The R&A Student Tour Series is back underway for a second season with the first championship teeing off at the Fairmont St Andrews this week. The Series will include four championships that will be played in Scotland, Ireland, Spain and Portugal at venues that have hosted The Open, Final Qualifying, LPGA and European Tour events.
Players who compete in two or more championships will earn points on the Series Order of Merit with the leaders progressing to the Tour Series Final to be held in St Andrews.
The Series was first launched in 2019 to provide student golfers throughout UK and Europe with high performance playing opportunities. It was not played in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Phil Anderton, Chief Development Officer at The R&A said, “The R&A has been a long-time supporter of student golf and the Student Tour Series provides elite amateur golfers with opportunities to enjoy competing against each other in a world class environment while they undertake their academic studies.
“The Series also ensures that students who attend universities in Europe are provided with access to regular competition that is of a high standard and supports their development as an elite amateur. We look forward to seeing who will prevail as the leading golfer in St Andrews next year.”
Louise Duncan, a student at the University of Stirling, will compete in the Series after a memorable season in which she won the Women’s Amateur Championship and Smyth Salver as the leading amateur in the AIG Women’s Open at Carnoustie after finishing in the top ten. She also, represented Great Britain and Ireland at the Curtis Cup last month.
An R&A scholar, Duncan competed in the 2019 R&A Student Tour Series, recording a course record three-under-par 69 at Troia in Portugal and was third on the order of merit before the Series was cancelled due to the pandemic.
The R&A Student Tour Series extends the support of student golf. Each year, almost £500,000 is invested in student and university golf through the R&A Foundation Scholars programme. Currently, the organisation supports golf programmes at 17 universities and in the 2020 /2021 academic year and awards individual Foundation scholarships.
The R&A has supported university and student golf for over 37 years with former scholars including: 2019 Champion Golfer of the Year Shane Lowry (University College Dublin); 2018 Champion Golfer of the Year Francesco Molinari (University of Turin); 2021 Masters Tournament winner Hideki Matsuyama; and Catriona Matthew (University of Stirling), the 2019 and 2021 European Solheim Cup Captain and former AIG Women’s Open Champion.
The R&A is committed to investing £200 million over ten years in developing golf and supports the growth of the sport internationally, including the development and management of sustainable golf facilities. For more information, visit www.randa.org
