Walker says GB&I ‘can do it’ at Nairn

mickey Walker knows what it takes to beat the Americans at ladies’ team golf. In 1992, she led Europe to a first victory in the Solheim Cup at Dalmahoy.

Twenty years on, the amateur equivalent, the Curtis Cup, tees off at Nairn tomorrow and Walker reckons it might not be as one-sided in favour of the visitors as some people have been predicting.

She has heaped praise on Tegwen Matthews, the GB&I captain, for enlisting the help of two experienced professionals, Gillian Stewart and Christine Langford, to work with the home players on their short games. Walker also believes the GB&I team will be galvanised for the three-day match following the death of team manager Sue Turner in the countdown to the encounter on the Moray Firth course.

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“If we manage to win the Curtis Cup, it will be the first time that GB&I and Europe have ever held the trophies for all four transatlantic team events, the other three being the Ryder Cup, the Solheim Cup and the Walker Cup,” Walker told The Scotsman.

“Historically, the odds are stacked against us as in the 36 matches played since the matches were first played in 1932, GB&I have only won six – two in the 1950s and four in the late 80s and early 90s.

“We do have several factors in our favour, though. For starters, we have home advantage – five of our six wins have been on home soil. The one Curtis Cup match that I played in was at Western Gailes in 1972 and the crowds turned out in their thousands. I imagine that the matches will be very well supported at Nairn with the majority supporting GB&I.

“Another factor is that the captain of the GB&I team, Tegwen Matthews, has really stressed the importance of having a superb short game, traditionally the area where the Americans have been stronger than us.

“In the build up to the matches, Tegwen has called on the expertise of professionals Gillian Stewart and Christine Langford to fine tune the putting and short game skills of the GB&I team to get them ready.

“Very sadly, Tegwen’s right- hand woman, good friend and the original team manager, Sue Turner also from Wales, passed away in February. Sometimes when tragedy strikes, it can help galvanise a team and, as a consequence, they give an inspired performance.”

Bothwell Castle’s Pamela Pretswell is the sole Scot in the eight-strong GB&I team, which also includes Charley Hull, the English teenager who celebrated her inclusion – after a u-turn by the selectors – by finishing in the top 40 in the Kraft Nabisco, the opening women’s major of the season.

“Although there was a lot of controversy surrounding the selection of Charley, she performed unbelievably well in the Kraft Nabisco,” noted Walker.

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“Just to make the cut would have been a great achievment, but, following a final round of 68, she ended up in a tie for 38th, a performance that a lot of professionals would have been happy with, let alone a 16-year-old playing at Mission Hills in California for the first time. It would have been a travesty if Charley, by far and away our highest-ranked amateur hadn’t been selected for the GB&I team.

“Her inclusion only makes it stronger, especially with her recent results giving her huge confidence and the belief that she can beat anyone.

“The only thing standing in the way of a GB&I win is, inevitably, a strong American team, but with a bit of luck, strong support and some good scoring from the GB&I amateurs, we can do it.”

Mickey Walker is leading a golf/ sightseeing tour for Jon Baines Tours to Hong Kong and New Zealand in November. For details email [email protected]

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