LINKS ‘BIRDIE’ DRAMA AS JACK LIFTS THE SHIELD
THE 1000-mile round-trip from Northampton to the Highlands proved worth it for 20-year-old Jack Peters as the Englishman claimed the 112th Carnegie Shield.
The US college student with aspirations to join the professional ranks rounded off a memorable week at Royal Dornoch with a 4&2 final win over Prestwick’s Cameron McGarvie.
Even the bizarre sight of a seagull swooping to make off with his opponents’ ball couldn’t stop Jack closing out the match on the 16th green.
Jack, who is preparing for the third year of a Business Management degree and a golf scholarship at Kaiser University, based at West Palm Beach in Florida, built a three-hole lead over Cameron at the turn and maintained his grip on the final.
“Cameron’s ball hadn’t quite stopped when this seagull flew off with it on the 16th,” said the +4 handicap member at Northamptonshire County and Woburn.
“I’ve never seen anything like it on a golf course.
“About 10 seconds later it dropped the ball near the green and Cameron, the referee and I worked out where it would most likely have ended up.
“It was quite funny and luckily it didn’t have any effect on the result.”
Former Bedford School pupil Jack commiserated with Cameron after a hard-fought duel on the Championship Course and welcomed the support both players enjoyed from the gallery following the action.
“I first came to Royal Dornoch with my dad, Richard, when I was 14 and it was him who suggested taking part in the Shield to round off the summer before heading back to college.
“He got me into golf when I was five or six, so it was great to have him on the bag all week, with my mum Zoe and our Cavapoo dog, Colin, following us for all five matches.
“My goal at the start of the week was to come away with the trophy so it has been the perfect way to end the summer. It was a bonus to get back my World Amateur Golf Ranking with the win.
“I learned more about the history of the Shield as the week progressed and just how prestigious this event is. The trophy is amazing and it is certainly very heavy. It wouldn’t have fitted into the car if I’d been allowed to take it home.
“The first time I played the Championship Course, around the time of the pandemic, the weather was terrible – and I have had a love-hate relationship with links courses.
“But from the moment I turned up at 5.30am on Tuesday for my tee-time I have appreciated how stunning the course is. The conditions were perfect and that was a bonus. I think we saw it at its best.
“The 14th, Foxy, is a very tough hole but I particularly liked seven and eight, which provide fantastic views of the links.
“Winning the Shield has certainly made the 530-mile journey from Northampton to reach Dornoch worthwhile.”
*The Davidson Trophy was won by Fortrose and Rosemarkie’s Neil Edwards with a 5&4 victory over Phillip Compeau, from Longue Vue in the USA and fellow American Sims Macdonald of the Idaho Club took the E.C Fraser Trophy with a 20th hole win over Royal Dornoch’s Daniel Cormack.