British Amateur title goes to France's Guerrier

BY iseekgolf.com | European Amateur Tour | 2006 British Amateur Championship | Wrap | 25 Jun 2006

A consolation prize for Mitchell Brown from this year’s British Amateur Championship is the player that knocked him out in the semi-final, France’s number one amateur Julien Guerrier, disposed of Adam Gee in today’s Championship Final, 4 & 3.

Then again Brown is not the type of player who looks for consolation prizes and whilst he was making his way across the Atlantic to join fellow Australians Jamie Arnold, Tristan Lambert and Won Joon Lee in preparation for the Atlanta Dogwood Invitational starting on Thursday in the US, Guerrier was slowly wearing down Englishman Adam Gee in their 36 hole final back in Kent, England.

For the Frenchman the spoils of being the British Amateur Champion will be a start next month in the British Open at Royal Liverpool as well in next year’s US Masters. It is the second time a Frenchman has secured the British Amateur Championship, the first was 25 years earlier when Philippe Ploujoux triumphed at St Andrews in 1981.

Whilst Gee commented after his match that he felt his game was off and that his mind was straying on thoughts of the possibility of playing in the British Open and the Masters, Guerrier was able to retain his composure, especially on the back eighteen where the Frenchman secured three holes in succession from the eighth through to the tenth and with that momentum, the Championship.

The new British Amateur Champion’s resume reveals how much of a seasoned amateur he is and why he carries the number one French amateur ranking, but more importantly how he rightfully deserves the British Amateur title.

With representative honours in the European Team Championships, including a 6 under 66 in the 2005 Championship, the lowest for the Championship, Guerrier has been living out of a suitcase and focusing on a golf career for some time. Sponsors have offered the odd invite to European Tour events, although no real substantial results have flowed as yet.

Guerrier’s best results have come from amateur international test victories against all main European teams as well as Tours to South Africa and the US – all at the age of 20.

It will be an interesting next twelve months with the fast array of invitations to various events but more importantly, preparation for next year’s Masters now becomes a priority for Guerrier.