Amateur Championship begins at Carnoustie

• 29 Scots aiming to follow in Bradley Neil’s footsteps at Carnoustie
• Connor Syme hoping to build on semi-final showing last year
• TV highlights to be shown on Sky Sports 4 later in the week

The 120th British Amateur Championship is underway at Carnoustie and Panmure today with several Scots looking to repeat what Bradley Neil achieved at Royal Portrush last year.

Taking place all week with a 36-hole final contested on Saturday, the field consists of 288 of the best amateur golfers from 30 different countries, which will be cut to 64 and ties after the opening two days of strokeplay.

After that, the champion will be decided via a matchplay format and Connor Syme – one of 29 Scots in this year’s field – is hoping he can build on his semi-final showing in Northern Ireland last year.

The 19-year-old, who plays out of Drumoig, was beaten by Neil last year and has visited Carnoustie and Panmure several times in recent weeks for practice rounds.

“I’ve had a lot of practice at Carnoustie the last few weeks” – Connor Syme

He said: “I’ve had a lot of practice at Carnoustie the last few weeks, as I’ve got to know Colin Sinclair, the head pro, who has helped me, as has Andy Crerar at Panmure as well.

“I’m looking forward to it. I’ve probably played Carnoustie six times now, which is a massive help for preparation. It’s a tough, tough golf course and you obviously have to play well and have a good strategy. You need to certainly hit it in the right spots to have a chance to score round it. The rough is going to be up probably after the last few weeks (of weather), so it’s going to be a challenge.

“It’s unbelievable what Bradley has since enjoyed, playing in the Open, the Masters and the US Open this week, and I would love some of that!”

More than 30 players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking top 100 feature in the field, including five of the world’s top 20: Australia’s Ryan Ruffels, the reigning Australian Junior Boys champion, two-time European Amateur champion Ashley Chesters of England, 2015 Lytham Trophy winner Marcus Kinhult of Sweden, Austin Connelly of Canada and Mario Galiano of Spain.

Admission and parking are free and full details including the championship draw can be found at RandA.org. Television highlights will be broadcast from Friday, June 19 through to Monday, June 22 on Sky Sports 4 in the UK and Ireland and via local satellite suppliers in other territories.

Amateur Championship :: Can a Scot win again?

Will one of the 29 Scots in the field follow Bradley Neil and win the British Amateur Championship at Carnoustie? Leave your thoughts in the ‘Comments’ section below.