WALKER CUP HOPEFULS HEAD AN IMPRESSIVE BRABAZON LINE-UP
Three members of the victorious 2003 Walker Cup team and
19 members of the squad for the 2005 matches will line-up
in an impressive international field when the English Open
Men’s Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy
is played at the West Lancashire Golf Club on 14-16 May.
Nigel Edwards from Wales and England’s Michael Skelton
and Gary Wolstenholme, all hoping to be given the opportunity
to defend the trophy in Chicago next year, will be in action
at the Merseyside course along with the rest of a quality
line-up.
The other Walker Cup potentials from the 2005 squad in the
draw are Rhys Davies, David Price, Craig Smith and Alex Smith
from Wales, Scotland’s Andrew McArthur, James McLeary
and Gareth Wright, Brian McElhinney and Darren Crowe from
Ireland, and seven English internationals Ross Fisher, James
Heath, Gary Lockerbie, Jamie Moul, Sam Osborne, Matthew Richardson
and Richard Walker.
Walker, 32, from the Frodsham club in Cheshire, is one of
two previous winners in the 159-strong field. He won the title
at Royal Birkdale in 2002, while Somerset’s Colin Edwards,
40, was joint champion at Hillside in 1995.
Two more former winners, Charlie Banks at Hollinwell in 1983,
and Roger Roper, who tied for the title at Seaton Carew two
years later, are involved in the pre-qualifying rounds on
12 and 13 May.
With title holder Jonathan Lupton, who won at Hunstanton
a year ago, having turned professional, it is difficult to
pick who might succeed him but Ross Fisher must have a better
than average chance.
The 23 year old from Surrey has already been among the silverware
this year, retaining the Sunningdale Foursomes with professional
Simon Griffiths, winning the Selborne and Hampshire Salvers
and recently partnering his Wentworth clubmate Sam Osborne
to the Nations Cup in the German Open Amateur.
Fellow England cap Lee Corfield, from Somerset, who has just
won the West of England Stroke Play ahead of Suffolk’s
Lawrence Dodd, are also in the field, as are more internationals
in Bedfordshire’s John Kemp and former English champion
Scott Godfrey.
However, no one will be trying harder to land the trophy
than Gary Wolstenholme. The Brabazon has always proved elusive
for the 43-year-old from Leicestershire and he would dearly
love to finally land it after many years of trying.
His late father, Guy, won at Ganton in 1960 but despite his
many triumphs including five Walker Cups, Gary’s best
Brabazon finish is joint third behind Spain’s Ignacio
Garrido at Hollinwell in 1992.
The quality of the field is further enhanced by the inclusion
of a bevy of boy caps. Last year’s England boy captain,
Paul Waring from Cheshire, is also playing along with several
of the team he led to victory in the Boys Home Internationals
at Royal St David’s including Andrew Bravant and Danny
Denison.
Other members of that side, Ben Evans, Paul Grannell, Tommy
Hunter, James Ruth and Grant Slater have to pre-qualify, as
do John Parry, who shot four 68s to win the prestigious Peter
McEvoy Trophy recently and 15 year old runner-up Oliver Fisher.
The Brabazon title has gone abroad four times in the last
six years and there is again a strong foreign entry. Several
of the European side that lost narrowly to Asia/Pacific in
the Bonallack Cup in Rome recently will be at West Lancashire
including Francesco Molinari from Italy, Portugal’s
Hugo Santos, Jan-Willem van Hoof from Holland, and Spain’s
Gonzalo Castano.
Reinforcing the foreign entry are players from most European
countries including Iceland and Slovenia. There are also entries
from Monaco, South Africa, Zimbabwe and the United States
among the pre-qualifiers.
France has a substantial entry including several of their
team involved in the coming week’s international with
England at Royal St George’s.
A total of 88 players are exempt to the competition proper
starting on Friday 14 May at 7am, while a further 240 will
enter the qualifying rounds on 12 and 13 May with the leading
25 and ties from each day going through to the main 72-hole
competition.
A ballot was held among the one-handicap entrants with just
eight gaining admission. Otherwise the line-up is composed
of scratch and plus handicap players.
|