Thanks to Andrew for this latest golf news. Ed
Shanklin and Sandown’s Jordan Sundborg pulled off a big shock by knocking out the Carris Trophy holder at the British Boys Championship at Royal Birkdale, on Friday, to reach the last eight.
The 17-year-old, who made his debut for Hampshire, Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands in the South East Daily Telegraph League earlier this season, was up against the number one seed after the 36-hole qualifier played over the Open Championship course and neighbouring Southport & Ainsdle.
No fear for Hampshire junior
Moore is a member of the English Boys team, while Sundborg is not even a member of the England U18 squad, yet that did not deter him from landing a big scalp in front of the watching England and R&A selectors.
The Derbyshire ace also claimed the McEvoy Trophy earlier this season – the country’s other top boys’ strokeplay event – but the Hampshire junior held no fears as he recovered from losing a slender early lead, to storm into the lead in the closing three holes.
He won both the 16th and 17th holes to book his place in tomorrow’s quarter-finals where he will face Spain’s Borja Martin-Torre for a place in the afternoon semi-finals.
Hampshire ace
Sundborg had set up the clash with Moore, who was a member of the England junior team that lost their Boys Home International crown to the Scots at Conwy, last week, by beating Nottinghamshire’s England U16 international Jake Benson in the third.
Having been a hole behind with three holes to go, the Hampshire ace got the match back to all square to force the match into sudden-death, claiming victory at the first extra hole.
Twenty four hours earlier, Sundborg had knocked out another member of the English Boys team by ending the hopes of Northumberland’s Matty Lamb of going further in the R&A’s blue riband junior event, sealing the match on the last hole.
Sundborg qualified in tied 55th spot after a round of 77 at Birkdale on Wednesday, having posted a round of level par at Southport and Ainsdale 24 hours earlier.
The British Boys
The British Boys has been won by a host of future golf stars in the past – including Ryder Cup players, Sergio Garcia and Jose Maria Olazabal, while famous European Tour players from England who have lifted the famous trophy include David Howell, Ken Ferrie and more recently Tom Lewis and Matthew Fitzpatrick.
But it has never been a strong competition for Hampshire unlike the men’s top amateur events and Sundborg now has a realistic chance of becoming the first player from the Solent to reach the final in more than 50 years.
Even Justin Rose, who won nearly every top junior tournament in the 1990s never reached the final.
Shanklin and Sandown team
Sundborg was part of the Shanklin and Sandown team that claimed the Hampshire Green Jackets trophy in the Hampshire inter-club junior knockout.
Victory over Barton-on-Sea by Sundborg and clubmates Conor Richard, the current Hampshire Junior Champion, and Dan Mew earned the Green Jackets champions a place in the England Junior Golf Champion Club event at Frilford Heath.
But Sundborg was playing in the qualifying rounds of the British Boys while Richards is recovering after an operation to remove an ingrowing toe nail that forced him to miss the British Boys.
Victory at Brockenhurst
Sundborg and Richards were also in the Shanklin team that claimed victory in the men’s team championships at the Hampshire IoW and CI Amateur Championship at Brokenhurst Manor, in June.
The pair, along with Natt Riddett will travel to Durham’s Brancepth Castle to reprint Hampshire and the islands in the England Golf Champion Club Tournament.
Brokenhurst Manor are the only Hampshire club to have won the event, picking up the De Montmorency Trophy in 1998 and 2007.
You can follow Jordan’s progress in the British Boys on Saturday here.
