Home nations golfers prepare for European Nations Championship

Wales, Ireland, England and Scotland will all have teams competing at the 2013 European Nations Championship in Sotogrande when the event kicks off tomorrow (March 13).

All four nations have teams competing in the men’s event, while Wales and England also have golfers competing in the women’s too, with play running until March 16.

For Wales, Jonathan Bale (Royal Porthcawl), Will Jones (Oswestry), Jason Shufflebotham (Prestatyn) and Ben Westgate (Trevose) will compete for the men, while Amy Boulden (Conwy), Becky Harries (Haverfordwest) and Chloe Williams (Wrexham) are set to do battle for the ladies.

The women in particular have tasted recent international team success. Top-ranked Welsh star Boulden was part of the British & Irish team that picked up the Curtis Cup last year for the first time since 1996, scoring two out of four points. Williams, too, recently starred for Team GB at the Australian Youth Olympics Festival in Sydney in January – taking bronze individually and helping Team GB to the gold.

For England, European No9 Nathan Kimsey (Woodhall Spa), Garric Porteous (Bamburgh Castle), Worthing’s Toby Tree and North Foreland’s Max Orrin have been selected. The French picked up both titles last year, but England held the male title for three years between 2009 and 2011, so the pressure is on for them to take their crown back.

Their women’s team will consist of World No5 and European No1 Georgia Hall (Remedy Oak), who formed part of the successful Team GB squad in Australia with Williams, as well as European No3 Bronte Law (Bramhall) and Alexandra Peters (Notts Ladies).

For Ireland, Alan Dunbar, Dermot McElroy, Rory McNamara and Reeve Whitson will be on the course. New European No12 Whitson, of Mourne, recently lifted the Spanish Amateur Championship in La Manga. Rathmore’s European No7 Dunbar, Ballymena’s McElroy and McNamara (Headfort) will be hoping to help him to another victory in mainland Europe.

Finally, Scotland will also be hoping for glory, and have entered James White (Lundin), Jack McDonald (Kilmarnock (Barassie)), Glenbervie’s Graeme Robertson and Kilmacolm’s Matthew Clark to compete.

The men’s draw consists of 18 teams, with golfers from Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Norway, Holland, Sweden, Belgium, Portugal, hosts Spain, Austria, Denmark, Turkey and Slovakia also competing.

Some of Europe’s top golfers will be on display. No2 Matthias Schwab is competing for Austria, European No8 Adrien Saddier will play for France, while Kimsey and Dunbar are also in the European Top 10.

The women’s draw is smaller, made up of 13 teams. England and Wales will be joined by Denmark, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Finland, France, Holland, Slovenia, Sweden and Slovakia.

England, of course, have two of the top three Europeans in their team, while the No5, Nicole Broch Larsen, will represent Denmark. No7 Quirine Eljkenboom will play for Germany, while No11 Clara Baeina will line up for the hosts, and No12 Boulden is in the Welsh squad.