Wallace Booth Walker Cup

hopes dented as he misses

cut at Walton Heath

Wallace Booth’s hopes of making the Walker Cup team for September’s match in the United States nosedived at Walton Heath, Surrey today.
The Comrie man, who will be 24 years old on Friday, crashed out of the South of England open amateur championship, which is regarded by the GB&I selectors, apparently, as the last big test before they name their team.
Booth, picture by courtesy of Tom Ward Photography, looked set to make the top 40 and ties when he started with a 69 over the New Course on Tuesday but today the man who helped Scotland win the world amateur team championship in Australia last October and the European team championship in Wales a few weeks ago, sagged to a seven-over-par 78 over the Walton Heath Old Course, one of the toughest moorland courses in the country.
A total of 147 – four over par – was one shot over the limit mark to qualify for the last two rounds.
Carnoustie’s Keir McNicoll was the only Scot to survive the cut. He had a second round of 73, this time over the New Course, to hit the qualifying mark of 146 right on the button.
Mark Hillson (Craigielaw) missed out with scores of 76 over the Old and 75 over the New for a total of 151.
Simon Crockett (Addington Palace) leads the field by one shot with a six-under-par tally of 137 – 68 over the New, followed by a 69 at the Old today.
Irishman Niall Kearney (Royal Dublin), a 68 over the New today, and Jason Palmer (Kirby Muxloe), who set a New Course record of 63 on Tuesday but took 75 over the Old today, are next best of 138.

FROM THE IRISH TIMES WEBSITE:

Niall Kearney fired a four-under par 68 in the second round of the South of England Amateur Championship at Walton Heath and will go into tomorrow’s final two rounds one shot off the overnight lead held by England’s Simon Crockett.
The in-form Royal Dublin golfer will attempt to add to his growing collection of silverware plus bolster his chances of Walker Cup selection ahead of September’s match at Merion Golf Club in Pennsylvania.
The 24-year-old’s round on the New Course contained six birdies and just two dropped shots for an impressive 138 halfway aggregate over one of England’s most demanding inland courses.
“I felt good out there today, my golf really came together well,” said the South of Ireland and Brabazon Trophy champion.
Portstewart’s Paul Cutler and Baltray’s Simon Ward also qualified for tomorrow’s final 36 holes.
Cutler, this year’s East of Ireland champion, matched Kearney’s 68 for a 144 aggregate, while Ward carded a battling 71 to squeeze in on the 146 cut mark.
James Fox could manage a second round 73 which left the Portmarnock golfer one shot outside the cut on 147.
There was further disappointment for Rathmore’s Alan Dunbar. The St Andrews Links Trophy winner slumped to a second round 79 for a 155 total.



QUALIFIERS FOR FINAL TWO ROUNDS
Par 143
Old Course par 71; New Course par 72
137 Simon Crockett (Addington Palace) 68 N, 69 O.
138 Jason Palmer (Kirby Muxloe) 63 N 75 O, Niall Kearney (Royal Dublin) 70 O 68 N.
139 Stiggy Hodgson (Sunningdale) 69 O 70 N, Luke Goddard (Hendon) 65 N 74 O.
140 James Watts (East Herts) 68 N 72 O.
141 Ben Rickett (Surbiton) 72 O 69 N.
142 Steven Uzzell (Hornsea) 73 O 69 N, Tommy King (Sudbury) 71 O 71 N, Sam Hutsby (Liphook) 70 O 72 N.
143 Graham Povey (Brickendon Grange) 70 N 73 O.
144 Rhys Enoch (Truro) 76 N 68 O, Paul Cutler (Portstewart) 76 O 68 N, Nigel Edwards (Whitchurch) 73 O 71 N, Andy Shakespear (Five Lakes) 72 N 72 O, Jamie Abbott (Fynn Valley) 70 N 74 O, Todd Adcock (The Nevill) 69 N 75 O, Niccolo Quintarelli (Italy) 68 N 76 O.
145 Farren Keenan (Sunningdale) 75 O 70 N, Jake Amos (Kilworth Springs) 75 O 70 N, Jack Gartlett (Worthing) 75 O 70 N, Dale Whitnell (Five Lakes) 74 N 71 O, Matthew Southgate (Thorpe Hall) 74 N 71 O, Jurrian Van der Vaart (Netherlands) 74 O 71 N, Matthew Nixon (Ashton under lyne) 74 O 71 N, Ben Loughrey (Wrag Barn) 72 N 73 O, Warren Harmston (Wentworth) 71 N 74 O, Chris Jess (East Sussex National) 68 N 77 O.
146 Keir McNicoll (Carnoustie) 73 O 73 N, Luke Joy (Broadstone) 77 O 69 N, David Booth (Rotherham) 79 O 67 N, Chris Paisley (Stocksfield) 76 O 70 N, Simon Ward (Co Louth) 75 O 71 N, Jon White (Saunton) 74 N 72 O, Neil Raymond (Corhampton) 74 O 72 N, Eddie Pepperell (Drayton Park) 74 O 72 N, Liam Burns (Sundridge Park) 74 O 72 N, Scott Fallon (Hendon) 73 O 73 N, Peter Croonquist (US) 72 O 74 N, Kelvin Day (Surbiton) 71 N 75 O, Steven Brown (Wentworth) 70 O 76 N, Adam Wainwright (Gainsborough) 70 N 76 O.
Scots non-qualifiers:
147 Wallace Booth (Comrie) 69 N 78 O.
151 Mark Hillson (Craigielaw) 76 O 75 N.
Other non-qualifiers
147 Robin Kind (Netherlands) 75 72, Joon Kim (Italy) 77 70, James Fox (Portmarnock) 74, 73, Ben Westgate (Trevose) 75 72, Adam Keogh (Boston West) 70 77, Ross Spurgeon (West Essex) 72 74, Ed Kennedy (Broadway) 72 75, Elliot Groves (Dunwood Manor) 75 72, Tim Sluiter (Netherlands) 77 70, Stuart Phillips (Royston) 71 76, Garrick Porteous (Bamburgh Castle) 69 78.
148 Matt Haines (Rochester & Cobham) 76 72, Jonathan Poulton (Hersham Village) 74 74, Darren Renwick (Hillbarn) 73 75, Ian Winstanley (Formby) 77 71, Max Williams (Cuddington) 77 71, Ashley Rees (East Sussex National) 71 77, Craig Hinton (The Oxfordshire) 72 76, James Robinson (Southport & Ainsdale) 73 75, Tom Sherreard (Chart Hills) 70 78, Jason Barnes (Chart Hills) 73 75, Aaron Hodkin (Wheatley) 71 77.
149 Jack Hiluta (Chelmsford) 77 72, Tom Shadbolt (Mid Herts) 78 71, Jack Senior (Heysham) 75 74, Matt Kippen (Enmore Park) 75 74, Charles Ford (Kirby Muxloe) 74 75, Andrew Cooley (Chobham) 75 74.
150 Luke Collins (Mendip Spring) 73 77, Darren Wright (Rowlands Castle) 73 77, Alex Hogben (Ringway) 76 74, Michael Moore (Grande Oaks) 74 76, Ashley Walton (Frilford Heath) 74 76, Thomas Coulson (West Hove) 74 76, Sam Claridge (Harpenden Common) 75 75, Jordan Gibb (Deangate Ridge) 77 73, Daan Huizing (Netherlands) 75 75, Jake Shepherd (The Wisley) 74 76,
Laurie Canter (Saltford) 75 75, Michael Saunders (Dartford) 73 77, Ben Nash (Cooden Beath) 76 74.
151 Dave Coupland (Boston) 75 76, Mark Thistleton (Hayling) 79 72, Adam Wills (Sandiway) 77 74, Toby Burden (Hayling) 76 75, Jonathan Gidney (Church Stretton) 74 77, Adam Best (Cleveland) 79 72, Michael Swan (Stoke by Nayland) 72 79, Tom Robson (Rowlands Castle) 75 76, Sam Matton (Bowood) 73 78, Nicolo Ravano (Italy) 74 77, Ryan Newman (Brookmans Park)72 79.
152 Sam Stuart (St Annes Old Links) 72 80, Andrew Windsor (Ferndown) 79 73, Willem Vork
(Netherlands) 76 76, Simon Richardson (Boston West) 77 75, Charlie Cossins (Bath) 79 73, Alex Christie (Tyrrells Wood) 74 78.
153 Sam Haywood (Rotherham) 73 80, Henry Smart (Banstead Downs) 73 80, Eliot Wise
(Wentworth) 77 76, Leonardo Motta (Italy) 79 75.
154 Christopher Cannon (East Sussex National) 74 80, Adam Wootton (Oxford City) 72 82, Kevin garwood (Surrey National) 77 77, Mark Bell (Shanklin & Sandown) 73 81.
155 Miles Mackman (Broome Manor) 79 76, James Paul Martin (Spain) 79 76, Frederic Abadie
(France) 81 74, Nicholas Pateman (Porters Park) 81 74, Alan Dunbar (Rathmore) 76 79, James Scade (Braintree) 78 77, Richard Smith (The Notts) 72 83, Martin Vermei (Netherlands) 76 79.
Roberto Laino (Bedford & Co) 78 77, Neil Dean (Minchinhampton) 77 78, Ryan Brown (Worksop) 76 79, Peter Tarver-Jones (Worthing) 70 75, Darren Timms (Mid Kent) 73 82.