The USA chants rang out on Cypress Point’s 17th hole after Preston Stout clinched victory for the United States in the 50th Walker Cup. With a Sunday singles performance that paid testament to the team’s depth, the Americans defeated Great Britain and Ireland for the fifth consecutive time in the biennial match, prevailing 17-9.
“It’s really beyond words,” said U.S. captain Nathan Smith. “To be with this group of guys who I love so much and to be on the 16th tee at Cypress Point, it’s really hard to put words into it. I’m so blessed, fortunate and humbled.”
The United States is now 40-9-1 in Walker Cup matches dating back to the first event in 1922. They’ve won both Walker Cups at contested at Cypress Point, the first having been played in 1981. This year, several of the game’s future stars stepped up, including Jackson Koivun and Jase Summy, who earned a team-high three points.
Needing five points in Sunday singles to win the Walker Cup, the Americans jumped on the GB&I team early and painted the scoreboard red. Koivun won the first match against Tyler Weaver, 3 and 2, and Tommy Morrison won the second match against Niall Shiels Donegan by the same score. Ethan Fang got redemption from a loss in his morning foursomes match, dominating Stuart Grehan, 5 and 4.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a Walker Cup team bring it like they did this afternoon in singles.”
Nathan Smith
U.S. Amateur champion Mason Howell earned a half point against Connor Graham to finish the Walker Cup undefeated (2-0-1) and extend the U.S. lead to 12-8, setting the stage for Stewart Hagestad, the U.S. squad’s only mid-amateur, to retain the Walker Cup with a dramatic birdie putt on Cypress Point’s par-3 15th hole that secured a 4-and-3 victory over Eliot Baker. The U.S. team clinched outright victory moments later when Stout won the 17th hole with a conceded birdie from tap-in range after a stellar approach, thereby prevailing over Luke Poulter, 2 and 1.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a Walker Cup team bring it like they did this afternoon in singles,” Smith said.
Going into the match, the World Amateur Golf Ranking suggested a big mismatch. The U.S. team’s average ranking was 23, and the Americans boasted each of the top six: Koivun, Ben James, Fang, Summy, Stout and Morrison.
The GB&I team’s average WAGR was 96.4. Compared to the United States’ eight players in the top 20, GB&I had only two: Weaver (10) and Cameron Adam (17).
Despite that, the GB&I team took control in Saturday morning’s foursomes, jumping out to a 3-1 lead. This was the third time in the 26-point era, which dates to 2009, that GB&I led 3-1 after the opening session. While the U.S. has won six of the last eight Walker Cups, it has won only one opening foursomes session in that span, in 2009 at Merion Golf Club.
In a back-and-forth opening match, GB&I’s Weaver and Graham beat Koivun and Morrison, 3 and 1. GB&I’s Charlie Forster and Poulter won the first hole and never trailed, beating Hagestad and James, 3 and 2. Baker and Grehan’s match against the United States’ Stout and Fang went down to the wire, as the GB&I duo closed out the match, 1 up, on the 18th hole.
The only American pair to grab a point was Michael La Sasso and Summy, who beat Adam and Dominic Clemons, 4 and 2.
The U.S. squad came roaring back in the Saturday afternoon singles matches, led by Hagestad and Stout, both of whom routed their opponents. Hagestad stormed out of the gate, birdieing three of the first four holes. He beat Ireland’s Gavin Tiernan, 7 and 5. Stout made six birdies in 13 holes to down Forster, 6 and 5.
The U.S. team won 5½ of a possible 8 points to take a 6½-5½ lead into the Sunday morning foursomes, which subsequently brought drama and a 2-2 deadlock, making the score 8½-7½ entering the Sunday afternoon singles.
Weaver and Graham looked in prime position to beat Koivun and Morrison again, leading by one hole going into 17. But the GB&I duo made critical mistakes. Weaver had a medium-length putt to win the match but knocked it more than 5 feet past the hole. Morrison made his crucial putt for par while Graham missed his.
“It was stressful,” Morrison said. “We had a nice opportunity there to shift some momentum and I’m glad that one found the hole.”
The next Walker Cup will be next year at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland as the matches return to even years for the first time since 1938.
With the match tied on the 18th hole, Graham hit a tee shot that left Weaver stymied with tree trouble on his approach. In the end, Koivun’s tough 4-footer for par earned the Americans a point.
But the GB&I team punched back. Stout and Fang were 4 up on Poulter and Forster through 10 holes but three straight wins from the GB&I duo on Nos. 13-15 tied the match. After Fang’s tee shot on Cypress Point’s famed 16th hole found the water, Poulter and Forster went on to win, 1 up.
“We know that we’ve been playing great so we know that we just have to trust ourselves and dig deep and see what can happen,” Poulter said.
Howell and Jacob Modleski won their match against Baker and Grehan, 2 and 1. On the 17th hole, Howell canned a pitching wedge for eagle to close out the match.
“I couldn’t really see it go in so I’ll be interested to see that on the replay but that was such a great way to win the match,” Howell said.
In the final foursomes match, Shiels Donegan and Adam beat La Sasso and Summy, 2 and 1, despite a late comeback attempt by the Americans.
The next Walker Cup will be next year at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland as the matches return to even years for the first time since 1938. The United States is 18-7 in away matches, although they are 3-5 since 1995. GB&I’s last Walker Cup victory came in 2015 at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in England.
Everett Munez