The European team for the Junior Ryder Cup was
announced today as captain Stuart Wilson revealed the names of the 12 Under-18 European amateur stars to take on the USA at Blairgowrie Golf Club on
September 22-23.
There is only one Scot chosen - British amateur champion Bradley Neil who will be playing over his home course - and one English representative, Curtis Cup player Annabel Dimmock (Wentworth).
The European team is:
Mathilda Cappeliez (France)
Alexandra Försterling (Germany)
Virginia Carta (Italy)
Annabel Dimmock (England)
Emily Pedersen (Denmark)
Linea Strom (Sweden)
John Axelsen (Denmark)
Max Schmitt (Germany)
Ivan Cantero (Spain)
Marcus Kinhult (Sweden)
Bradley Neil (Scotland)
Renato Paratore (Italy)
Wilson announced his selection at the conclusion of
the European Golf Association’s European Young Masters at Hamburger Golf
Club in Germany, with the team comprised of four boys under the age of
18, four girls under the age of 18 as well as two under-16 boys and two
under-16 girls.
British amateur champion Bradley Neil will lead the line for
the European team after the young Scot was the first name to be
announced, in what is a huge boost for the event which takes place at
his home club in the Perthshire town of Blairgowrie.
The 18 year old, who last month became the first Scot to win the
Amateur championship since team skipper Wilson himself claimed the
title in 2004, will be joined in the team by the British women's open amateur championship winner at Royal St George's GC, Denmark’s Emily Pedersen.
Pedersen plays in her second successive Junior Ryder
Cup, having represented Europe at Olympia Fields Country Club in
Illinois, where the USA retained the title with a 14½-9½ victory.
Another player returning to the Junior Ryder Cup fold
is promising young Italian Renato Paratore, who has been making a name
for himself on The European Tour in 2014.
A close friend of Matteo Manassero, Paratore created a
stir at least year’s Italian Open when he made the cut, while he
continued to defy his amateur status by making it to the weekend at the
Open de España last May.
The 17 year old also continued his progress in the
non-paid ranks with victory at this year’s Portuguese Amateur
Championship followed by the Italian amateur stroke play championship.
Linnea Strom is the third and final player making a
second appearance at the Junior Ryder Cup, having earned her place as a
16 year old at the 2012 edition
She continues to show signs of
being a star in the making, this year, winning the Spanish Ladies
Amateur in March while last year making the cut at the Ladies European
Tour’s Helsingborg Open.
Markus Kinhult is another future star who has been
turning heads at the highest levels of the professional game, having
followed up top five finishes at the Portuguese Amateur Championship and
the Lytham Trophy with a tied 21st place finish at the Nordea Masters
on The European Tour.
Ivan Cantero was also selected after an extremely
consistent season in which he won the strokeplay qualifier for the
European Boys’ Team Championship before helping Spain to a fifth place
finish, while also earning top five finishes at the Spanish Amateur
Championship and the Portuguese Amateur Championship.
The other two to make up the under-18 girls are
German Girls Open Champion Virginia Elena Carta of Italy and 2014 Curtis
Cup player and recently-crowned Helen Holm Scottish Open Strokeplay
Champion Annabel Dimmock of England.
Germany had a great week in Hamburg having both
winners of the European Young Masters who earned their place on the
team, making up two of the four under-16 players to represent Europe in
September, with Alexandra Försterling triumphing in the girls’
tournament and Max Schmitt winning the boys’.
Danish International Strokeplay and English U16
(McGregor Trophy) champion John Axelsen of Denmark was the other boy to
make it as one of the under 16 selections while France’s Mathilda
Cappeliez, who finished as the highest amateur at this year’s Turkish
Airlines Open on the Ladies European Tour at the age of 15, was the
other under-16 girl to be chosen.
Junior Ryder Cup
Captain, Stuart Wilson said: “It is fantastic to have both Men's and women's (British) Amateur Champions playing along with other in-form players that
have been collecting experience at the highest level in both the amateur
and professional ranks.
“Although they all have match play experience it is nice having
returning players to the team. Having personally experienced the Junior
Ryder Cup in Chicago two years ago I know that they will have an
unforgettable week made up with great golf, lots of memories and new
friendships. Hopefully their selection will be a stepping stone to
further success in their golfing careers.”
The Junior Ryder
Cup is a biennial contest between Europe and America, and the teams
consist of boys and girls under the age of 18. The USA retained the
trophy in 2012, winning at Olympia Fields in Chicago, and the Americans
are aiming for four wins in a row this year.
Fredrik Lindgren,
Director of The Junior Ryder Cup, added: “The Junior Ryder Cup is
always a thrilling event which showcases some of the best up and coming
international talent. It is a fantastic way to get involved in the whole
ethos of sporting excellence and camaraderie that The Ryder Cup
represents and we are looking forward to a superb event at Blairgowrie.”
The event is an
international showcase of golf’s next generation, and is designed to
continue to build international friendships between top junior golfers
in the United States and Europe. Notable past players include Rory
McIlroy, Matteo Manassero, Suzann Pettersen, Carlota Ciganda and Hunter
Mahan.
