Record number of five Irishmen selected to play against USA

Two Scots, Forrest and MacDonald, in the GB 

and I Walker Cup team for Royal Lytham

NEWS RELEASE
 The R and A today announced the Great Britain and Ireland team to face the USA in the 2015 Walker Cup match which will be played at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club, Lancashire  on Saturday and Sunday, September 12 and 13.
A ten-player team and two reserves have been named for the 45th Walker Cup match with a record five Irish players included in the line-up. Ireland won the home internationals title for the second year in a row.

GB and I will be aiming to win back the trophy after the USA enjoyed a 17-9 victory in the 2013 match at the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, New York.

Nigel Edwards, who will be captaining the GB and I team for the third time, said, “We have selected a talented group of players who compete at the highest levels of amateur golf and, in some cases, have played in Major Championships and Tour events. 
"The Walker Cup offers these players a tremendous opportunity to display their abilities and gain invaluable experience of playing in international team competition.

“I know there will be players who are disappointed not to have made the team and it has been a difficult decision to make with such strength in depth in the British and Irish game at the moment but we believe we have selected the best players for the team and are very much looking forward to the match.”

The GB and I team is:

Ashley Chesters, 26, Hawkstone Park, England

Paul Dunne, 22, Greystones, Ireland

Grant Forrest, 22, Craigielaw, Scotland

Sam Horsfield, 18, Davenport, Florida, USA

Jack Hume, 21, Naas, Ireland

Gary Hurley, 22, West Waterford, Ireland

Jack McDonald, 22, Kilmarnock (Barassie), Scotland

Gavin Moynihan, 20, The Island, Ireland

Jimmy Mullen, 21, Royal North Devon, England

Cormac Sharvin, 22, Ardglass, Ireland

Reserves:

Ewen Ferguson, 19, Bearsden, Scotland
Bradley Moore, 17, Kedleston Park, England
Captain:
Nigel Edwards, 47, Whitchurch, Wales
Recent results:

2013 The National Golf Links of America, USA 17 GB and I  9

2011 Royal Aberdeen, GB and I 14 USA 12

2009 Merion, USA 16 ½   GB andI  9 ½

Player information:

Ashley Chesters

Chesters is the highest-ranked British player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking^TM in sixth position and put in an excellent performance in The Open at St Andrews to finish tied for 12th. The two-time European Amateur Champion and English international reached the last 16 of the Amateur Championship at Carnoustie, finished tied second at the Welsh Open Stroke Play Championship and tied seventh at the Brabazon Trophy.

Paul Dunne

Dunne also distinguished himself at The Open and was the joint leader after 54 holes before finishing tied 30th. The former Irish Boys Champion has enjoyed an excellent season, securing top ten finishes at the Brabazon Trophy and the individual standings of the European Amateur Team Championship in Sweden. He reached the quarter final stage of last week’s U.S. Amateur Championship at Olympia Fields.

Grant Forrest

Forrest was the runner-up in this year’s Amateur Championship and played a key role in Scotland’s victory at last month’s European Amateur Team Championship, winning five points out of six. In 2014, the former Scottish Boys and Scottish Amateur Champion won the St Andrews Links Trophy and was part of the victorious European Palmer Cup team.

Sam Horsfield

Horsfield was born in England but his family moved to Florida when he was aged five. Currently ranked 23rd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking^TM, the 2013 Florida State Amateur Champion reached the quarter finals of this year’s Western Amateur Championship and qualified for the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. He reached the last 32 at last week’s U.S. Amateur Championship.

Jack Hume

Hume has been a consistent performer this season, finishing tied third in the Brabazon Trophy and tied sixth in the St Andrews Links Trophy. As well as finishing in the top 20 at the European Amateur Championship in Slovakia and the Irish Amateur Open Championship, Hume was part of the winning Irish team at the recent Home Internationals.

Gary Hurley

Hurley was runner-up in the recent European Amateur Championship, after finishing joint runner-up in 2014, and was also second at the Spanish International Amateur Championship earlier this year. The R&A Foundation Scholar finished in the top 20 in the Lytham Trophy and was part of the Irish team which finished second at the Southern Cross Invitational. He has also represented Europe in the Palmer Cup on two occasions.

Jack McDonald

McDonald reached the semi-finals of the Amateur Championship and was part of the winning Scottish team in the European Amateur Team Championship, like Forrest, winning five points out of six, and finishing tied fourth in the individual standings. The R&A Foundation Scholar also achieved top 15 finishes at the Lytham Trophy, the Irish Amateur Open Championship, the Scottish Stroke Play Championship and the St Andrews Links Trophy.

Gavin Moynihan

Moynihan played in the 2013 Walker Cup match at the National Golf Links of America, earning two points out of four for the GB&I team. He won the Irish Open Amateur Championship for the second time this year, finished runner-up at the Brabazon Trophy, third at the European Amateur Championship and was part of Ireland’s winning Home Internationals team.

Jimmy Mullen

Mullen is the reigning Welsh Amateur Open Stroke Play Champion. He was part of the England team which finished fourth at the European Amateur Team Championship and also represented his country in this year’s Home Internationals. He finished tied third in the Duncan Putter and tied 19th at the Lytham Trophy. In 2014, he reached the last 16 of the U.S Amateur Championship.

Cormac Sharvin

Sharvin won this year’s Brabazon Trophy to capitalise on a rich vein of form which saw him finish runner-up to Moynihan at the Irish Open Amateur Championship, tied second at the Lytham Trophy and third at the Scottish Open Stroke Play Championship. The R&A Foundation Scholar also represented Ireland at the European Amateur Team Championship.

For more information visit www.walkercup.org. 
The USA leads the overall series 35-8-1.