Reigning Australian Amateur champion, Connor Syme has stormed into the final 16 of this year’s British Amateur Championship with a comprehensive 4 & 2 success over Spain’s Xabier Gorospe in squally conditions at Royal Porthcawl in Wales.
The Scottish-born Syme won three consecutive holes from the 11th to take a firm grip of the match.
“I didn’t quite play my best golf today but I ground it out quite well,” he said.
“I got up and down when I needed to and holed a few key putts so I’m happy to get through the first round of match play.
“The first two days it kind of felt quite easy almost. I was doing what I wanted to do – hitting the shots on my lines. But today I was a little bit off. Conditions were fine, it was just one of those things, my timing was a little bit off. I will go and get it sorted on the range now.”
Syme’s fellow Scot Jamie Savage saw off a strong challenge from England’s Gian-Marco Petrozzi to win the match at the first extra hole. The 2014 Amateur Championship Quarter-Finalist secured the match with a fine gap wedge to three feet.
Reigning Australian Amateur champion Connor Syme being presented with his award by the R & As Peter Unsworth after finishing the top qualifier in the 2016 Amateur Championship. (Photo – RandA)
Current Crail Golfing Society Battle Trophy champion Grant Forrest, and the runner-up last year in the Amateur Championship Carnoustie, won a close match with Ireland’s Sean Flanagan by one hole. The Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup player holed from 35ft at the 14th to win the hole and won the next to go 3 up but mistakes on the next two holes left him 1 up playing the 18th. When Flanagan’s birdie putt narrowly missed the hole, Forrest had two putts to seal the win.
“Last year I didn’t really have anything going coming into the event and I just kept plugging away and before I knew it I was in the final,” said Forrest.
“It’s just staying patient and taking one shot at a time.”
Four Australians are also through to the last 16 but only after an all-Australian encounter on the third day and then a second to take place to decide the last eight.
Australia’s Dylan Perry, and winner in two of the last three years of the NSW Country Men’s Championship, triumphed against Sydney’s Travis Smythe by 3&2 to set up a third round match with 2015 Australian Amateur champion Cameron Davis, who defeated Swede Jesper Svensson by the same margin.
Smythe, who plays out of the St. Michael’s club, had lost out in the final of the Australian Amateur to Syme while Perry, who represents the Greg Norman designed course at The Vintage Club in the Hunter Valley, is also a former Jack Newton Junior Golf Foundation State Age winner.
“I played really well today,” said Perry. “It’s a matter of it coming together and a matter of patience on these golf courses. I got to off to a flyer start – I think I was 3-under through the first seven holes and then 4-up through nine – and then Travis started to come back towards the end and then I finished 3&2 so it was a good day.”
The 21-year old Davis, who is a member at both the Monash and Roseville in Sydney’s northern suburbs, also captured the 2012 China Amateur title.
Victorian David Micheluzzi. (Photo – David Micheluzzi)
Recent Victorian Amateur runner-up David Micheluzzi, and aged 19 from Cranbourne in Melbourne, also is through to the last 16 after his 3 & 1 triumph over England’s Daniel Sutton.
And another Aussie in William Heffernan, who lost to Syme in the third round of the Australian Amateur, was a 2 & 1 winner of England’s Harry Ellis.
The highest-ranked remaining player in the field is Ivan Cantero who is fifth in the World Amateur Golf RankingTM. The Spaniard, who has two wins this season at the Copa Andalucia and the French Amateur Championship, came out on top against Scotland’s Christopher MacLean by two holes after winning his first round match in the morning by 4&3 against Englishman Jordan Matthew.
“I live in the north of Spain and we have similar courses. I like the wind and the rain – it is good for me. Tomorrow is similar to today, it is shot by shot. It’s a very long tournament and has very good players so let’s go,” said Cantaro.
“Alex Larrazabal (the 2002 Amateur Champion) is my best friend in Spain and a very good example for me.”
