GB&I Hold One-Point Lead Over USA After Thrilling Opening Day At Walker Cup

Stuart Grehan sealed a point for GB&I in the singles session of the Walker Cup

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Just one point separates Great Britain & Ireland and the US after the opening day of the 51st Walker Cup.

Without a Walker Cup victory since 2015 and facing a US line-up featuring seven of the world’s top 10 amateurs, Dean Robertson’s team would have been well aware of the importance of a strong start to the two-day match.

That’s exactly what they got, with the foursomes matchup of Niall Sheils Donegan and Josh Hill claiming a 4&3 win over Josiah Gilbert and Ryder Cowan at Lahinch Golf Club.

That was despite a non-conceded putt incident at the ninth, which resulted in GB&I given a one stroke penalty.

Two GB&amp;I golfers look on — Josh Hill and Niall Sheils Donegan won their Saturday morning foursomes match

Another win followed in the morning session, when Connor Graham and Tyler Weaver got the better of Jay Leng Jr and Kihei Akina.

There was some joy for the Americans, when Miles Russell and Tyler Watts claimed a 1-up win over Luke Poulter and Sam Easterbrook.

The match between GB&I's Stuart Grehan and Eliot Baker and the US pairing of Preston Stout and Ethan Fang was halved.

The upshot of that was that the hosts held a slender advantage of 2.5-1.5 with eight singles matchups looming in the afternoon.

Despite the encouraging start from the hosts, they would have been mindful of what happened two years ago at Cypress Point.

On that occasion, GB&I raced into a shock 3-1 lead after the Saturday morning foursomes, before finishing the day 5.5-6.5 behind.

However, there was no repeat of that 2.5-5.5 afternoon singles scoreline this year, as the teams shared the eight points to leave GB&I with a 6.5-5.5 advantage and two sessions to come.

Ethan Fang at the Walker Cup — Ethan Fang had a 1-up triumph over Jack Whaley

The first point in the afternoon went to the hosts, when Stuart Grehan’s 15-foot birdie putt beat World No.1 Preston Stout.

The US hit back when Ethan Fang had a 1-up triumph over Jack Whaley before Jay Leng Jr beat Tyler Weaver 2&1.

The visitors gathered even more momentum when William Jennings, who trailed for much of his match against Connor Graham, claimed a 1-up win.

Three birdies in six holes helped Walker Cup veteran Stewart Hagestad take control of proceedings against Ben Bolton, eventually defeating him 2&1 to hand another point to the US.

However, there was a sting in the tail from GB&I when Donegan picked up his second point of the day by defeating Tyler Watts 3&2.

Ian and Luke Poulter — Ian Poulter watched as son Luke beat Miles Russell in the Saturday afternoon singles session

The GB&I fightback continued when Eliot Baker beat Josiah Gilbert 3&2, which was followed by another full point for the hosts when Luke Poulter, with his dad Ian watching, achieved a 2&1 victory over 17-year-old Miles Russell.

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories.

He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game.

Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course.

Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.