Sixteen players accept invite to Walker Cup practice session
11/14/2014 | by United States Golf Association
see also: The Walker Cup, Lahinch Golf Club
Five USGA champions are among the 16 players who have accepted invitations from the United States Golf Association’s International...
FAR HILLS, N.J. (Nov. 13, 2014) – Five USGA
champions
are among the 16 players who have accepted
invitations from the United States Golf
Association’s
International Team Selection Committee to
participate in a
practice session for the 2015 Walker Cup Match.
The
practice session will take place Dec. 17-20 at
Frederica
Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Ga.
The 45th Walker Cup Match will be contested Sept. 12-13, 2015, at Royal Lytham and St. Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England.
Notable players participating include:
Will Zalatoris, of Plano,
Texas — The Wake Forest University commit
won
the U.S. Junior Amateur,
Texas State Amateur,
and Trans-Mississippi Championship in 2014. He
also
reached the sweet 16 in
Atlanta at the U.S.
Amateur before losing to Zachary Olsen.
Bryson Dechambeau,
of Clovis, Calif. — A winning member of the
United
States at the World
Amateur Team, where he
tied for eighth place individually, DeChambeau
also
has top-tens at the
Western Amateur Stroke-
Play Qualifying and the NCAA Southwest
Regional.
The 2013 Trans-Miss
champion also reached
the quarters at the U.S. Amateur Public Links
and the
round of 16 at the U.S.
Amateur.
Byron Meth, of San
Diego,
Calif. — The University of
the Pacific senior
won the final U.S. Amateur Public Links
Championship ever conducted,
defeating Texas Longhorn
freshman Doug Ghim in the finals after also
being
medalist. He reached the
final 16 at the U.S.
Amateur and recorded top-tens at the Sahalee
Players and NCAA West
Regional.
Doug Ghim, of Arlington Heights,
Ill. —
Ghim, a freshman at the
University of
Texas, was runner-up to Meth at the 2014 U.S.
Amateur Public Links, but that
wasn't his only feat
this year. He was medalist at the Western
Amateur,
which was eventually
won by his new
teammate Beau Hossler, reaching the
quarterfinals
himself.
Scott Harvey, of
Greensboro,
N.C. — Winner of this
year's U.S. Mid-
Amateur over Brad Nurski, where the two
shared
medalist honors, Harvey is
one of three mid-
amateurs joining a mainly college-aged group in
Georgia. Aside from the
USGA win, Harvey
captured the Cardinal Amateur title and placed in
the
top-ten at the Coleman
Invitational and
Northeast Amateur.
Beau Hossler, of
Mission
Viejo, Calif. — One of
two Texas Longhorns
in the group, Hossler took home the prestigious
Western Amateur title as well
as defended his
crown at the Southern California Amateur. He
was
runner-up at two events in
2014 — the
California Amateur and Porter Cup. Hossler,
along
with Bryson DeChambeau
and Denny
McCarthy, where part of a victorious United
States
team at the World Amateur
Team
Championship.
All other players:
Denny McCarthy, of Rockville, Md.
Charlie Danielson, of Osceola, Wis.
Lee McCoy, of Clarkesville, Ga.
Rico Hoey, of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Robby Shelton, of Wilmer, Ala.
Hunter Stewart, of Lexington, Ky.
Kyle Jones, of Snowflake, Ariz.
Maverick McNealy, of Portola Valley, Calif.
Mike McCoy, of West Des Moines, Iowa
Nathan Smith, of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Harvey, McCoy and Smith are mid-amateurs (25 years or older). The other invitees all currently compete at the collegiate level.
Harvey (2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur), McCoy (2013 U.S. Mid- Amateur), Meth (2014 U.S. Amateur Public Links), Smith (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012 U.S. Mid- Amateur) and Zalatoris (2014 U.S. Junior Amateur) are USGA champions. Dechambeau, Hossler and McCarthy made up the winning USA Team for the 2014 World Amateur Team Championship, which defeated Canada by two strokes in Japan in September.
Smith is the only participant with previous Walker Cup Match experience, having competed for the USA in 2009, 2011 and 2013. Smith earned the clinching point in the USA’s 17-9 victory in 2013 at the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.
USA captain John “Spider” Miller, a Walker Cup competitor in 1999, emphasized that an invitation to the practice session does not guarantee selection to the 10- man team. He added that many players not included on the 16-man list for December will be in the mix during the final selection process.
“This is an insightful way to get to know these potential Walker Cup players in an informal setting and we have the opportunity to introduce them to the Match and its unique format,” said Miller. “The good people at Frederica Golf Club have offered us their fine facility to start on the process. We appreciate their hospitality.”
The Walker Cup Match is an international team competition that consists of four foursomes (alternate- shot) matches on both mornings of the two-day competition, with eight singles matches on the first afternoon and 10 singles matches on the final afternoon.
The USGA’s International Team Selection Committee chooses the USA Team. The R&A chooses the Great Britain and Ireland side. The GB&I Team will be captained by Nigel Edwards, of Wales, who competed in 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007, and also served as captain in 2011 and 2013.
The USA leads the overall series, 35-8-1.
The 45th Walker Cup Match will be contested Sept. 12-13, 2015, at Royal Lytham and St. Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England.
Notable players participating include:
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All other players:
Denny McCarthy, of Rockville, Md.
Charlie Danielson, of Osceola, Wis.
Lee McCoy, of Clarkesville, Ga.
Rico Hoey, of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Robby Shelton, of Wilmer, Ala.
Hunter Stewart, of Lexington, Ky.
Kyle Jones, of Snowflake, Ariz.
Maverick McNealy, of Portola Valley, Calif.
Mike McCoy, of West Des Moines, Iowa
Nathan Smith, of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Harvey, McCoy and Smith are mid-amateurs (25 years or older). The other invitees all currently compete at the collegiate level.
Harvey (2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur), McCoy (2013 U.S. Mid- Amateur), Meth (2014 U.S. Amateur Public Links), Smith (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012 U.S. Mid- Amateur) and Zalatoris (2014 U.S. Junior Amateur) are USGA champions. Dechambeau, Hossler and McCarthy made up the winning USA Team for the 2014 World Amateur Team Championship, which defeated Canada by two strokes in Japan in September.
Smith is the only participant with previous Walker Cup Match experience, having competed for the USA in 2009, 2011 and 2013. Smith earned the clinching point in the USA’s 17-9 victory in 2013 at the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.
USA captain John “Spider” Miller, a Walker Cup competitor in 1999, emphasized that an invitation to the practice session does not guarantee selection to the 10- man team. He added that many players not included on the 16-man list for December will be in the mix during the final selection process.
“This is an insightful way to get to know these potential Walker Cup players in an informal setting and we have the opportunity to introduce them to the Match and its unique format,” said Miller. “The good people at Frederica Golf Club have offered us their fine facility to start on the process. We appreciate their hospitality.”
The Walker Cup Match is an international team competition that consists of four foursomes (alternate- shot) matches on both mornings of the two-day competition, with eight singles matches on the first afternoon and 10 singles matches on the final afternoon.
The USGA’s International Team Selection Committee chooses the USA Team. The R&A chooses the Great Britain and Ireland side. The GB&I Team will be captained by Nigel Edwards, of Wales, who competed in 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007, and also served as captain in 2011 and 2013.
The USA leads the overall series, 35-8-1.
About the The Walker Cup
The Walker Cup Match is a biennial 10-man amateur team competition between the USA and a team composed of players from Great Britain and Ireland and selected by The R&A. It is played over two days with 18 singles matches and eight foursomes (alternat...
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