NIGEL EDWARDS REAPPOINTED WALKER CUP CAPTAIN FOR 2013
NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE R AND A
Nigel Edwards has been reappointed Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup Captain for the 2013 match after leading this year’s team to victory over the United States.
The Welshman, of Whitchurch Golf Club in Cardiff, will also be GB and I captain for the 2012 St Andrews Trophy Match against the Continent of Europe, as well as the Walker Cup contest at the National Golf Links of America, Long Island.
Edwards played in four successive Walker Cups between 2001 and 2007, twice on a winning side, before completing a hat trick of victories by leading GB and I to a 14-12 victory at Royal Aberdeen last month.
GB and I went into the contest as underdogs against a US team that included six of the world’s top 10 amateurs but brilliant performances, from the likes of Welsh teenager Rhys Pugh and Open Championship Silver Medallist Tom Lewis, saw the team win the Walker Cup for the first time since 2003.
Edwards, 43, has also played in three St Andrews Trophy matches, winning on every occasion. However, he was Captain for the last match at Castelconturbia, Italy, in 2010 which saw GB and I suffer a 14-10 defeat and will get the chance to reclaim the trophy at Portmarnock, near Dublin, next August.
Edwards said: "Captaining the winning side in the 43rd Walker Cup was truly fantastic and to be given the chance to be part of this special event again is a great honour. I am looking forward to being involved with the selection and preparation for 2013. The experience shared by this year’s team will stay with all of those involved for the rest of their lives.
“I will use my own experience as a player and Captain to ensure that the next team is fully prepared to play to the best of their ability and make the most of their own Walker Cup experience.
“I am also excited about the challenge of getting the St Andrews Trophy back into GB and I hands in front of what I’m sure will be an enthusiastic Irish support.”
He is the third Welshman to captain the Walker Cup team after Tony Duncan, as a playing captain in 1953, and Clive Brown in 1995 and 1997, when his side beat a US team including Tiger Woods at Royal Porthcawl.
Edwards, recently appointed Director of Coaching at the English Golf Union (EGU), is also a former Director of Player Development and Coaching at the Golf Union of Wales.
The R and A’s Chief Executive Peter Dawson said: “Nigel proved himself to be as good a Captain as he was a player and has already secured his place in Walker Cup history.
“His experience, not only of team golf but of the wider amateur game, will be a tremendous asset as he prepares teams for both next year’s St Andrews Trophy match at Portmarnock and the 2013 Walker Cup.”
HUNDREDS TURN OUT FOR ADAM HUNTER'S FUNERAL SERVICE IN GLASGOW
FROM THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION WEBSITEAdam James Hunter 1963-2011.
It is a measure of Adam James Hunter’s standing within Scottish society and Scottish Golf that hundreds today (21 October) turned out for his funeral in Glasgow.
Mourners from far and wide came to pay their respects to the popular professional and coach, who passed away aged just 48 at Glasgow’s Beatson Cancer Centre last Friday. Hunter, who bravely fought a near two-year battle with leukaemia, was laid to rest at Daldowie Crematorium before a heart-broken audience of family, friends and golfers.
Paul Lawrie, coached by Hunter to 1999 Open glory at Carnoustie, Alastair Forsyth, Callum Macaulay and Andrew Oldcorn were among the Scottish professionals who gathered from the circle of golf, as well as leading amateurs, officials and members of the media.
Lawrie, who first met Adam in 1987 at Banchory Golf Club where he was the assistant pro before they become close friends, was a coffin bearer, before the Aberdonian somehow found the words to sum up the man who has played such a defining role in his career.
“Adam’s hard work and dedication to all his students was unbelievable,” he said, close to tears, to a packed audience which stretched outside the crematorium building.
“I lost count of the number of times I was not allowed to leave the putting green until I had completed one of his famous drills. I also lost count of the number of times he drove up to Aberdeen after I called to say I was struggling with something. I trusted him 100 per cent with my golf game.
“At Carnoustie, Adam took control after my final round got me into the play-off. He got me to hit balls, got me something to eat. He said and did everything right that afternoon - he was the difference.
“On the way to the play-off, he noticed I was very nervous so he told me to look at the faces of (Jean) Van de Velde and (Justin) Leonard when I got to the tee – which was a masterstroke, as they both looked worse than me. Adam Hunter was the reason I became the golfer I am, no question.”
Glasgow-born Hunter – a winner on the European Tour in Portugal in 1995 - started working as a coach within the Scottish Golf Union’s Academy structure in 2004. Last year, he was promoted to become the national coach of the Under-16s squad. Such was his enthusiasm and devotion to his jobs that, in spite of his illness, he was still sending e-mails to the SGU team up until two months ago.
Douglas Connon, the SGU chairman, also spoke in glowing terms of his friend and colleague at the funeral:
“Adam’s teaching was inspirational, founded on an encyclopedic knowledge of the mechanics of golf and the golf swing, but based on the needs, and the inevitable deficiencies of each individual golfer he taught, whether fellow professionals such as Paul, Stephen Gallacher, Gary Orr, Alastair Forsyth or Catriona Matthew, through to the elite Scottish amateurs and normal club golfers.
“During Adam’s seven years with the SGU, he filled his roles with us with great enthusiasm and skill, imparting his knowledge to Scotland’s top amateurs, both male and female. All his pupils had great confidence in him and his methods.”
Mourners moved on to Sandyhills Golf Club, near where Adam was born, to share famous tales and celebrate his life further.
Our deepest sympathies at the SGU go to Adam’s wife, Caroline, and his two teenage daughters, Emma and Beth.
Nigel Edwards has been reappointed Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup Captain for the 2013 match after leading this year’s team to victory over the United States.
The Welshman, of Whitchurch Golf Club in Cardiff, will also be GB and I captain for the 2012 St Andrews Trophy Match against the Continent of Europe, as well as the Walker Cup contest at the National Golf Links of America, Long Island.
Edwards played in four successive Walker Cups between 2001 and 2007, twice on a winning side, before completing a hat trick of victories by leading GB and I to a 14-12 victory at Royal Aberdeen last month.
GB and I went into the contest as underdogs against a US team that included six of the world’s top 10 amateurs but brilliant performances, from the likes of Welsh teenager Rhys Pugh and Open Championship Silver Medallist Tom Lewis, saw the team win the Walker Cup for the first time since 2003.
Edwards, 43, has also played in three St Andrews Trophy matches, winning on every occasion. However, he was Captain for the last match at Castelconturbia, Italy, in 2010 which saw GB and I suffer a 14-10 defeat and will get the chance to reclaim the trophy at Portmarnock, near Dublin, next August.
Edwards said: "Captaining the winning side in the 43rd Walker Cup was truly fantastic and to be given the chance to be part of this special event again is a great honour. I am looking forward to being involved with the selection and preparation for 2013. The experience shared by this year’s team will stay with all of those involved for the rest of their lives.
“I will use my own experience as a player and Captain to ensure that the next team is fully prepared to play to the best of their ability and make the most of their own Walker Cup experience.
“I am also excited about the challenge of getting the St Andrews Trophy back into GB and I hands in front of what I’m sure will be an enthusiastic Irish support.”
He is the third Welshman to captain the Walker Cup team after Tony Duncan, as a playing captain in 1953, and Clive Brown in 1995 and 1997, when his side beat a US team including Tiger Woods at Royal Porthcawl.
Edwards, recently appointed Director of Coaching at the English Golf Union (EGU), is also a former Director of Player Development and Coaching at the Golf Union of Wales.
The R and A’s Chief Executive Peter Dawson said: “Nigel proved himself to be as good a Captain as he was a player and has already secured his place in Walker Cup history.
“His experience, not only of team golf but of the wider amateur game, will be a tremendous asset as he prepares teams for both next year’s St Andrews Trophy match at Portmarnock and the 2013 Walker Cup.”
HUNDREDS TURN OUT FOR ADAM HUNTER'S FUNERAL SERVICE IN GLASGOW
FROM THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION WEBSITEAdam James Hunter 1963-2011.
It is a measure of Adam James Hunter’s standing within Scottish society and Scottish Golf that hundreds today (21 October) turned out for his funeral in Glasgow.
Mourners from far and wide came to pay their respects to the popular professional and coach, who passed away aged just 48 at Glasgow’s Beatson Cancer Centre last Friday. Hunter, who bravely fought a near two-year battle with leukaemia, was laid to rest at Daldowie Crematorium before a heart-broken audience of family, friends and golfers.
Paul Lawrie, coached by Hunter to 1999 Open glory at Carnoustie, Alastair Forsyth, Callum Macaulay and Andrew Oldcorn were among the Scottish professionals who gathered from the circle of golf, as well as leading amateurs, officials and members of the media.
Lawrie, who first met Adam in 1987 at Banchory Golf Club where he was the assistant pro before they become close friends, was a coffin bearer, before the Aberdonian somehow found the words to sum up the man who has played such a defining role in his career.
“Adam’s hard work and dedication to all his students was unbelievable,” he said, close to tears, to a packed audience which stretched outside the crematorium building.
“I lost count of the number of times I was not allowed to leave the putting green until I had completed one of his famous drills. I also lost count of the number of times he drove up to Aberdeen after I called to say I was struggling with something. I trusted him 100 per cent with my golf game.
“At Carnoustie, Adam took control after my final round got me into the play-off. He got me to hit balls, got me something to eat. He said and did everything right that afternoon - he was the difference.
“On the way to the play-off, he noticed I was very nervous so he told me to look at the faces of (Jean) Van de Velde and (Justin) Leonard when I got to the tee – which was a masterstroke, as they both looked worse than me. Adam Hunter was the reason I became the golfer I am, no question.”
Glasgow-born Hunter – a winner on the European Tour in Portugal in 1995 - started working as a coach within the Scottish Golf Union’s Academy structure in 2004. Last year, he was promoted to become the national coach of the Under-16s squad. Such was his enthusiasm and devotion to his jobs that, in spite of his illness, he was still sending e-mails to the SGU team up until two months ago.
Douglas Connon, the SGU chairman, also spoke in glowing terms of his friend and colleague at the funeral:
“Adam’s teaching was inspirational, founded on an encyclopedic knowledge of the mechanics of golf and the golf swing, but based on the needs, and the inevitable deficiencies of each individual golfer he taught, whether fellow professionals such as Paul, Stephen Gallacher, Gary Orr, Alastair Forsyth or Catriona Matthew, through to the elite Scottish amateurs and normal club golfers.
“During Adam’s seven years with the SGU, he filled his roles with us with great enthusiasm and skill, imparting his knowledge to Scotland’s top amateurs, both male and female. All his pupils had great confidence in him and his methods.”
Mourners moved on to Sandyhills Golf Club, near where Adam was born, to share famous tales and celebrate his life further.
Our deepest sympathies at the SGU go to Adam’s wife, Caroline, and his two teenage daughters, Emma and Beth.
Labels: OBITUARY
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Friday, October 21, 2011
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