Ben Ferguson is sitting in a tie for 3rd place out of a field of 252 after the opening round at the R&A Boys Amateur Championships at Prestwick & Dundonald Links.
The junior golfer form The Vines is continuing his run of form that saw him finish as a finalist at the St Andrew’s Boys Amateur last weekend.
Ferguson’s round was plagued by a triple-bogey 7 on the par 4 13th, but he made three birdies for the day to remain just two strokes from the lead.
The 88th Boys Amateur Championship will consist of two strokeplay rounds with 64 golfers qualifying for the matchplay rounds. Previous winners of the R&A Boys Amateur include Sergio Garcia and Jose Maria Olazabal.
Prestwick hosted the first 12 Open Championships between 1860 and 1872 and legendary figures like Willie Park Snr, Tom Morris Snr and Jnr and David Strath all made their names on this venerable Ayrshire links.
Ferguson finalist at St Andrews Boys Open
Ben Ferguson of The Vines finished as a finalist last night at the St Andrews Boys Open, played at the Old Course in St Andrews.
Ferguson qualified 18th in the strokeplay rounds, but cruised through the opening four rounds of matchplay to make the final.
Ferguson was behind early in the final, down 2 after 8 holes, he held Franssen there as the two traded wins throughout the afternoon with Franssen prevailing after being 2 up with one to play.
Established in 1948, the St Andrews Boys’ Open has a long tradition of providing a high level of competition for aspiring young players giving them the opportunity to compete on Championship courses at St Andrews Links, including the Old Course.
The Merchants’ Cup was presented by the St Andrews Merchants’ Association to recognise the scratch winner of the 18 hole qualifying and match play competition. A previous winner in 2005 was Chris Wood, now a successful participant on the European Tour.
Round of 32. Fergusson def Jordan Cook 5&4
Round of 16. Ferguson def Calum Bauchop 1up
Quarter Finals. Ferguson def Callum Cochrane 3&1
Semi Finals. Ferguson def Zack Bedford 3&1
Final. Ferguson lost to Cameron Franssen 2&1.
