Joe Long became the first Englishman to collect the R&A’s British Amateur trophy since 2017. There were few there to see it Sunday at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England, thanks to pandemic protocols, but Long defeated good friend Joe Harvey in the scheduled 36-hole final to put his name in golf lore.
The day started out relatively slowly at Royal Birkdale, with both players matching pars for the first four holes. But when Long began to build his advantage with a birdie to win the fifth hole, he kept it going. In fact, Long never trailed throughout the day.
Long went into the afternoon 18 with a 2-up advantage, though he quickly lost it as Harvey won the first hole with par. Birdies at Nos. 6 and 7 were key for Long in the afternoon, and once he got Harvey 4 down on the 29th hole, he held him there.
Long had a 30-footer for birdie on the 32nd hole that would have sealed the match, but ultimately won when he and Harvey matched birdies on No. 15, the 33rd hole of the day.
“That sounds amazing, 125th Amateur Champion has quite a nice ring to it,” Long told the R&A. “I was feeling nervous, we both were. My game plan was just to try and stick in the present as much as I could, forget about all the rewards and benefits that come with winning.
“I hit a few ropey shots in the first round, but I started to tee my driver down and get it back in play. I felt like I was pretty solid overall. This afternoon again I was hitting driver well and holed a few nice putts as well which was cool. I just had it in play all the time and felt in control.”
Long, ranked No. 102 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, started his year with a top-10 at the South American Amateur before playing a handful of early-spring events in South Africa. Most recently, he advanced to the quarterfinals at the English Amateur.
For his win, the 23-year-old Long gained exemptions into the British Open at Royal St George’s next year, and by tradition, an invitation to play in the Masters Tournament and an exemption into the U.S. Open.
“Wow, when you say all the exemptions. It still hasn’t hit me. It’s going to be incredible,” Long told the R&A. “This is what I have worked hard for since I started playing golf. I really stuck in there and battled, I am just so chuffed with it really.”
As for Harvey, it was a long week but a rewarding week, even if he wasn’t the last man standing.
“If you had said at the beginning of the week that I would be in the final I don’t think I would have believed you. I am really chuffed with the way I have played all week,” he said.
[lawrence-related id=778063837,778062645,778062091]