A total of 16 qualifiers secured the final places in this year’s ISPS HANDA Senior Open, with Final Qualifying taking place at four sites near Sunningdale, which is hosting Europe’s only Senior Major for a fourth time from July 24-27.
More than 550 competitors vied for the last 16 places in the traditional Monday qualifier, with events taking place at Bearwood Lakes Golf Club, Burhill Golf Club, Camberley Heath Golf Club and Sandy Lodge Golf Club.
The first Qualifier to conclude was at Burhill, with Canada’s Gordon Burns, American amateur Bryan Hoops and Englishman Paul Smith sharing first place after carding four under par rounds of 68.
A play-off was required to determine the final remaining place, with Spaniard Rafael Benitez making par on the second extra hole ahead of English amateur Stephen Creed.
Rob Labritz, of the United States, earned medallist honours at Camberley Heath Golf Club after a six under par round of 65. In second were the English pair of amateur Richard Warburton and two-time Amateur Champion and six-time Walker Cup player Gary Wolstenholme. Legends Tour winner André Bossert carded a four under par 67 to take fourth place outright.
Jeff Williams carded the lowest round of Qualifying, a seven under par 65, as he lead at Bearwood Lakes. English amateur Neil Rowlands finished second, followed by Shinichi Yokota of Japan. England’s Paul Streeter, who was the Legends Tour Rookie of the Year in 2018, earned the final spot in a play-off with Scotsman Graham Laing.
American Taggart Ridings finished first in Qualifying at Sandy Lodge with a five under par 66, but a six-man play-off was required to decide the final three places in the ISPS HANDA Senior Open.
Three extra holes were needed to determine the qualifiers, with Thomas Kalinowski of the United States carding a birdie on the third sudden death hole to earn the first spot. He was then joined by compatriot Brad Adamonis and South African Ryan Dreyer, who parred the par five 17th hole at Sandy Lodge, with Mark Wharton missing out after carding a bogey.
The 16 players are the final additions to a field which includes some of golf’s most renowned names, with South Korean K.J. Choi defending the Senior Open trophy against 17 Major Champions, 15 fellow Senior Major winners and more than 100 winners from the DP World Tour and PGA TOUR.
Tickets are still available for Europe’s only Senior Major and can be purchased via this link.
Qualifiers
Bearwood Lakes Golf Club
Jeff Williams
Neil Rowlands (AM)
Shinichi Yokota
Paul Streeter
Burhill Golf Club
Gordon Burns
Bryan Hoops (AM)
Paul Smith
Rafael Benitez
Camberley Heath Golf Club
Rob Labritz
Richard Warburton (AM)
Gary Wolstenholme
André Bossert
Sandy Lodge Golf Club
Taggart Ridings
Thomas Kalinowski
Brad Adamonis
Ryan Dreyer
