It’s been a quite a year for amateur golf in Great Britain and we asked some our leading players what were their stand-out moments and also asked them to look ahead to 2022
‘I smoked it and only ended up five yards short of the trap but in perfect position nonetheless’
1) Your best round of the year and why?
That came on the March at the Linger Longer Invitational in Georgia while at college in Charlotte. It was my first time with an overnight lead heading into the final round of any tournament, so I was unfamiliar with the position. I shot a bogey free -4 around a tough track with lots of hazards. Not only was it my best round but finishing with a birdie hitting the half island green in two on a par 5 to around 20 feet was what sealed the victory for me. I feel that this round gave me the confidence I have now in the sense that when I get to a tournament I am there to win, and also knowing I can clutch it out at the end too.
2) Your best shot of the year and why?
As bland as it sounds my tee shot on 18 in the English Amateur final. I had been struggling with that tee shot all week, and what made it harder was the left to right wind which is my least favourite wind direction. I had just missed a short putt to close out the game so I was slightly annoyed with myself. To overcome that, and focus on the shot ahead, was huge for me. There was a bunker 330 away and the surface was wet so I knew I couldn’t reach it. Although I smoked it and only ended up five yards short of the trap but in perfect position nonetheless.
3) The best shot you saw and why?
The best shot I saw came in the Home Internationals when we were playing Ireland and that was Rob Moran’s tee shot on the 17th at Hankley Common in the singles. We had an extremely low scoring game and 17 was not the easiest tee shot, however Rob drove it about 340 with a high draw over trees to the front edge of the green. At this point he was one down as well so under them circumstances it was an unbelievable golf shot. You really don’t understand how good it is until you play that hole and realise how hard that is off the back tees.
4) Your favourite moment of 2021 (this could be personal or something completely random but golf related)?
My favourite moment was obviously winning the English Amateur. However it wasn’t the winning that was the best moment, it was having my parents there watching me. I’ve been in America for the last five years and they haven’t got to see me play at all really, having them there to share the moment with me was brilliant. They give so much support to me and my brother and it was so nice to share that moment with them there.
5) Your hopes and ambitions for 2022?
Continue my strong form. There are a number of team events I am looking to play in – eg Eisenhower and Walker Cup to name a couple – but I want to have another year with at least three wins, which matches this year’s results.
6) One thing you would change about about golf for next season?
One thing I would change is my planning of my golf calendar next year. I think with this year, just after the pandemic had calmed down, everyone was trying to play every event they could as it felt like we were free and life was coming back to some normality. However, there is a lot of fatigue involved in golf, and if you don’t plan your tournaments with enough rest/practice time between them, you can get into some bad habits technically, and not seem as focused when playing.