None of amateur golf’s leading tournaments are to be held in England during the 2018 season, after the R&A announced that its seven most important championship and international events are to be spread between Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Finland.
Scottish links courses feature prominently on the list of venues for 2018, with the Amateur Championship split between Murcar Links and Royal Aberdeen (pictured). The latter hosted the Walker Cup in 2011 and the Scottish Open in 2014, while the former is the host venue for the European Tour’s Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play.
Staying north of the border, the Boys Home Internationals will held at Royal Dornoch, while the Junior Open is being staged over the Eden Course in St Andrews.
Following the announcement that Royal Portrush will host The Open in 2019, the club will also be hosting the Boys Amateur Championship in 2018, with the neighbouring links at Portstewart staging the stroke play qualifying rounds.
Wales’s Royal Porthcawl, the venue for the Senior Open in 2017, will host the Seniors Amateur Championship the following year, while the St Andrews and Jacques Leglise Trophies will be played in Finland, although a specific venue has yet to be announced.
Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, executive director of championships at the R&A, said, “We have a very strong list of championship venues for 2018, and they will provide a real challenge for the leading amateurs. I know the players will be excited at the prospect of playing such outstanding links courses and we can look forward to some tremendous golf.”