Cameron Adam boosts Walker Cup hopes with dramatic St Andrews success

Adam, the 2023 Scottish Amateur champion, birdied the last to force a play-off with Irishman John Doyle as the pair tied on 17 under par after 72 holes.

The left-hander, who lives in Pattiesmuir in Fife, then won the first extra hole with a par to become the first Scot since Grant Forrest to land the prestigious prize.

It was a second St Andrews success for Adam, who has been mentored by Bob MacIntyre through a ‘buddy’ system set up by the Stephen Gallacher Foundation and Bounce Sports Management, after helping Northwestern University win the St Andrews Links Collegiate last October.

After following an opening 68 on the Jubilee Course on Friday with a 64 on the Old Course the following day, Adam held a two-shot lead over fellow Scot and Northwestern team-mate Niall Shiels Donegan at the halfway stage.

A third-round 71 then left him a shot off the lead heading into the closing circuit after Irishman Thomas Higgins jumped into pole position on the back of a 67.

As Higgins’s hopes of staying out in front were undone by a 75 in the final round, it was Doyle who set the clubhouse target as the Fota Island played signed off with a 65 that contained ten birdies, including four in the last five holes.

He faced a lengthy wait to see if anyone could match his 271 total and, to his credit, Adam rose to the challenge by producing a bogey-free closing effort.

He birdied the second and sixth to be out in 34 before moving to 16 under with another gain at the 14th, where he’d made an eagle earlier in the day.

A par at the 17th kept his hopes alive and he was up to the task when only a birdie at the last would stop Doyle landing the fourth Irish victory in the last ten stagings.

‘Awesome feelingf at the end of a long day’

The subsequent play-off win boosted Adam’s hopes of making Dean Robertson’s Great Britain & Ireland team for the Walker Cup at Cypress Point in California later in the year.

“It feels awesome,” said Adam. “It was a long day out there starting out with the lead and having to battle away throughout the day. It is definitely really satisfying now that I’ve won it.

“I started checking the scores midway through the final round and I knew playing 14 what John had posted and I needed to pick up two shots on the way in. When I was standing on the last tee, I knew I needed to birdie it.

“In the play-off, I was fortunate that I was fresh off 18 and still in the zone, so I was quietly confident.”

The victory came after Adam tied for seventh behind Englishman Seb Cave 12 months ago and he added: “Golf is really hard and another year’s development has been massive for me.I made progress with my game at Northwestern, so I felt really good coming back this year.”

It was also an eye-catching performance from California-based Shiels Donegan, who birdied the last for a closing 69 to finish joint-fourth on 12 under.