’t too concerned though as I was hitting the ball well.”
Joining Jager is Matteo Manassero, who continues to show the form that left him four shots clear of the field after the stroke play stage. The 16-year-old only required 13 holes to ensure a 6&5 victory and a place in the final 32 where he will face good friend and Italian team-mate, Joon Kim. Though they know each other’s game well, the pair have never before met in a match play situation, making for an enthralling third-round contest.
Also progressing to the next stage are Brabazon Trophy winner Niall Kearney, world No 13 Sam Hutsby, four-time Walker Cup competitor Nigel Edwards and Stiggy Hodgson.
Hodgson, who on Tuesday intended to return home after stating that his two-round total of 147 would not be enough, won a preliminary qualifying round this morning on the 19th hole and, this afternoon, beat fellow Englishman Ben Rickett, by one hole to reach the third-round.

Visit RandA.org for the full list of qualifiers and tomorrow’s draw.

Results from the first day of match play

ROUND OF 64
Matteo Manassero bt Steven Brown 6 and 5
Joon Kim def. Stephan Gross 2 and 1
Simon Ward def. David Markle 2 holes
Peter Baunsoe def. Joe Vickery 7 and 5
Matt Jager def. Rhys Enoch 2 and 1
John Carroll def. Greg Paterson 6 and 5
Jesper Kennegard def. Charlie Cossins 3 and 1
Tommy Fleetwood def. Andrea Pavin 2 holes
Jack Bartlett def. Niclas Johansson at 20th
Jonathan Hurst def. Chris Cannon 8 and 7
Stephan Jaeger def. Jonathan Gidney 3 and 2
Mark Hillson def. Luke Lennox 2 and 1
Steve Ziegler def. Gavin Dear 2 and 1
James White def. Jake Amos 4 and 3
Tommy King def. James Robinson at 19th
Darren Renwick def. Pontius Widegren 2 holes.
Kalle Samooja def. Russell Henley 1 hole.
Stefan Widergruen def. Adam Wainwright 3 and 1
Jurrian Van Der Vaart def. Adam Runcie 2 and 1
Ignacio Elvira def. Reinier Saxton at 19th.
Willem Vork def. Richard Hooper 4 and 2
Maximillian Kieffer def. Henrik Norlander 3 and 2
Niall Kearney def. Daniel Nisbet 1 hole.
Sam Hutsby def. Eugene Wong 6 and 5
James Byrne def. Sam Stuart 3 and 1
Fredrik Qvicker def. Billy Hernstock 3 and 1
Nils Floren def. Bryden Macpherson 2 holes.
Matthew Nixon def. Brendan Smith 4 and 3
Jamie Abbott def. Alexander Knappe 1 hole.
Stiggy Hodgson def. Ben Rickett 1 hole.
Ryan Dreyer def. Daan Huizing 1 hole.
Nigel Edwards def. Pedro Oriol 5 and 4

QUALIFYING ROUND
Richard Hooper def. Nunzio Lombardi at 21st
Henrik Norlander def. William Wilcox 3 and 2
Daniel Nisbet def. Paul Cutler 2 and 1
Eugene Wong def. Gregor Main 5 and 4
Sam Stuart def. Robin Kind at 19th.
Billy Hemstock def. Lincoln Tighe 5 and 4
Nils Floren def. Sam Haywood 4 and 3
Matthew Nixon def. Adrian Ford 6 and 5
Alexander Knappe def. Tim Sluiter at 19th.
Stiggy Hodgson def. Johan Lopez Lazaro at 19th
Ryan Dreyer def. Victor Flatau 3 and 2
Pedro Oriol def. Dale Whitnell 1 hole.