Watching former Wales teammate Darcey Harry competing with the world’s best women golfers on Welsh soil helped inspire Luca Thompson to win her first Welsh Women’s Amateur Championship at Whitchurch in Cardiff.
The 23-year-old beat Pyle and Kenfig’s Fauve Birch 4&3 in the final to take a big step towards being able to turn professional and one day join the top players in events such as the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl.
Bury St Edmunds player Max Weaver regained the Welsh Men’s Amateur Championship he won for the first time two years ago, beating Whitchurch member and club champion Paddy Mullins in the final.
Having the event coincide with the world’s top players competing in Porthcawl certainly helped Thompson, who was in the Wales Golf High Performance squad alongside Darcey Harry until the latter turned professional and won her way through to the AIG Women’s Open.
“Having the AIG Women’s Open here in Wales is massively inspiring, a chance to go to watch the best players in the world,” said Thompson, who works at her family run golf course Pavenham Park.
“Having Darcey Harry playing in that so soon after being part of our Wales squad gives us someone to follow. It definitely helps to give us something like that to aim for.
“I have had a few good results this season but had not won. I was being called the best loser by my brothers all year, so it will be good to get home and not have that any more.
“It is amazing to look back on last year and see how much I have come on, Wales Golf has helped me so much that I feel like a different golfer.
“It is now a case of enjoying walking the fairways rather than last year when I was feeling the pressure.
“The work I have done with Wales Golf has given me a really good process, we worked with the men’s squad over the winter and they were so helpful towards me. There were lots of things I can use on the course which helped me.”
Thompson finished runner-up in the Welsh Women’s Open this summer and did well in the recent European Team Championships where Wales qualified for the top Flight A in fifth place, giving them confidence going into the Home Internationals next.
“It is great to win the Welsh Amateur, I really enjoyed it. I was six under through ten holes, lost a few holes then but held on,” she said.
“It is always so lovely to play against Fauve, we had some good chats during the round.
“We are really confident going into the Home Internationals next week, we have such a strong team and we managed to beat all the Home Nations in the strokeplay stage at the European Team Championships.”
Weaver won the title in Newport in 2023 and was in powerful form all week at Whitchurch.
“It feels great to have won, it was really good fun out there,” said the 22-year-old, who has just finished a two year degree in Portugal in golf management.
“I managed to work my way to the top of the leaderboard in the strokeplay and then went from strength to strength in the matchplay.
“I have just come back from an injury so it is nice to bounce back in that way and to get my name back on the trophy. I just kept the pressure on my opponents in the matches and was relentless.
“Whitchurch is a great course and it was in awesome condition, it was nice to have the members supporting the event in the way they did.
“It is definitely one of the greenest courses I have seen, so the club smashed it this week.
“I just want to keep the season going as long as I can and then maybe look to turn professional at some stage.”
Wales Golf Competitions manager Dan Fullager added, “The standard of play throughout the week was really high and both finals were won with exceptional scoring.
“Luca and Max played very well and deserved their titles. Everyone in Wales Golf is obviously delighted to see Darcey Harry doing so well amongst the world’s best players so soon after being part of our High Performance Squad.
“So to see two members of that High Performance Squad winning the Welsh Amateur titles is also encouraging.
“There was also plenty of praise from everyone involved for the quality of the course at Whitchurch, it was in great condition while the staff and members helped with the successful running of the event.”
Llanymynech’s Seren Ramsey claimed the Valentine Plate after being three down with three to play in the final against Pyle and Kenfig’s Elin Tynan, winning the match on the first extra hole.
Next up for the Wales squads are the Home Internationals starting on August 6.
