Golf over the wind-ravaged Rye links was not easy today but James Robinson (picture © Tom Ward) made it look simple with an impressive 6 and 4 first round victory over Liam O’Neill as the English Amateur Championship reached the match play stage.
Robinson had an eagle and six birdies and was around six under par when the match concluded on the 14th green with Robinson remarking: “I had a crazy day with the putter.”
The Lancashire lad trailed early on but a run of four winning holes in five from the fifth saw him three-up at the turn. He also won the 11th, 13th and 14th, all with birdies, to close out the contest.
“I got off to a great start with an eagle-three at the first,” said Robinson. “It was tough on Liam as he birdied but lost the hole. But I holed a lot of putts,” added the 20 year old who reached the semi-finals two years ago.
Robinson, winner of the Lytham Trophy in May, now meets his Lancashire team-mate Jack Senior tomorrow in round two.
Having seen defending champion Todd Adcock not qualify, many eyes were on last year’s beaten finalist Chris Paisley from Northumberland. But he made an early exit, beaten on the final green by Surrey’s Kevin Garwood. Paisley was two-up through three holes but Garwood turned the tables through 12. They were all square again after 14 but Garwood decisively won the 15th and held on to ease through.
It was a mixed day for the internationals. While Luke Goddard, Jamie Abbott and Dale Whitnell marched on, Tommy Fleetwood and Steven Uzzell headed home.
Fleetwood, winner of the Scottish Open Stroke Play, was on the wrong end of a 3 and 2 scoreline against Kent’s Jonathan Bell, his team-mate in last year’s Boys Home Internationals in a preliminary round tussle
“I’m pleased to get through because Tommy is a good player,” said Bell. “I was always ahead and this has to be my beat match play win.” However, Bell then went out in round one, 5 and 4 against Eddie Pepperell.
Uzzell was also in action in the preliminary round and he also went to the final green but lost out to David Corben from Surrey by one hole.
Lagonda Trophy winner Dave Coupland from Lincolnshire played 35 holes in the day to secure a second round tie with Yorkshire’s Sam Haywood.
First out in the preliminary round at 6.28am, he got past Ryan Evans from Northants 2 and 1 then had to go to the final green to put out Surrey’s Tom Hayes. “I had to be up at a quarter to five so I’m off to get some sleep,” he said.
Jason Palmer, winner of last week’s South of England Stroke Play, was another preliminary round casualty, beaten 2 and 1 by David Jessup from Kent, son of seniors international Dave Jessup, while another son of a famous father also bit the dust.
Tom Brown, offspring of former Ryder Cup player and TV commentator Ken Brown, was a first round 2 and 1 victim of international Charlie Ford, who remarked: “Tom played well and I was two down after six. He came back with a couple of birdies but I won three in a row from the tenth. But he battled back to level but I won the 15th and 16th to go through.”
Ford now meets Matthew Turner from the Emirates, a 5 and 4 winner over Jonathan Hurst from Lancashire.
Admission is free to the event which finishes on Saturday 1st August. For those unable to attend, live scoring, championship commentary and news updates are available on the Championships Section of the EGU website, www.englishgolfunion.org.
