U.S. Walker Cup roster announced

Nathaniel Crosby’s United States Walker Cup team is complete. The USGA announced Monday morning the ten players that will represent the U.S. at the 2021 Walker Cup in May at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida. The two-day competition will be conducted May 8-9, the first time the event will be stateside in the spring. Four of the ten members were already known as Tyler Strafaci earned an exemption with his 2020 U.S. Amateur championship victory. John Pak (Florida State), Davis Thompson (Georgia), and Ricky Castillo (Florida) all earned their place on the roster via WAGR ranking. The USGA’s international Selection working group sorted out the remaining six roster spots. Mid-amateur Stewart Hagestad, Texas teammates Pierceson Coody and Cole Hammer, Oklahoma senior Quade Cummins, Oklahoma State’s Austin Eckroat, and Pepperdine sophomore William Mouw fill out the United States roster. No player named to the team has a WAGR ranking worse than 23. A trio of players – Pak, Hagestad, and Hammer – were members of the 2019 Walker Cup team, also under Crosby’s captaincy. The Americans picked up their first foreign win since 2007 with a 15.5-10.5 win over GB&I at Royal Liverpool. Hagestad is not only the elder on the team, but will be playing on his third Walker Cup team. Looking for a personal three-peat, Hagestad was also a member of the victorious 2017 team. With a U.S. Mid-Am championship (2016) and a low-am Masters performance (2017) already under his belt, Hagestad becomes the first American to play in three Walker Cups since Nathan Smith (2013). SMU’s Mac Meissner and Oklahoma’s Garett Reband were announced as first and second alternates. Meissner took home the 2020 Southern Amateur while Reband has put together consistent finishes over the past calendar year despite a broken hand that kept him out of the 2020 U.S. Amateur. Team Great Britain & Ireland has yet to announce their team but an announcement will be expected soon. GB&I will more than likely feature names familiar to those who follow collegiate golf like Sandy Scott (Texas Tech), Angus Flannagan (Minnesota), and Wake Forest’s duo of Alex Fitzpatrick and Mark Power among others. The United States lead the event all-time at 37-9-1 and are looking for their third straight victory.