# Boys Amateur Championship

The Boys Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. The competition is organised and run by The R&A.

## History

The Boys Amateur Championship was first played at Royal Ascot in 1921. In 1921 boys had to be under-16 but this was raised to under-17 in 1922 and to under-18 in 1923, which is the age limit that has been retained since.
The venue for the competition has been played at many golf courses throughout the United Kingdom and has frequented several golf courses on more than one occasion. Notably the first two completion were both played at Royal Ascot.
The first championship started on 5 September 1921 with nearly 50 boys competing. The first day saw 14-year-old Henry Cotton play the eventual winner, Donald Mathieson, Cotton losing by 2 holes. Cotton was all square after 16 holes but lost the 17th, after being incorrectly penalised for placing his bag in a bunker, and then went out of bounds at the final hole. The Scot, Mathieson, met an English boy, Guy Lintott in the 36-hole final. Lincott won the final three holes to tie the match but Mathieson won the 37th hole to win the championship. Mathieson was the son of Donald MacKay Mathieson, a well-known golf journalist.

## Format

The current format for the Boys Amateur Championship has been used since 2010 and comprises an initial stroke play stage with all 252 competitors playing two rounds of 18 holes, one on each of the two courses. The 64 lowest scores over the 36 holes then compete in the match play final stage of the Championship. Ties for 64th place are decided by countback. Each round of the knockout is played over 18 holes with the exception of the final which is played over 36 holes. Boys must be under 18 at the start of the year in which the championship is held.
The 2020 event was cancelled, while the 2021 event was run with a reduced field of 144 played at a single venue, Royal Cinque Ports.

## Results

| Year | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Venue |
| 2024 | Viggo Olsson Mörk | 4 & 3 | Scott Woltering | Moortown |
| 2023 | Kris Kim | 38 holes | Alex Papayoanou | Ganton |
| 2022 | Albert Hansson | 2 & 1 | Didrik Ringvall Bengtsson | Carnoustie |
| 2021 | Jack Bigham | 37 holes | Riccardo Fantinelli | Royal Cinque Ports |
| 2020 | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| 2019 | Tom Gueant | 37 holes | Wilmer Ederö | Saunton |
| 2018 | Conor Gough | 3 & 1 | José Luis Ballester | Royal Portrush |
| 2017 | Pedro Lencart | 5 & 4 | Falko Hanisch | Nairn |
| 2016 | Falko Hanisch | 37 holes | Alejandro Aguilera | Muirfield |
| 2015 | Marcus Svensson | 4 & 3 | Keegan De Lange | Royal Birkdale |
| 2014 | Oskar Bergqvist | 1 up | Rowan Lester | Prestwick |
| 2013 | Ewen Ferguson | 10 & 9 | Michael Hirmer | Royal Liverpool |
| 2012 | Matt Fitzpatrick | 10 & 8 | Henry James | Notts |
| 2011 | Harrison Greenberry | 37 holes | Patrick Kelly | Burnham & Berrow |
| 2010 | Adrián Otaegui | 4 & 3 | Max Rottluff | Kilmarnock (Barassie) |
| 2009 | Tom Lewis | 5 & 4 | Eddie Pepperell | Royal St George's |
| 2008 | Pedro Figueiredo | 39 holes | Fraser McKenna | Little Aston |
| 2007 | Emilio Cuartero | 1 up | Fraser Fotheringham | Royal Porthcawl |
| 2006 | Matthew Nixon | 38 holes | Björn Åkesson | Royal Aberdeen |
| 2005 | Bernhard Neumann | 3 & 2 | Jordan Findlay | Hunstanton |
| 2004 | Jordan Findlay | 2 & 1 | Tom Sherreard | Conwy |
| 2003 | Rhys Davies | 1 up | Pablo Martín | Royal Liverpool |
| 2002 | Mark Pilling | 37 holes | Rhys Davies | Carnoustie |
| 2001 | Pablo Martín | 3 & 2 | Rafa Cabrera-Bello | Ganton |
| 2000 | David Inglis | 1 up | David Skinns | Hillside |
| 1999 | Alfonso Gutierrez | 1 up | Michael Skelton | Royal St David's |
| 1998 | Steven O'Hara | 1 up | Stefano Reale | Ladybank |
| 1997 | Sergio García | 6 & 5 | Richard Jones | Saunton |
| 1996 | Kenneth Ferrie | 2 & 1 | Mark Pilkington | Littlestone |
| 1995 | Steven Young | 7 & 6 | Sam Walker | Dunbar |
| 1994 | Christopher Smith | 2 & 1 | Chris Rodgers | Little Aston |
| 1993 | David Howell | 3 & 1 | Viktor Gustavsson | Glenbervie |
| 1992 | Leif Westerberg | 3 & 2 | Freddie Jacobson | Royal Mid-Surrey |
| 1991 | Francisco Valera | 4 & 3 | Robert Walton | Montrose |
| 1990 | Michael Welch | 3 & 1 | Matthew Ellis | Hunstanton |
| 1989 | Carl Watts | 5 & 3 | Colin Fraser | Nairn |
| 1988 | Simon Pardoe | 3 & 2 | David Haines | Formby |
| 1987 | Calvin O'Carroll | 3 & 1 | Per Olsson | Kilmarnock (Barassie) |
| 1986 | Leslie Walker | 5 & 4 | Graham King | Seaton Carew |
| 1985 | James Cook | 5 & 4 | Wayne Henry | Royal Burgess |
| 1984 | Lee Vannet | 2 & 1 | Adam Mednick | Royal Porthcawl |
| 1983 | José María Olazábal | 6 & 5 | Marc Pendariès | Glenbervie |
| 1982 | Mark Grieve | 37 holes | Giles Hickman | Burnham & Berrow |
| 1981 | Jesús López | 4 & 3 | Reeves Weedon | Gullane |
| 1980 | Duncan Muscroft | 7 & 6 | Aled Llyr | Formby |
| 1979 | Ronan Rafferty | 6 & 5 | David Ray | Kilmarnock-Barassie |
| 1978 | Stephen Keppler | 3 & 2 | Mark Stokes | Seaton Carew |
| 1977 | Ian Ford | 1 up | Colin Dalgleish | Downfield |
| 1976 | Mark Mouland | 6 & 5 | Graham Hargreaves | Sunningdale |
| 1975 | Brian Marchbank | 1 up | Sandy Lyle | Bruntsfield Links |
| 1974 | Toby Shannon | 10 & 9 | Sandy Lyle | Royal Liverpool |
| 1973 | David Robertson | 5 & 3 | Stefano Betti | Blairgowrie |
| 1972 | Garry Harvey | 7 & 5 | Robert Newsome | Moortown |
| 1971 | Howard Clark | 6 & 5 | Garry Harvey | Kilmarnock-Barassie |
| 1970 | Ian Gradwell | 1 up | Ewen Murray | Hillside |
| 1969 | Martin Foster | 37 holes | Martin Gray | Dunbar |
| 1968 | Stephen Evans | 3 & 2 | Kim Dabson | Royal Lytham & St Anne's |
| 1967 | Peter Tupling | 4 & 2 | Stephen Evans | Western Galies |
| 1966 | Andrew Phillips | 12 & 11 | Alan Muller | Moortown |
| 1965 | Graham Milne | 4 & 2 | David Midgley | Gullane |
| 1964 | Peter Townsend | 9 & 8 | Roddy Gray | Formby |
| 1963 | Alex Soutar | 2 & 1 | David Rigby | Prestwick |
| 1962 | Peter Townsend | 1 up | Cameron Penman | Royal Mid-Surrey |
| 1961 | Finlay Morris | 3 & 2 | Clive Clark | Dalmahoy |
| 1960 | Patrick Cros | 5 & 3 | Peter Green | Olton |
| 1959 | Alan Murphy | 3 & 1 | Eddie Shamash | Pollok |
| 1958 | Richard Braddon | 4 & 3 | Ian Stungo | Moortown |
| 1957 | David Ball | 2 & 1 | John Wilson | Carnoustie |
| 1956 | John Ferguson | 2 & 1 | Clive Cole | Sunningdale |
| 1955 | Stewart Wilson | 39 holes | Brian Aitken | Kilmarnock (Barassie) |
| 1954 | Alan Bussell | 38 holes | Keith Warren | Royal Liverpool |
| 1953 | Alec Shepperson | 6 & 4 | Tom Booth | Dunbar |
| 1952 | Michael Bonallack | 37 holes | Alec Shepperson | Formby |
| 1951 | Neville Dunn | 6 & 5 | Michael Lunt | Prestwick |
| 1950 | John Glover | 2 & 1 | Ian Young | Royal Lytham & St Anne's |
| 1949 | Harry MacAnespie | 3 & 2 | Norman Drew | St Andrews |
| 1948 | John Pritchett | 37 holes | David Reid | Kilmarnock (Barassie) |
| 1947 | James Armour | 5 & 4 | Ian Caldwell | Royal Liverpool |
| 1946 | Alan MacGregor | 7 & 5 | Donald Dunstan | Bruntsfield Links |
| 1940–1945: No tournament due to World War II ||||||
| 1939 | Sandy Williamson | 4 & 2 | Ken Thom | Carnoustie |
| 1938 | Willie Smeaton | 3 & 2 | Thomas Snowball | Moor Park |
| 1937 | Ian Roberts | 8 & 7 | James Stewart | Bruntsfield Links |
| 1936 | Jimmy Bruen | 11 & 9 | William Innes | Royal Birkdale |
| 1935 | John Langley | 6 & 5 | Ralph Norris | Royal Aberdeen |
| 1934 | Robert Burles | 12 & 10 | Frederick Allpass | Moortown |
| 1933 | Laddie Lucas | 3 & 2 | William McLachlan | Carnoustie |
| 1932 | Ian MacDonald | 2 & 1 | Leslie Hardie | Royal Lytham & St Anne's |
| 1931 | Hector Thomson | 5 & 4 | Francis McGloin | Glasgow |
| 1930 | James Lindsay | 9 & 8 | James Todd | Fulwell |
| 1929 | James Lindsay | 6 & 4 | John Scott-Riddell | Royal Burgess |
| 1928 | Stuart Scheftel | 6 & 5 | Archibald Dobbie | Formby |
| 1927 | Eric Fiddian | 4 & 2 | Ken Forbes | Royal Burgess |
| 1926 | Eric McRuvie | 1 up | Charles Timmis | Coombe Hill |
| 1925 | Robert Peattie | 4 & 3 | Andrew McNair | Royal Burgess |
| 1924 | Robert Peattie | 2 up | Pierre Maneuvrier | Coombe Hill |
| 1923 | Donald Mathieson | 3 & 1 | Hugh Mitchell | Dunbar |
| 1922 | Hugh Mitchell | 4 & 2 | William Greenfield | Royal Ascot |
| 1921 | Donald Mathieson | 37 holes | Guy Lintott | Royal Ascot |
Source:

## Future venues

* 2025 - County Louth Golf Club