International field lined up for the McGregor Trophy
8th July 2013Players from 13 countries, including Britain and Ireland, will display their skills in a truly international field for the English Boys’ Under 16 Championship for the McGregor Trophy at Seacroft Golf Club in Skegness, Lincolnshire, on 16th – 18th July.
Of the overall field of 144, a total of 32 players come from overseas and represent nine countries from Belgium to the United States. But the largest contingent is from Italy which has sent ten youngsters in a bid to lift the title won by Eduardo Molinari, now a European Tour professional, at Radcliffe-on-Trent in 1996.
The most recent occasion that the title went to a foreign player was in 2003 when Wouter de Vries from The Netherlands triumphed at Rotherham.
However, the home challenge is sure to be strong with a number of internationals in the field, including Bradley Moore (Kedleston Park, Derbyshire), Marco Penge (Worthing, Sussex), both members of the England under 18 squad, and under 16 cap Arun Singh Brar (Brokenhurst Manor, Hampshire, IoW & CI).
Moore the English under 14 champion in 2011, is enjoying a superb season with victories in the McEvoy Trophy and the Midland Schools Championship, while he also was the leading individual in the Midland Boys Qualifying and reached the quarter finals of the Michel Carlhian Trophy in France.
Penge has also tasted victory, in the Fairhaven Trophy and the South Region Schools Championship. He also lost a playoff for the Irish Boys Open Championship and a card countback for the South East Boys Qualifying. On top of that he finished equal sixth in the Sir Henry Cooper Junior Masters.
Singh Brar, cousin of boy international Jack Singh Brar, is a former Hampshire under 14 and ISGA under 14 champion, who won the Douglas Johns Trophy last year. He made his England under 16 debut in 2012 against Spain and also played against Wales.
Also in the field is Matty Lamb (Hexham, Northumberland), another under 16 cap, who won the Scottish under 14 Championship and finished runner-up in the English under 14 Championship last year. Recently he won the Sir Henry Cooper Junior Masters at Nizels in Kent on the same weekend that his fellow Northumbrian, Garrick Porteous, won the Amateur Championship.
The British entrants include players from all points of the compass including a number of under 16 internationals such as Harry Hall from West Cornwall, Billy Spooner from Lincolnshire, and Cheshire’s Lewis George.
There is a Nations Cup competition over the opening two rounds with England fielding two three-man teams. These comprise William Enefer (The Wrekin, Shropshire & Herefordshire) Lewis George (Delamere Forest, Cheshire) and Chris Handy (South Moor, Durham) in one team, while the other line-up is Penge, Max Martin (Ladbrook Park, Warwickshire) and Moore.
Play starts at 7.30am each day and admission is free.