Finalists decided at British Amateur
BY Anthony Powter | World Amateur Mens Tour | 2008 British Amateur Championship | Semi-Finals | 21 Jun 2008
England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Dutchman Reinier Saxton have made their way through to the final of the British Amateur Championship at Turnberry’s Ailsa course.
Fleetwood, 17, knocked out fellow Englishman, Andrew Sullivan, 3&2 in their semi-final encounter. Fleetwood has just finished high school in England and the plus-3 handicapper is playing in his first ever British Amateur. Earlier in the morning, the Englishman had arguably the toughest task of the quarter-final bracket, when he was up against Jorge Campillo, the world number 16 and the top world ranked player left in the championship. He won their match 1-up, in what arguably was his biggest amateur match play win to date.
Should he secure tomorrow’s final, Fleetwood would become the youngest ever British Amateur champion. South Africa’s Bobby Cole (1966) and John Beharrell (1956) of England share the record as youngest winners at 18 years, 1 month.
A relative newcomer to the senior ranks, Fleetwood as a junior won 2007 International Junior in Japan and this year collected his first major amateur title with the Lancashire Amateur.
As luck would have it for Fleetwood, who’s a member of the England Under-18 squad, he missed selection in playing in this year’s Toyota Junior Golf World Cup in Japan and the opportunity to defend his title. He entered the British Amateur instead. Fleetwood certainly are no regrets with the missed team selection, he is smiling all the way as he prepares for arguably his toughest task against Reinier Saxton from the Netherlands in tomorrow’s final.
Saxton defeated Wales’ Joe Vickery, 1-up to make the final, after accounting for Portugal’s Pedro Figueiredo, 3&2 in the morning’s quarter-final. Only one Dutch player has won the Amateur Championship, Rolf Muntz in 1990
A three-time Dutch Match Play champion, Saxton is based in Amsterdam and was ranked 149 in the world coming into the tournament. His ranking since has dropped to 56, as has Fleetwood’s, who was 357 entering the week and now following this week’s performance and his top-15 finish at the St Andrews Links trophy finds himself at 95.
The winner of tomorrow’s final will earn spots in the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale and next year’s US Masters.
