A great start to the GAGT championship 2022
Alongside creating revolutionary business models, my other passion is golf. Due to an injury several years ago, I was unable to pursue a career as a semi-professional golfer. However, I wasn’t going to let this get in the way of my competitive spirit. So these days I play amateur golf, at prestigious championships. I played alongside top names like Carl Suneson, winner of the 2007 Open de St Omer; Nick Job, five times winner of the European Seniors Tour; Peter Baker, winner of several European tours and Ryder Cup finalist; and Ricardo Gonzalez, winner of four European Tours. Latterly I beat 400 competitive golfers to take the illustrious title of GAGT winner 2021, which also saw me achieve a best score of -8 at Saunton West.
The GAGT (formerly known as the Volvo Masters and European Amateur Golf Tour) has a 25 year history of attracting leading business people and celebrity sports stars to its courses. Comprising a series of individual stableford competitions played at top class venues, its championship title is the pinnacle of achievement for amateur golfers. So I am understandably proud to be the winner in 2021.
Not one to rest on my laurels, though, I’ve thrown myself into the opening tournaments of the 2022 season. And already had a great win on 11th October at the Berkshire Golf Club in Ascot. Founded in 1928, this iconic venue is home to two Herbert Fowler designed golf courses, both of which are highly regarded as being among the best in the British Isles. I scored 40 stableford points on the Berkshire Red Course, -4 under par. I hit net birdies on 6,7 and 8 to be -3 under par after 9 holes. I went on to hit further net birdies on 11, 13 and 16 before scoring a net eagle on 17. I was delighted. What could have been -8 under par finished at -4 due to a double bogey and two bogeys on back 9.
I then went on to win the tournament by a clear shot, beating highly regarded amateur Jamie Irvine. This was no mean feat since Jamie has been on tremendous form of late, hitting a number of rounds between a gross 66 and 69 recently. I finished with 17 shots above the average one-round score, which is a testament to all the effort I put in to improving my game. And beating Irvine is something I’m really proud of – he’s hitting scores which are of a decent professional standard. I’m determined to increase my lead now, and further improve my form. Winning the GAGT 2021 tournament meant the world to me. Now my focus is resolutely on retaining this prestigious title in 2022. Watch this space!
