Griffin on Golf

25/08/2025

Charlie is the sixth Hampshire player I have written about extensively playing for the county, who has ended up playing for their country in the amateur game’s equivalent to the Ryder Cup...
All roads between now and the first Saturday in September led to California...
Good to see some papers still value good local sports stories that are not just about football too!

Charlie Forster will become just the eighth player from Hampshire to appear in the Walker Cup.

18/08/2025

Regular readers won’t be surprised to see Charlie Forster reach the pinnacle of the amateur game with a Walker Cup selection.
The sky is the limit as we have been predicting for some time.
And to be selected for the 50th Walker Cup at such an iconic venue like Cypress Point will see the Long Beach State gradaute make memories for life.
Having played golf in California, picking up two victories in US college this year alone, will give Charlie the edge come September.

15/08/2025

Charlie Forster bowed out of the US Amateur after a first round defeat by Michigan Amateur Champion Caleb Bond.

The Basingstoke GC member who is expected, next week, to be named in Great Britain & Ireland’s Walker Cup team to face America at California’s iconic Cypress Point, next month, lost 2&1 to the player ranked 352nd in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

Forster, a two-time winner this season for California’s Long Beach State team, was never in front in the battle to reach the last 32 and match Corhampton’s Neil Raymond record in 2013, when the 36-hole tied medallist was knocked out in the quarter-final, as Sheffield’s Matt Fitzpatrick went on to become the first English winner of the US Amateur since Sussex’s Harold Hilton in 1911.

Charlie, who shared the lead after 18 holes in the two-round qualifier at San Francisco’s Olympic Club, finished in a share of eighth place on Tuesday to secure his place in the draw for the matchplay knockout phase of the US Amateur, run by the USGA.

Forster, who reached the semi-finals of the USGA’s US Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Plainfield Country Club, back in May, playing with Long Beach team-mate Steen Zeeman, could not find the same success as he had two months ago.

Charlie lost the fifth and sixth holes to bogey golf to go two-down, and Bond had a three-hole advantage at the turn thanks to another error by the Hampshire ace.

With just nine holes to stand any chance of progressing, and probably needing extra holes, Forster won the 12th with a par as the pressure briefly switched to his opponent, who plays for Michigan State.

A first birdie of the day from the Brit – named the Big West Conference’s Player of the Year back in May – at the 14th restored that hope with four holes to play.

But Bond’s brilliant response was a birdie-two at the next with Forster unable to match it to go two behind once more.

The Ocean Course, which hosted the 2012 US Open, is famous for its two par-fives back-to-back at 16 and 17.

But Bond could not find a four to close out the match at the first of them and when Forster could only make five at the 17th, he was left to shake the American’s hand and wish him good luck for the remainder of the world’s seventh oldest championship.

You can see live scoring at https://championships.usga.org/usamateur/2025/scoring.html

03/08/2025

Hampshire suffered a shock 4-0 reversal agianst Surrey in the foursomes as they set out to grab the win that could earn them a third South Division title in a row, at Hayling, on Sunday.

County captain Toby Burden, leading his Hampshire team out for the first time on the links course where he has been a member for some 25 years, banked on Stoneham Golf Club’s Joe Buenfeld (pictured) returning from Hoylake yesterday evening, after his elimination from the English Amateur Championship at the quarter-final stage.

Burden also brought in another Hayling member in the shape of former Pompey Academy striker Rich Harris, who claimed the county championship at his home club back in 2020, beating Burden in the final.

They were an obvious pairing given their knowledge of the course, but they were beaten 3&2 in the bottom match.

Buenfeld and Liphook’s Hampshire Salver winner George Saunders lost the top match 4&2, while North Hants’ Sam De’ath, was brought back intot the side having played in the 6-6 draw with Kent in May, at Brokenhurst Manor.

Veteran Martin Young, from the New Forest club – one of three English Mid-Amateur Champions playing in the fixture – went out second but lost 2&1 partnering De’ath, a former EuroPro Tour player.

North Hants’ Hampshire Order of Merit winner Rob Wheeler lined up with Test Valley’s Stuart Archibald, who won the Logan Trophy at the English Over 35 championship for a second time a month ago.

They lost by two holes on the last against Surrey’s former captain Dave Corben, the Logan winner in 2023, whose father is a member at Haylling.

Burden must hope to claim at least six-and-a-half points in the eight afternoon singles, and then rely on Surrey to either beat or draw with Kent in the final match of the sesaon in two weeks’ time.

Hampshire are the last county in the South East League to win the Daily Telegraphy Salver three years in a row – a feat they achieved in 2002.

Young, who recently turned 55 and can now play in the county seniors team, is the sole survivor from that side captained by North Hants’ Lionel Smith.

Follow live scoring at https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/11882490483399765693

02/08/2025

JOE Buenfeld’s dream of emulating Hampshire’s Amateur Champions Harry Ellis and Scott Gregory in reaching the English Amateur Final was shattered as a change in the weather at Hoylake saw the current county champion blown away in the quarter-finals.

Buenfeld was up against Essex’s Henry Styles on Saturday morning – bidding for a place in the afternoon’s semi-finals – but was beaten 5&4.

Gregory reached the final in 2014 and made the last four in 2017, having also reached quarter-finals in 2015, while Ellis rose to fame by breaking Sir Nick Faldo’s record as the youngest-ever winner of the English Amateur when he claimed the famous trophy at Silloth-on-Solway, in 2012, aged just 16, two years young than the six-time Majors winner.

Buenfeld had the chance to become the first Stoneham player to reach the semi-finals since Richard Bland, who was beaten in the final in 1993 by Buckinghamshire’s David Fisher, at Saunton, in Devon, where Gregory suffered the same fate 21 years later.

But former West of England Amateur Champion Styles, who finished tied in second alongside Buenfeld in the Lagonda Trophy at the end of May, adapted to the gusting winds that were gaining in strength at Royal Liverpool after five rounds of golf in near perfect seaside golf.

The battle of the Essex and Hampshire county champions was all over after the 14th as Buenfeld shook hands with Styles, a former England and Great Britain and Ireland junior, who strode into the semis, while Buenfeld faced the long drive home back down the M6.

Buenfeld had booked his place in the last eight by beating Frilford Heath’s Harry Thomas 6&5 in Friday afternoon’s quarter-final.

Styles, a student at the University of San Francisco, and who is a member at Romford GC, will play Cameron Mukherjee, the Englishman who is a member at Scotland’s Gullane club, in the semi-finals, while former Hampshire Hog winner Max Hopkins, from Bishop’s Stortford will face Bristol’s Milan Reed.

Hayling’s Jamie Mist was the other Hampshire player to reach the semi-finals of the English Amateur back in 2016 at Ganton.

Live scoring from English Amateur Championship at https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/5541353

01/08/2025

Joe Buenfeld steered his way into the last 16 of the English Amateur Championship at Hoylake, on Friday.

Stoneham’s reigning Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Amateur Champion cruised to a 5&4 win over Cheshire’s England U16 junior Cole Self.

Having been a couple down early on, once the 22-year-old – who spent five years in Texas at the University of the Incarnate Word – got the bit between his teeth, there was not stopping him.

Buenfeld, who lost to Hampshire team-mate Charlie Forster at Lindrick three years ago, and lost again to Basingstoke’s Walker Cup prospect when they met in the Amateur Championship at Ballyliffin, last year.

Given the success of Hampshire players both in the English Amateur – which has been won by the likes of Paul Casey (1999 and 2000) Danny Willett (2007) and Tommy Fleetwood (2010) – Buenfeld will be resisting the temptation to think too far beyond Saturday’s third round clash with Frilford Heath’s Harry Thomas.

The B.B.&O. player was in good form back in the Spring, finishing sixth in the Berkhamsted Trophy and then ninth in the West of England Amateur Championship at Royal North Devon, in April.

Thomas is currently ranked 1,985th in the world while Buenfeld, a former pupil at Hartpury College, is surprisingly 2,189th in the R&A’s World Amateur Golf Rankings – his highest was 1,628th – given that he was runner-up in the Lagonda Trophy, at Gog Magog, in May, and the Berkshire Trophy, in the same month.

Last year Buenfeld reached the second round of the matchplay before losing to Caversham’s Will Tate, also a B.B.&O. player.

01/08/2025

Hampshire’s county champion Joe Buenfeld produced an exhilarating finish to cling on to his place in the knockout at the English Amateur Championship at Hoylake, winning the last four holes in a row to move into the last 32.

The 22-year-old from Stoneham GC was two-down-with-two-to-play against Sussex’s Josh Hayes and staring at a long drive home down the M6 from Merseyside, on Thursday night.

But he rallied superbly to claim the 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th holes to end the see-saw match two-up and book his place in the second round draw.

Buenfeld, who graduated from Texas’ University of the Incarnate Word, claimed the Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Amateur Championship by beating Hartley Wintney’s Charlie Preston, at Shanklin & Sandown, back in June.

The 2019 European Junior Open winner had to call upon all his grit and determination to see off Hayes, a member at Devil’s D**e GC, near Brighton, where Hampshire’s Six-man team – including the former Bramshaw junior – went so close to reaching the English County Finals for the first time since 2017.

That was also the year that Harry Ellis – another Hampshire US college star – claimed The Amateur Championship, winning at Royal St George’s to earn invites to three of the four Major golf championships, including the 2018 Masters at Augusta.

There is no such prize for claiming the English Amateur – which has been won in the last 25 years by Danny Willett, Paul Casey and Tommy Fleetwood – but it is one every elite amateur would love to have on their mantlepiece.

Buenfeld will play Cheshire’s England U16 cap Cole Self, who plays at Ringway, near Manchester, who plays off plus-three.

Self beat St Neots’ Oliver Toyer – winner of the Selborne Salver at Blackmoor last year – in the first round, 5&4. He qualified as the 38th seed despite shooting 75 at Hoylake in Wednesday’s second round.

Follow live scoring at https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/5541353

31/07/2025

Hampshire’s success in getting four golfers through to the first round of the English Amateur Championship’s matchplay phase did not carry over from the two qualifying rounds at Hoylake and Wallasey.

Liphook’s Sam West, Stoneham’s Harvey Denham and Corhampton’s Jamie Markwick all crashed out of the competition – won in the past 25 years by the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Paul Casey and Danny Willett – at the first hurdle.

Only county champion Joe Buenfeld was left in the competition by the afternoon. The winner of the Sloane-Stanley Challenge Cup, from Stoneham, was still playing against Sussex’s Joshua Hayes in the late afternoon – but was two-down after 10 holes.

All three players eliminated from the morning draw have claimed the Hampshire Colts Championship title over the last five years.

But that failed to stand them in any stead against the ruthless competition of the country’s national championship – even if it was shorn of all bar one of England Golf’s elite squad members, with those in contention for a Walker Cup place, taking a week off after a busy month of international competitions.

That gave the top 64 after the first two rounds of strokeplay – one on each of the two hosts courses – a real chance to impress the watching England selectors.

But with the matchplay action being concentrated at Royal Liverpool’s famous Hoylake links, Hampshire’s qualifiers discovered there are plenty more tough fences to negotiate in Liverpool than just those used for the Grand National at Aintree.

Hoylake has staged the Open Championship three times since 2006 – only matched by St Andrews in that period, and was the venue for Darren Wright’s famous Brabazon Trophy triumph at the 2010 English Amateur Strokeplay Championship.

Denham, the youngest-ever winner of the Pechell Salver at the county championship qualifier in 2021, was first out as the No. 24 seed but lost 4&2 to The Berkshire’s junior James McGeoch.

West, a former South of England Boys Open winner, who took the 13th seed in the draw, lost 4&2 to Wallasey’s sole representative in the competition – junior Spencer Davis.

Markwick, who qualified in 12th place, who reached the last four of this year’s county championship, was up against it from the off against Hunstanton’s Ben Willis, who raced to a 7&6 victory.

Willis had claimed the Blackmoor Salver back in April, beating Liphook’s George Saunders by four shots.

Check live scoring in the first round of the English Amateur matchplay at https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/5541353

31/07/2025

FOUR Hampshire players are through to the knockout stage of the English Amateur Championship at Royal Liverpool after another low-scoring day on Merseyside.

Corhampton’s Jamie Markwick and Liphook’s Sam West headed the list of players from the South Coast who will be teeing it up in Thursday’s first round at Hoylake

It would have been four but Hartney Wintney’s Charlie Preston crashed out after a triple-bogey seven at his penultimate hole at Wallasey. He was one shot inside the qualifying mark with two to play but signed for a 74, two shots outside the cut, having shot fine 69 at Hoylake on day one.

On Thursday, the top 64 players move into the matchplay phase of the competition, which has been won by the likes of Paul Casey, Tommy Fleetwood and Danny Willett in the last 25 years.

Markwick and West are both winners of the Hampshire Colts Championship over the last three years – the former completed a long spell at college in the US after completing his Masters earlier this year, while West has another year playing for Ohio’s Miami University.

Jamie, who played for Hampshire in the recent romp over Kent in the Challenge League at Lee-on-the-Solent, shot a second round 70 at Hoylake, having produced a fine 67 at Wallasey yesterday, to finish in a share of 10th spot.

Former English Schools U16 Champion West matched that seven-under total with a 71 round the famous Open Championship venue, after shooting 66 in the first round a few miles further along the Cheshire coast towards the mouth of the River Mersey.

Stoneham’s Harvey Denham – the youngest-ever winner of the 36-hole qualifier at the Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Amateur Championship aged 16, in 2021 – was just a shot worse off in a share of 20th place.

The top-12 ranked player in junior college golf in the States this year shot 71 at Wallasey after his first round 67 at Hoylake, where Rowlands Castle’s Darren Wright won the Brabazon Trophy 15 years ago, beating the likes of Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton and a very young Jon Rahm.

Stoneham’s current county champion Joe Buenfeld survived courtesy of a countback. His second round 70 at Wallasey was good enough to take his place in the draw, after a 71 at Hoylake, on Tuesday.

Yet again, Liphook’s George Saunders suffered heartache in a national championship, missing out by a shot despite a fine 69 under the cosh at Hoylake in the second round.

This year’s Hampshire Salver winner made five birdies at Royal Liverpool but a dropped shot at the ninth and the 12th ultimately proved the difference.

Heading south down the M6 were North Hants James Atkins, who finished one-over after a 73 at Wallasey on Wednesday, and Stoneham’s Elliot Thomas, who was two shots worse off having struggled to a 77 at Hoylake in round two.

Test Valley’s newly-crowned English Mid-Amateur Champion Stuart Archibland finished on four-over.

Max Hopkins – the winner of the Hampshire Hog at North Hants three years ago – topped the leaderboard on 14-under having shot a first round 63 at Hoylake and a 67 at Wallasey.

England’s Walker Cup prospect Elliot Baker, the highest ranked Englishman in the field, was two shots behind, after two 66s.

Saunders and Archibald both missing the cut does give Hampshire captain Toby Burden more options as he weighs up his line-up to face Surrey in Sunday’s final South Division clash with Surrey – at his home club Hayling.

Burden’s team need a good win to stand a realistic chance of reaching a third South East League Final in a row, with Surrey facing Kent in two weeks’ time.

With last month’s comprehensive win over Sussex and a draw against Kent back in May, Burden has 10 players on standby in case any of his squad go deep in the tournament with the quarter and semi-finals of the English Amateur being played at Hoylake on Saturday.

29/07/2025

Great start by Jamie Markwick, Charlie Preston and Harvey Denham in the first round of the English Amateur Championship at Royal Liverpool’s Hoylake and Wallasey GC.
More Hampshire players still out on the course.
https://griffinongolf.co.uk/hampshire-trio-make-fast-start-in-english-amateur/
Stoneham Golf Club Corhampton Golf Club England Golf Royal Liverpool Golf Club

Jamie Markwick, Charlie Preston, Harvey Denham, English Amateur, Hoylake, Royal Liverpool, Hartley Wintney, Stoneham, Corhampton, Wallasey,

25/07/2025

Hampshire's Charlie Forster is once again paired with Luke Poulter, son of Ryder Cup hero Ian, to face Europe in the foursomes for GB&I as they try to regain the St Andrews Trophy at Madrid's Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro.
Yesterday the pairing picked up a valuable point - although Basingstoke GC member Forster was narrowly beaten in the singles - as GB&I took an 8-4 lead.
You can follow live scoring for day two at https://www.ega-golf.ch/content/st-andrews-trophy-3 #/competition/5205972/teamcup
Forster - who made his debut in the St Andrews Trophy last year - is just the sixth Hampshire player to represent GB&I in the biennial clash with Continental Europe, which dates back to 1956.
The others are Bobby Eggo (twice), Sam Hutsby, Darren Wright, Neil Raymond and Scott Gregory.
The St Andrews Trophy has switched to odd years because the Walker Cup is moving to even years in 2026.
St Andews Trophy captain Dean Robertson will lead GB&I in the 50th Walker Cup, being held at California's iconic Cypress Point, in September.
After this week's international clash, Robertson will cast his eyes over the leading amateurs from the Home Nations who are due to play in the US Amateur, being held next month at San Francisco's Olympic Club (August 11-17).
The top five GB&I players in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR), on August 6, will receive automatic selection with the other five members of the squad being picked by Robertson.
At the moment, Forster is sixth in the automatic standings.
The team will be announced on Monday, August 18.

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19/07/2025

So five of the last 10 Open Champions have held the 36-hole lead …. And only two have come from more than five shots back - Molinari in 2018 and Schauffele last year…
That’s ominous for the field and Rory in particular…