Cutler and Brazill commit to Mullingar Scratch Trophy

Announcing the Mullingar Scratch Cup — Former winner Shane Lowry with the Captain of Mullingar Golf Club, Tom Moore and sponsors, Aidan Davitt, (Sherry FitzGerald/Davitt & Davitt) and Ronan O'Driscoll, Sherry FitzGerald. Photo: Ronan Quinlan

The 56th staging of the prestigious Sherry Fitzgerald Davitt & Davitt sponsored Mullingar Scratch Trophy will take place from August 11-12 — the weekend after the AIG Irish Amateur Close Championship at The European Club.

With the action on the links at Brittas Bay set to finish on Wednesday, a good field is expected to travel to Mullingar the following weekend with former Walker Cup player Paul Cutler, who has been reinstated as an amateur, one of the first to commit.

West of Ireland champion Robert Brazill, St Andrews Links Trophy winnerJohn Murphy, former East of Ireland and Irish Amateur Open champion Colm Campbell and international Alex Gleeson, another former Irish Close winner, will also be there.

Irish Under 16 Boys champion Adam Smith will be leading the charge in pursuit of the first ever homegrown winner of the event

Mullingar’s Albert Lee said: “We are really looking forward to welcoming all the players to the 56th consecutive staging of the Mullingar Scratch Trophy and very grateful to Sherry Fitzgerald Davitt & Davitt for coming on board as sponsors again this year.”

First played in 1963, when Joe Carr triumphed, the list of past winners is a who’s who of Irish golf with the likes of Tom Craddock, Des Smyth, Philip Walton, Paul McGinley, Darren Clarke, Pádraig Harrington, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry all getting their names on the famous silver cup.

Tramore's Robin Dawson, who was one of the first to commit, will instead be heading for the US Amateur Championship at Pebble Beach, where he will be joined by Killiney's Eoin Leonard.

Former Boys international Leonard, who is about to begin his senior year at Yale, won a Sectional Qualifier in New Jersey on Monday.