Continent of Europe pen pics: St Andrews Trophy ~ Jacques Léglise Trophy
Mortiz Lampert of Germany. Photo: Pat CashmanThe Continent of Europe will be trying to retain the biennially-awarded St Andrews Trophy won in 2010 in Castelconturbia, Italy against the best amateur players from Great Britain & Ireland.
Alexis Godillot (non-playing Captain, France)
Team Europe’s players have been selected with guidance from the R&A’s World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) and the players’ national coaches and officials as well as by regarding high-level performances. Attention was paid to match play results, particularly those attained in the European Golf Association’s International Matches and European Team events.
Europe will meet an exceptionally strong Great Britain & Ireland team this year at the Portmarnock Golf Club in Ireland. The match’s last edition, played in 2010 in Castelconturbia Golf Club in Italy, ended on a 14-10 win in favour of the Continent of Europe.
Selectors feel the team will compete strongly, led onto the course by EGA highly talented amateur, having represented his country France eleven times in the Eisenhower Trophy and EGA Executive Committee Member Alexis Godillot, who will have the task of defending the Trophy.
Marcel Schneider
Marcel Schneider of Germany, who is the team’s lowest World Amateur Ranked player #9 (at the time of selection) thanks to his victory in the Australian Amateur Championship. He was also fifth in the Lake Macquarie Amateur Championship. He finished second in the Portuguese and Spanish Amateur Championships. In 2011, he had five top 10s, including second place finishes in the German Stroke Play and Turkish Amateur Championships.
Mortiz Lampert
The second German in the team is Ryder Cup Junior Match and Jacques Léglise Trophy player, Mortiz Lampert, who won the German and the Portugese International Amateur 2012 as well as the Bayreuth Open 2012. He also finished second in The Lytham Trophy 2012.
Manuel Trappel
Austria will be represented by 2011 European Amateur Champion, Manuel Trappel, who is also 2011 Austrian Stroke Play Champion and Austrian International runner-up.
Edouard Espana
Edouard Espana of France has won the 2012 Coupe Frayssineau-Mouchy. He finished ninth and best amateur in the Masters 13 (Alps Tour) in 2011. He led France to winning the European Nations Cup in Sotogrande, Spain, finishing fourth individual.
Jacobo Pastor
Jacobo Pastor of Spain was quarterfinalist at the 2012 Amateur Championship and finished third in the Spanish Amateur Championship 2012 and in the Biarritz Cup. He will be joined by compatriot Carlos Pigem, 2012 Spanish Amateur and World University Champion and winner of three other tournaments in Spain (Canarias, Catalunya and Barcelona).
Tapio Pulkkanen
Tapio Pulkkanen of Finland is a double winner of the Finnish Stroke Play (2012 & 2011) and also winner of the Teho Sport Finnish Open a professional event of the Nordic Golf League official calendar.
Robert Karlsson
Robert Karlsson of Sweden, former US-based student, just ended the 2012 US College season with victory in the NCAA D1 Atlantic Regional Championship. He helped Europe to victory in the 2012 Palmer Cup at Royal County Down, winning three and a half points out of four. He also reached the quarterfinals of the Amateur Championship at Royal Troon. Karlsson has played twice in the European Tour’s Nordea Masters, making the cut both times.
Robert Karlsson, Moritz Lampert, Manuel Trappel and Marcel Schneider were all part of the Sir Michael Bonallack Trophy winning team in Monte Rei G&CC, Portugal last April.
Jacques Léglise Trophy - Continent of Europe
The Continent of Europe has sent a strong team of new faces to Portmarnock Golf Club to recapture the Jacques Léglise Trophy won in 2011 by Great Britain and Ireland in Neguri, Spain.
Gary Stangl (non-playing Captain)
The Continental Team will be led by Austrian Matthias Schwab whose young career highlight is surely his recent finalist place in the Amateur Championship 2012, only beaten by one hole in the final. He also won the Slovenian International Amateur 2012 and the Austrian international Amateur 2010 at the age of fifteen. Matthias is the team’s lowest World Amateur Golf Ranked player at #16 (at the time of selection).
As reigning European Boys’ Team champions, Sweden will have two of their national boys’ team members representing the Continent of Europe: Victor Tärnström having led the team qualifying with individual scores of 70 and 67 (-3) and Hannes Rönnenblad winner of the Kenako South African World Juniors. Both were undefeated in the Match Play phase, bringing respectively 3.5 and 5 points to their teams.
Giulio Castagna represents European Boys’ Team runners-up, Italy. He has finished tied third in the 2012 Italian U18 Stroke Play. He also finished third in the Spanish International Amateur qualifying and semi-finalist in the French Boys. He was Italian U18 champion in 2009.
France, will be sending 2011 European Young Masters Boys’ Champion, Kenny Subregis, who was third this year in both the Coupe Murat (French International) and the Trophée Carlhian (International French Boys’) and was also part of the French European Nations Cup winning team, finishing seventh individual. Kenny will be the only “veteran” of last year’s team. Joining him will be compatriot Romain Langasque, top qualifier at the Boys’ Amateur last week, who finished second in the Coupe Murat and ninth and first amateur in the Alps Tour’s Allianz Open International de la Mirabelle d’Or.
German representative, Dominic Foos, is the youngest winner of the German Matchplay Championships 2012. He is also the winner of the German Boys Open 2012 and double winner of the USKG European Championships under 13 and 14 (2010, 2011). Having not yet turned 15 (birthday on September 3rd), he will the youngest player in the team.
Spain’s Mario Galiano is a double winner of Copa Nacional Puerta de Hiero (2011, 2012). He finished third in the Spanish International Boys 2012 and won both the Spanish Junior International and the North of England U16 in 2011.
Finally, Renato Paratore, of Italy is the 2012 European Young Masters Boys’ and Teams Champion. He finished second in the Italian U18 Championship stroke play qualifying and reached the fourth round of the Boys Amateur Championship last week.
Captain Gary Stangl (Austria) said “….the strength of the continental players was well apparent in the European Boys’ Team Championship in July.”
The two-day match comprises four foursomes and eight singles match play each day for a total of 24 available points.