Up to and including the 2023 match 320 different players have been selected to represent Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) in the Walker Cup.
Of these 158 have been English, 94 Scottish (albeit 3 did not play a shot), 52 Irish and 18 Welsh (1 did not play a shot).
Click the following links to see the detailed lists of former GB&I Walker Cup players: –
Walker Cup GB&I Players – Alphabetical Order 2023
Walker Cup GB&I Players – Nationality Order 2023
Walker Cup GB&I Players – Playing Order 2023
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Three GB&I golf clubs have provided four players for the team in the history of the match.
Sunningdale GC *
Eustace Storey ’36, ’38
Philip Scrutton ’55, ’57
Bruce Critchley ’69
Stiggy Hodgson ’09, ’11
Sand Moor GC (in Leeds)
Alex Kyle ’38
Iain Pyman ’93
Stuart Cage ’93
Simon Dyson ’99
Kilmarnock Barassie GC
Jim Milligan ’89, ’91
Gordon Sherry ’95
Jack McDonald ’15
Ewan Walker ’19
*Many other players were members of Sunningdale when they played in the Walker Cup but I do not believe they deemed it to be their home club at the time of their participation. These included: –
Harry Bentley ’34, ’38
Ian Caldwell ’51, ’55
Roddy Carr ’71
Leonard Crawley ’32, ’34, ’38, ’47
John Davies ’73, ’75, ’77, ’79
Colonel A.A. Duncan [’39 Non-Playing Captain]
John de Forest ’32
David Frame ’61
Lister Hartley ’32
Rex Hartley ’30, ’32
Michael King ’69, ’73
John Langley ’36, 51, ’53
P.B. ‘Laddie’ Lucas ’47, ’49 (Captain)
Max McCready ’49, ’51
Gerald Micklem ’47, ’49, ’53, ’55, [’57, ’59 Non-Playing Captain]
Cyril Tolley ’22, ’23, ’24, ’26, ’30, ’34
Guy Wolstenholme ’57, ’59
Gerald Micklem used his influence to recruit top amateurs to Sunningdale from 1950 onwards.
Six other clubs to date have provided three players for the GB&I team. These are Addington GC, Cochrane Castle GC, Coxmoor GC, Sandy Lodge GC, Walton Heath GC and Williamwood GC.
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Below is a selection of the most notable former players, in terms of both appearances and subsequent achievements in the game.
I have written profiles on those players who are underlined. Click on their names to be taken to these. I have also collated some of their subsequent comments and reflections on the Walker Cup.
Peter BAKER (ENG)
1985
P3 W2-L1-H0
Sir Michael BONALLACK (ENG)
1957 ’59 ’61 ’63 ’65 ’67 ’71 ’73
P25 W8 L14 H3
Jimmy BRUEN Jr. (IRE)
1938 ’49 ’51
P5 W0 L4 H1
Joe CARR (IRE)
1947 ’49 ’51 ’53 ’55 ’57 ’59 ’61 ’63
P20 W5 L14 H1
Paul CASEY (ENG)
1999
P4 W4 L0 H0
“I’ll tell you what I want to go and see this year, at LA Country Club, is the Walker Cup.
And I didn’t know, for any young person, it’s amazing how when you’ve played these events, you’ve represented your country and you’ve played a Walker Cup, or an Eisenhower, and been on a world stage at amateur golf it actually resonates and it stays with you through your career whether you end up playing professional or not.
It’s something I had no idea when I ended up at Seminole a couple of years ago and bumped into Bob Ford (Oakmont Head Pro 1979-2016 / Seminole Head Pro 2000-today) and he’s like can I talk to you about the Walker Cup when you played at Nairn (GB&I won 15-9 in 1999). Wow – it lives with you and it’s cool.
Anybody who is any young amateur who’s thinking – nah, no I am not interested in playing this stuff, I want to turn professional. College – Professional. Just hang on a second. It matters. It means something. It can elevate your professional career even though you may not realise it at this moment.
It’s a cool thing and I’m really glad I got to… not just be part of a Walker Cup but part of a cool one. It was a classic. Yeah it was awesome. Nairn. Brilliant. I had some great moments. I played John “Spider” Miller in the singles and Luke (Donald) was my partner in the foursomes.”
– Paul Casey on Golf.com Podcast with Alan Shipnuck, 10th May 2017
Roger CHAPMAN (ENG)
1981
P4 W3 L1 H0
“…for me to play Cypress Point, which I had never heard of; I had heard of Pebble Beach, it was such a wonderful place.
It was a great honour and great privilege to play for the GB&I team. We had a great team and it was great fun. There was a great sense of pride, that you had achieved something.
Paul Way and I had always played foursomes together. We just thought on Saturday morning that we were playing together. We had never lost together playing for England, and it was a shock to us that we weren’t paired. I was playing with Peter McEvoy. I can’t remember who Paul played with but we both lost. Paul and I were put back together on Sunday morning and we beat Hal Sutton and Jay Sigel, who were the top two players on their team.
Then I went out in No. 1 singles and beat Hal Sutton. We had an unbelievable game. I was 5Up after nine and he came back at me. I think I finished 2-3-4-3 to beat him 1Up.”
– David Shefter / USGA Walker Cup Memories Interview
Howard CLARK (ENG)
1973
P3 W1 L1 H1
Andrew COLTART (SCO)
1991
P3 W2 L1 H0
Leonard CRAWLEY (ENG)
1932 ’34 ’38 ’47
P3 W3 L3 H0
Bruce CRITCHLEY (ENG)
1969
P4 W1 L1 H2
Bernard DARWIN (ENG)
1922
P2 W1 L1 H0
John DAVIES (ENG)
1973 ’75 ’77 ’79
P13 W3 L8 H2
Rhys DAVIES (WAL)
2005, ’07
P8 W4 L3 H1
“It’s the competitive pinnacle of amateur golf. It’s over very quickly. Two days seem to flash by. In 2007 I was looking forward to it. I even prolonged turning pro to play in it. Then you blink and it’s gone. I had two great experiences and I learned a lot from each one, home and away. I enjoyed playing away, in the tougher environment. It made me tougher.”
– Rhys Davies speaking in 2011
Luke DONALD (ENG)
1999 2001
P8 W7 L1 H0
“It meant enough to postpone turning pro and wanting to play my second Walker Cup at Sea Island. For me it was a big deal to make that team and represent my country. I think it’s the pinnacle of amateur golf.”
– Luke Donald speaking in 2013
Nick DOUGHERTY (ENG)
2001
P4 W3 L1 H0
Nigel EDWARDS (WAL)
2001 ’03 ’05 ’07
P12 W4 L5 H3
Nigel Edwards (© Tom Ward)
Cecil EWING (IRE)
1936 ’38 ’47 ’49 ’51 ’55
P10 W1 L7 H2
Matthew FITZPATRICK (ENG)
2013
P4 W3 L1 H0
Tommy FLEETWOOD (ENG)
2009
P2 W1 L1 HO
“To this day @WalkerCup is one of my best experiences as a golfer.”
– @TommyFleetwood1 on Twitter 07/09/17
Rodney FOSTER (ENG)
1965 ’67 ’69 ’71 ’73
P17 W2 L13 H2
Stephen GALLACHER (SCO)
1995
P4 W2 L2 H0
Charles GREEN (SCO)
1963 ’69 ’71 ’73 ’75
P17 W4 L10 H3
Padraig HARRINGTON (IRE)
1991 ’93 ’95
P9 W3 L5 H0
Padraig Harrington talked about his Walker Cup experiences (© USGA)
“I have fond memories of playing in the Walker Cup and rate my three experiences very highly on my list of personal achievements. I learned a great deal during that time and I gained considerable experience, which has helped me throughout my professional career.”
– Padraig Harrington in 2011
“The reason I played three Walker Cup’s is I didn’t think I was good enough to be a pro. I did night school and did accountancy with the idea of hoping to be in the golf industry. Only after seeing these guys in 1993 turn pro. and some of them get out there I kind of had the attitude ‘if these guys are good enough’ then I think I can beat them guys so I’m going to turn pro. My ambition was to be a journeyman pro for five years, come back to Ireland and have that on my CV.”
– Padraig Harrington on the McKellar Golf Podcast, 31st March 2020
David HORSEY (ENG)
2007
P4 W3 L1 H0
Barclay HOWARD (SCO)
1995 ’97
P6 W0 L4 H2
David HOWELL (ENG)
1995
P3 W2 L0 H1
Ian HUTCHEON (SCO)
1975 ’77 ’79 ’81
P15 W5 L8 H2
Mark JAMES (ENG)
1975
P4 W3 L1 H0
Alex KYLE (SCO)
1938 ’47 ’51
P5 W2 L3 H0
Michael LUNT (ENG)
1959 ’61 ’63 ’65
P11 W2 L8 H1
Sandy LYLE (SCO)
1977
P3 W0 L3 H0
“It was wonderful honour and it meant quite a lot to me, but I don’t necessarily have the greatest memories of it (Shinnecock Hills in 1977). I don’t think we were as prepared for it as we should have been.”
– David Shedloski / USGA Walker Cup Memories Interview
George MACGREGOR (SCO)
1971 ’75 ’83 ’85 ’87
P14 W5 L8 H1
Robert MACINTYRE (SCO)
2017
P3 W1 L1 H1
Llewellyn MATTHEWS (WAL)
2007
P1 W0 L1 H0
“When I had Tony Disley ring me, Chairman of Selectors for the Walker Cup, tell me I had made the team I was overjoyed. It was a fantastic moment.
We started the week off at St. Andrews. We played Kingsbarns with Sandy Lyle. He played 6 holes with each of us. We then had dinner in The R&A clubhouse.
Next day we flew private jet from Dundee to Belfast. It was at Royal County Down. We started off playing a number of practice rounds together. It was a unique experience. We had a good team room, good chat. It was great to have the BBC filming us and interviewing us. It was a phenomenal time.
I sat out the first morning foursomes. I didn’t have the best Walker Cup’s. I played one match. I lost 5&4. I didn’t play the next day. I’m still proud of being a Walker Cup player because that was the reward for all that effort and practice I’d done for two years. It made it real. I wished it went better than it did but I’m proud of being a Walker Cup player.”
– Llewellyn Matthews video interview with Glamorgan Golf Union / @Glamorgan_G_U – Sept. 2019
Graeme MCDOWELL (IRE)
2001
P4 W2 L2 H0
Peter MCEVOY (ENG)
1977 ’79 ’81 ’85 ’89
P18 W5 L11 H2
“Probably the biggest regret of my career is my individual Walker Cup record, which is exactly 33%. Including the Walker Cup my overall record was 79%, that’s over 200 international matches, so the rest of it is 85%.
My singles record for England is better than anyone’s, but my record in the Walker Cup is won 5, lost 11, halved 2. It’s something I hate myself for because there are few mitigating circumstances. I failed. I put it down to expectation level – when I played in my individual event my expectation was to win.
But I was as guilty as anybody in the context of not going out with the right attitude; in the Walker Cup I just didn’t have that same conviction”
– Peter McEvoy in Golf International Sept / Oct 2015 issue
Garth MCGIMPSEY (IRE)
1985 ’89 ’91
P11 W4 L5 H2
Paul McGINLEY (IRE)
1991
P3 W1 L2 H0
“I played in one Walker Cup (at Portmarnock in 1991) and the course was baked. We had seven days in the mid-20s with a maximum of 2-3 mph winds. That obviously suited the Americans. We would have loved it a bit more blustery and cold.
“The crowds sold out and it was a great week. It was the first time the competition had come to Ireland. The whole country invested in it and it was a huge deal. It was the biggest driving force in my career in 1989 to 1991 to make that team.”
“We had four Irish on the team with Garth McGimpsey, Liam White, Padraig Harrington and myself. Padraig was a late addition to the team after coming strong late in the process. He was a ferocious competitor and that’s how he made the team. I always enjoyed playing with him.”
– Paul McGinley in National Club Golfer, August 2017.
Rory MCILROY (IRE)
2007
P4 W1 L2 H1
Rory McIlroy talks about his Walker Cup experiences (© USGA)
“One of the biggest challenges early on in my career — and honestly, one of the most humbling experiences — was assuming the responsibility of playing for something bigger than myself.
My last tournament as an amateur was the 2007 Walker Cup at Royal County Down — a course I had played many times as a kid. Given my familiarity with the course, along with my form going into the event, I was seen as a leader of our all British and Irish team. That was quite an honour.
By the end of the weekend, though, I was more disappointed than I had ever been.
My teammates and I lost to the U.S. by one point. After contributing only 1½ points out of a possible four, I felt like I was responsible for the outcome. I was disappointed not only in myself, but also because I felt like I’d let my teammates down – and that was disheartening. I had never really experienced that feeling before.”
– Rory McIlroy in The Players’ Tribune / Bose, 27th September 2016
Gerald MICKLEM (ENG)
1947 ’49 ’53 ’55
P6 W1 L5 H0
Colin MONTGOMERIE (SCO)
1985 ’87
P8 W2 L5 H1
John MORGAN (WAL)
1951 ’53 ’55
P6 W2 L4 H0
Jimmy MULLEN (ENG)
2015
P4 W4 L0 H0
Eoghan O’CONNELL (IRE)
1989
P4 W2 L0 H2
“(Peter McEvoy and I) played together in the St. Andrews Trophy and had done well and Peter said to our captain Geoff Marks that we were a good pairing. Peter did his best to mentor me and took me under his wing a bit to make the team. The Walker Cup was the pinnacle of your amateur career.”
GB&I took an 11-5 lead into the final day singles where O’Connell was drawn against Phil Mickelson.
“I looked at the scoreboard on the 12th and we were down in every match. (Geoff Marks) said it looked like if I were to win we would win, if I tied we would tie and, if I lost, then we lost! So that made it pretty clear in my head but I wanted to know. I was 1-Down to Mickelson at the time. I won the 17th and Phil made a 10-footer at the last for par and he gave me a 2.5 footer which I was quite surprised that he gave me – there was a good chance I would have missed it.”
It came down to the final match – Jim Milligan v. Jay Sigel.
“Jim was 2-Down with four to play. He holed a big putt at 15, birdied 16 and then chipped in on 17. He got it done.”
The 1989 Team were the first to win on US soil.
“We didn’t go on to do what we wanted as pros, most of us anyway, but had we lost it would have been a huge disappointment, We were a strong team and we weren’t surprised that we had won. We didn’t think of ourselves as underdogs.”
“I love it, once you have played in the Walker Cup you will always be a Walker Cup player.”
– Eoghan O’Connell in National Club Golfer, August 2017.
Andrew OLDCORN (ENG)
1983
P4 W4 L0 H0
Peter OOSTERHUIS (ENG)
1967
P4 W1 L2 H1
Philip PARKIN (WAL)
1983
P3 W2 L1 H0
Ronan RAFFERTY (IRE)
1981
P4 W2 L3 H0
Richie RAMSAY (SCO)
2005
P2 W1 L1 H0
Graham RANKIN (SCO)
1995 ’97 ’99
P8 W2 L6 H0
Justin ROSE (ENG)
1997
P4 W2 L2 H0
Sandy SADDLER (SCO)
1963 ’65 ’67
P10 W3 L5 H2
Ronnie SHADE (SCO)
1961 ’63 ’65 ’67
P14 W6 L6 H2
Jordan SMITH (ENG)
2013
P2 W0 L2 H0
Hugh STUART (SCO)
1971 ’73 ’75
P10 W4 L6 H0
Andy SULLIVAN (ENG)
2011
P4 W2 L2 H0
Cyril TOLLEY (ENG)
1922 ’23 ’24 ’26 ’30 ’34
P12 W4 L8 H0
Tony TORRANCE (SCO)
1924 ’28 ’30 ’32 ’34
P9 W3 L5 H1
Dr William TWEDDELL (ENG)
1928, ’36
P2 W0 L2 H0
Philip WALTON (IRE)
1981 ’83
P8 W6 L2 H0
Marc WARREN (SCO)
2001
P3 W2 L1 H0
Craig WATSON (SCO)
1997
P3 W1 L1 H1
“We’d lost the foursomes, 4-0, and I wasn’t playing in the morning, so I was early to the tee in the afternoon, and I was going to be the first to hit, I just teed up my ball before the introductions started. As it turned out it was the best move I ever made. I was so nervous when I went up to hit my shot that it was just as well the ball was already teed up – I’d never have been able to keep my hand steady enough when the time came. I stood over it and everything was moving and I thought, ‘Please God, just let me make a connection here.’ I got it away – it wasn’t a very good drive – but it was straight enough.”
– Craig Watson speaking with Brian Keogh about his 1997 appearance at Quaker Ridge GC in New York in GlobalGolfPost.Com, 15th May 2017
Roger WETHERED (ENG)
1922 ’23 ’26 ’30 ’34
P9 W5 L3 H1
Ronald WHITE (ENG)
1947 ’49 ’51 ’53 ’55
P10 W6 L3 H1
Danny WILLETT (ENG)
2007
P4 W0 L0 H2
1995 ’97 ’99 2001 ’03 ’05
P19 W10 L9 H0
Guy WOLSTENHOLME (ENG)
1957 ’59
P4 W2 L2 H0
ME.
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