Griffin on Golf

24/06/2025

Congratulations to North Hants GOLF CLUB’s Robert Wheeler and Charlie Preston (pictured) who both made it through to Final Qualifying for next month’s Open Championship.
Preston holed a 12-footer to win a six-man play off at the first at the Fleet club, to grab the ninth and last qualifying spot, while Wheeler, fresh from playing in Hampshire’s 9-3 win over Sussex on Sunday, took second spot after carding a two-under par 68, three shots better than Preston.
And to round off a great day, 2017 Amateur Champion Harry Ellis also grabbed one of the qualifying spots at North Hants, thanks to a 69 that included five birdies for the 29-year-old Walker Cup player, who picked up his first win on the Clutch Pro Tour last month.
There was play-off heartache for Stoneham Golf Club’s newly-crowned county champion Joe Buenfeld, who missed out at Ferndown.
Shanklin & Sandown Golf Club’s former county champion Jordan Sundborg, who is now a club pro in Scotland, came through at Craigielaw, again by virtue of an eight-man play-off.
Scores at https://www.theopen.com/qualification/regional-qualifying

23/06/2025

Four members of Hampshire’s first-team squad and all three former School of Excellenece juniors who went on to play in the 2017 Walker Cup are in action in Local Qualifying for The Open today.
Stoneham Golf Club’s newly-crowned county champion Joe Buenfeld is in action at Ferdown, in Dorset, alongside Jack Singh-Brar, who was in the Great Britain & Ireland team that faced an incredibly strong American side at LA Country Club eight years ago.
Harry Ellis, who played in the 2017 Open at Royal Birkdale as the Amateur Champion, tees it up at North Hants GOLF CLUB, while Corhampton Golf Club’s Scott Gregory travelled to Bearwood Lakes in Berkshire in his bid to make a second Open appearance after he briefly led the 2016 Open at Royal Troon, after nine holes.
Rob Wheeler, who played in Sunday’s 9-3 win over Sussex at Cowdray Park, is playing on his home course at Fleet, along with Hartley Wintney’s Charlie Preston, beaten by Buenfeld in the county final at Shanklin just two weeks ago.
Preston is also a member at North Hants, where James Atkins is also in the field along with Hockley Golf Club’s Luke Hodgetts, another member of Toby Burden’s victorious county side less than 24 hours ago.
Some other familiar faces from the Hampshire PGA ranks are also trying to win one of around 100 spots up for grabs in Final Qualifying, where the top four at each event should earn a sport at the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Lewis Scott, from Lee-on-the-Solent, is at Ferndown, with Hayling’s Jon Barnes, and Waterlooville’s Ryan Moody, winner of the Courage Trophy five years ago, who represented Hampshire at three Six-Man Qualifiers before turning pro.
The other amateurs in the field are Royal Guernsey’s Jayden Tucknott and Waterlooville’s James Pinhorn, who played for Hampshire in the Channel League two years ago.
Hockley’s Tom Chalk, who is at the same Texas college as Buenfeld recently graduated from, won the South East Junior Championship in 2022, is playing at North Hants.
Follow live scores at:
https://www.theopen.com/qualification/regional-qualifying/north-hants
https://www.theopen.com/qualification/regional-qualifying/ferndown
https://www.theopen.com/qualification/regional-qualifying/bearwood-lakes

22/06/2025

Hampshire captain Toby Burden will have to rejig his team for their second South East League match of the season as they prepare to make the short journey to Sussex’s Cowdray Park on Sunday.

Toby Burden, Sussex, Hampshire Golf, Cowdray Park, South East League, Charlie Forster, Darren Walkley, George Saunders, James Knight

17/06/2025

Should be two Hampshire players in the draw for tomorrow’s knockout in The Amateur Championship being played at Royal St. George's Golf Club, which has proved to be a lucky venue for the county over the years – 1989 Steve Richardson was crowned English Amateur Champion after beating Guernsey’s Bobby Eggo in a wonderful final, while Harry Ellis claimed the world’s oldest Amateur Championship at Sandwich in 2017.
Army GC’s Sam Robertshawe also won the South East Amateur Links Championship and the St George Grand Challenge Cup there in 2011 – a trophy won more than 50 years earlier by Jack Nicklaus, no less.
Well played George Saunders, fingers crossed for Charlie Forster this afternoon.

Liphook Golf Club’s George Saunders has taken a big step towards qualifying for the matchplay knockout at the Amateur Championship having posted a total of three-under par this morning.
The recent Hampshire Salver winner shot a one-under par 69 at Royal St George’s to go with the 70 he carded at Royal Cinque Ports on Monday, in qualifying for the 130th Amateur Championship.
The top 64 and ties will move into the draw for tomorrow’s first round at St George’s, and with Saunders currently lying in 20th place that should guarantee him a place in the hat.
Eight years ago Meon Valley’s Harry Ellis covered himself in glory by becoming just the second Hampshire man to win the oldest amateur championship in the world, following Scott Gregory’s triumph against Sunday’s US Open runner-up Rob MacIntyre, with a 2&1 win at Royal Porthcawl in 2016.
Since Ellis’s victory, three other Hampshire players have made the knockout – Billy McKenzie was knocked out in the third round in 2018 at Royal Aberdeen, while La Moye’s Jo Hacker qualified at Nairn, in Scotland, in 2021.
The last Jersey player to win the Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Amateur Championship lost in the third round.
Last year, Forster produced a big shock at Ballyliffin, knocking out Spain’s European Amateur Champion Jose Luis Ballester at the second extra hole, before ending Ireland’s Max Kennedy’s hope of winning on home soil.
But Germany’s Luaurenz Schiergen beat the Basingstoke ace 3&2, although Forster’s displays ensured he would earn his GB&I debut in the St Andrews Trophy, before becoming just the second Hampshire golfer to play for Europe against Asia in the Michael Bonallack Trophy, back in January.
Another strong showing by the England international at Sandwich this week should strengthen the Long Beach State graduate’s hopes of Walker Cup debut against the USA in September.
Forster was teeing off in his second rond at Royal St George’s at 12.14pm
Follow live scoring at https://www.randa.org/championships/the-amateur-championship-stroke-play-leaderboard

08/06/2025

Congratulations to Stoneham’s Joe Buenfeld - second in The Berkshire and Lagonda Trophies in May - winner of the Sloane-Stanley Challenge Cup at the 120th Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Amateur Championship beating Hartley Wintney’s Charlie Preston 3&2 at Shanklin & Sandown Golf Club

25/05/2025

County captain Toby Burden is without in-form Hampshire Salver George Saunders for Sunday’s opening South East League fixture against Kent, at Brokenhurst Manor.
Saunders, from Liphook GC, has qualified for this weekend’s Brabazon Trophy, at Hankley Common GC, in Surrey, leaving Burden to think hard about his final eight-man line up for the South Division curtain raiser.
Hampshire were the last team to win the Daily Telegraph Salver three times in a row back in 2002, and having beaten the newly-crowned English County Champions Essex in the 2024 final, Burden is focused on leading the county to a third league final in a row.
Read about Toby’s thoughts on the match at
https://griffinongolf.co.uk/toby-burdens-sleepless-nights-choosing-team-to-face-kent/

14/05/2025

Sandford Springs Hotel and Golf Club’s James Knight won the Delhi Cup for the first time in his long career, eagling the last to win the first Hampshire Order of Merit event of the season by four shots from Liphook’s George Saunders after carding two 67s to post an eight-under par total.

James Knight, Delhi Cup, Hockley Golf Club, Sandford Springs, George Saunders, Selborne Salver, Hampshire Salver, Order of Merit, Luke Donald

14/05/2025

Find out how James Knight got back in the winners’ circle after winning the Delhi Cup at Hockley Golf Club

James Knight, Hockley, Sandford Springs, Delhi Cup, England Golf, Hampshire squad, Toby Burden, Gareth Johnston, The Berkshire, Luke Donald,

06/10/2024

Hampshire have made a strong start to the South East League Final against Essex as they bid to retain the Daily Telegraph Salver with their 11th victory since 1964.
Hayling’s Toby Burden and Jo Hacker, from La Moye have beaten Essex’s Andy May and Shay McQueen 4&3 while in the bottom match the recalled Tom Robson and Martin Young, from Brokenhurst Manor, playing in his eighth final, took the bottom match, beating Charlie Croker and Toby Peters 5&4.
Essex are leading in the top match playing the last but Liphook’s George Saunders and Stoneham’s Ryan Henley, put a third blue point on the board with a 3&2 win over Ben Humphrey and Will Dunn.
Follow live scoring in the comments.

06/10/2024

Twenty-eight years ago, Hampshire suffered a shock defeat against Essex when the South East League Final was played at Stoneham Golf Club.
Hampshire Golf boasted the likes of Walker Cup ace Bobby Eggo, from Guernsey, former English Amateur and Mid-Amateur Champion Kevin Weeks and Alan Mew, England international Matt Blackey, and a teenage prodigy in the shape of Justin Rose.
Sandford Springs’ James Knight is the only surviving player from that eight-man team still playing top level amateur golf.
He speaks for the first time about what he remembers after Hampshire’s historic first English County Championship victory at Woodhall Spa, and that shock loss to Essex in the 1996 final.
Follow the links in first comment.

06/10/2024

Hampshire are bidding for their first back-to-back South East League Final win since 2002 – when they completed their second-hat-trick of successive wins since the competition was founded in 1964.
Hayling’s Toby Burden has had to juggle his resources with his two top US college players – Charlie Forster and Joe Buenfeld – back in the States.
Stoneham’s 2022 county champion James Freeman is recalled along with Rowlands Castle Golf Club’s Tom Robson.
Action gets under way on Sunday morning at Northwood Golf Club, in Middlesex
Read more follow the links in the comments

24/09/2024

He once helped Celtic pull off a giant-killing shock against Manchester United in the Champions League, but former Saints defender Paul Telfer says it took the “best 36 holes of golf in his life“ to claim the Courage Trophy and Hampshire Mid-Amateur title (over 35s), at Army Golf Club, beating nearly all of the county first -team in the process.

Paul Telfer, Courage Trophy, Army Golf Club, Order of Merit, Cole Scuttle, James Atkins, links golf, Mark Burgess, Robert Wheeler, Hockley,