CHRIS WOOD RELISHING TIGER MATCH-UP IN AKRON
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Labels: PRO
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Having seen his elder brother Matthew become the leading amateur in the Open Championship at Muirfield, Alex Fitzpatrick is hoping to follow in his footsteps in the English Boys under 14 Stroke Play Championship for the Reid Trophy at North Hants Golf Club on 6th – 8th August. The younger Fitzpatrick, aged 14 and off two handicap, finished equal 26th last year at Blackwell, while he also won the 2012 Yorkshire under 16 Championship. Having made the cut in both the under 16 and under 18 championships, Herman Loubser, from the Mount Murray club on the Isle of Man, now takes on those of his own age group. The scratch player has a South African background and will be in the first game out on day one. The field of 144 contains a number of county’s under 14 team members, not least Surrey with Sam Bartham, William Hobbs, Aadam Syed and Zac Jenkins on parade. Benjamin Rendell from Clacton-on-Sea Golf Club, off four, the Essex under 14 captain, is also competing as is Max Conway, off five from Formby, a Lancashire under 14 team player. Also in the field is Hugo Kedzlie, a five handicapper from Spalding Golf Club, who won the 9-11 age group England Golf Skills Challenge at Woodhall Spa in 2011. Another to watch could be Toby Briggs, the one-handicap son of the professional, Peter Briggs, at Dunston Hall Golf club in Norfolk. There is again a good entry from the other Home countries while there is a sizeable overseas challenge with 54 players representing Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the USA. Among them are 11 young players from Spain, eager to emulate the victory of Inigo Lopez-Pizarro last year at Blackwell. The Reid Trophy is always keenly contested over 54 holes and that will be the case again this year while the event also encompasses an under 13 championship. It also represents the first step on the ladder for these talented youngsters, some of which will develop into the internationals of tomorrow and future stars of the fairways. The leading six players in the Championship will gain automatic exemption to next year’s McGregor Trophy (under 16 championship) at Radcliffe on Trent, its original home. Image caption: North Hants Golf Club, the venue of the English Boys under 14 Stroke Play Championship for the Reid Trophy. Image copyright Tom Ward Photography. | |
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Labels: Boys
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Man-of-the-moment
Matthew Fitzpatrick will meet Callum Shinkwin in tomorrow’s 36-final of
the English Amateur Championship supported by abacus, after both came
safely through two more testing matches on the penultimate day at
Frilford Heath.
Fitzpatrick
overcame Nathan Kimsey 2 and 1 in the morning’s quarter final then
demolished Tomasz Anderson 7 and 6 in the semi-finals.
Shinkwin endured
two much closer ties, beating Chris Halley 3 and 2 in the quarters then
edging home against Max Orrin by 1 hole.
Having
thrilled the galleries at Muirfield a fortnight ago in the Open,
Fitzpatrick now has the opportunity to do the same to a slightly smaller
audience and add the impressive trophy to the silver medal he collected
in Scotland.
But
Shinkwin will do his utmost to deny him and both are aware this is
Walker Cup year while they both have the same coach, Mike Walker at
Rotherham.
In
the quarter finals, played in ideal conditions that began under
overcast skies but finished in warm sunshine, Fitzgerald was given his
toughest contest by Kimsey. But the afternoon semi-final against
Anderson from Hertfordshire proved a different story.
Anderson
started poorly with two bogeys in the first three holes and while a
Fitzpatrick birdie at the second put the Sheffield lad 3-up. Anderson
settled after that but further Fitzpatrick birdies at the sixth and
short ninth saw the Yorkshire youngster 5-up at the turn.
The
end was in sight and a par at the short 11th followed by a birdie-three
at 12 saw Fitzpatrick home 7 and 6. “It looks an easy win but no match
is easy,” said Fitzpatrick. “But whatever happens tomorrow the last year
has been special for me after winning the British Boys last August,
then the silver medal at The Open and now this.”
Anderson,
who had romped through to the last four, was pulled up short in the
semi-final. “I played rubbish,” he said. “I am really disappointed
because I played so differently from this morning.”
Anderson,
who captained Hertfordshire to the Boys County Championship at Goswick
in 2010, now has the European Amateur to contest before returning to his
college team in Jacksonville in a couple of weeks.
Meanwhile,
Shinkwin and Orrin were locked in a close encounter although Shinkwin
twice held a 2 hole advantage only to see Orrin hit back in determined
fashion. “It was a tough match,” said Shinkwin.
“We
are both members of the England squad, good friends and we see each
other quite regularly. But it’s been a good week for me. I reached the
semi-finals at Woburn two years ago and lost to Jamie Clare, I didn’t
qualify at Silloth last year, but this time the luck is going my way.
“The
English Amateur has been a great event for me but tomorrow is a
different story. I am playing the World No.3 but my ranking should be in
the top 20 now.”
The opening couple of holes were fairly scrappy but the pair soon got their games in order and back-to-back birdies saw Shinkwin 2-up after six holes. But he missed a shortish putt on the short ninth to see his lead cut then Orrin birdied the tenth to draw level.
They
swopped birdies for the next couple of holes but a birdie at 14
followed by a par-four at 15 put Shinkwin two ahead again. But just when
he thought he had the match won, Orrin birdied the 16th then holed from
20 feet for a winning par at 17.
At
the last, both drove just off the green at the 305-yard hole then
chipped close. Orrin missed from around four feet for birdie but
Shinkwin sank his to seal victory.
“It
was close all the way,” said Orrin. “It wasn’t the best way to lose but
Callum did make birdie. I thought my putt was straight but it broke
right. But it’s been a good week and now I’m looking forward to the US
Amateur.”
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