Many of the world's leading amateur players will gather in Estonia this week in hopes of capturing the 2023 European men’s amateur title.
The 36th edition of the European Amateur Championship, which offers a spot in The Open Championship for the winner, will take place at Pärnu Bay Golf Links, Estonia from Wednesday (28 June) to Saturday (1 July) this week.
FORMAT
The championship is contested over 72-holes of stroke play. All players will complete three rounds, with the top-60 and ties making the cut for Saturday’s final round.
HISTORY
The championship, first played in 1986, is consistently ranked amongst the strongest amateur events in the world for strength of field (By WAGR) and regularly attracts top talent in the amateur game.
Several Ryder Cup stars and major champions have featured in the European Amateur Championship in the past. Rory McIlroy (2006) and Sergio Garcia (1995) both won the event before turning pro, while Lee Westwood (1993), Paul Casey (1999), Danny Willet (2007) and Tommy Fleetwood (2010) have all previously medaled in the tournament.
The last time the event was held in Estonia, in 2016, Viktor Hovland lost in a seven-hole playoff to Italy’s Luca Cianchetti, while more recently, Nicolai Hojgaard claimed the title in 2018.
INVITATIONS TO THE 151st OPEN
Having their name engraved on a trophy alongside European greats is not the only prize on offer for the competitors this week.
The winner will be invited to compete at The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool in three weeks' time.
Filippo Celli (ITA) earned the Silver Medal at The 150th Open after winning the European Amateur Championship
For the first time this year, the new Open Amateur Series will offer an additional spot to this year’s Open. The player scoring the most World Amateur Golf Ranking points across the St Andrews Links Trophy, The Amateur and European Amateur Championships will also be invited to compete at Royal Liverpool.
Additionally, those finishing in the top-five this week will be invited to compete in The Open final qualifying stage.
THE VENUE
Located two hours to the south of Tallinn on the Baltic Sea, Pärnu Bay Golf Links will provide the test to the players this year.
Pärnu Bay Golf Links
Since its opening in 2015, the course has continued to rise in the global rankings. The links-style design recently earned a 16th place ranking in the top-100 courses of Continental Europe by Golf World.
The championship setup will measure approximately 6200 metres (6780 yards) this week with a par of 72. With reasonably forgiving tee shots, it’s likely that the challenge, and the difference, will be made around the greens.
THE FIELD
144 competitors representing 38 different countries make up the field this year. Seven of the European Amateur Ranking top-10 will tee it up at Pärnu Bay, including Frederik Kjettrup (DEN), the highest-ranked player on the start list.
No former champions are competing this week, having all turned pro, although two former bronze-medalists will look earn European medals once again. Calum Scott (SCO) earned the bronze medal at Parador El Saler last year, while Jerry Ji (NED) achieved the same at Royal Hague in 2018, behind Nicolai Hojgaard and in a tie with Viktor Hovland.
Calum Scott (SCO) with the bronze medal at the 2022 European Amateur Championship
Jose Luis Ballester (ESP) and Luis Masaveu (ESP), both ranked inside the WAGR top-50, will lead 13 Spanish players hoping to be the first from their country to win the event since Sergio Garcia in 1995.
Ireland’s Liam Nolan is another player to watch this week, having recently won the prestigious Brabazon Trophy. Representing Golf Ireland alongside him will be reigning U.S. Mid-Amateur Champion, Matt McClean, who competed in this year’s Masters and U.S. Open following his victory last September.
France's Bastien Amat is another player in the field this week that competed at Los Angeles Country Club just two weeks ago. A total of eight French players will look to give France their first European title since Victor Dubuisson in 2009.
Sweden’s Albert Hansson has also shown excellent form this season. The 19-year-old won The R&A Boys’ Amateur Championship last year, earning a selection for the Jacques Léglise Trophy. This season he won the Copa Sotogrande and finished runner-up in the Spanish Amateur Championship and St Andrews Links Trophy. He’ll compete alongside seven other Swedish players, including the winner of the individual classification of the 2022 World Amateur Team Championship, Tobias Jonsson.
Other players competing with major international victories this season include Angel Ayora (ESP) who won the Portuguese International Amateur and Nicola Gerhardsen (SUI) who triumphed in the Spanish Amateur Championship. Ronan Kleu (SUI), fresh of a runner-up finish at The Amateur Championship, is also one of the most inform players on the starting list this wek.
Lev Grinberg (UKR) and Denny Kloeth (NED) are the two youngest challengers in the field at just 15 years of age. Last season, the former famously became the youngest player to make the cut in a DP World Tour event at the Soudal Open, while Kloeth claimed the European Young Masters Boys’ title in Finland.
Draws and livescoring can be followed throughout the week on the European Amateur Championship event page, while updates and highlight videos can be found on our social channels @ega_golf.