Oz challenge for Tyke pair

Two Yorkshire golfers have been named in a mixed squad of six players who will represent England on a New Year tour of Australia, taking in four events.

It will be the first time a mixed squad had travelled down under and Cara Gainer, who represents Oxfordshire, and Emily Toy, from Cornwall, are the first women to take part in the annual trip. They will join Lindrick’s Bailey Gill and David Hague of Malton & Norton, plus Ben Jones of Northamptonshire and Tom Sloman of Somerset.

Jenny Henderson, England Golf Women’s Performance Manager, said: “This tour is a fantastic opportunity for players to gain competitive experience and prepare for the season ahead. I’m delighted that we’ve been able to include two women players this year - I’m sure they will find it hugely beneficial and be great ambassadors for England Golf.”

The squad will play in:

• Australian Master of the Amateurs, at Royal Melbourne, from 8-11 January • Australian Amateur at Woodland and Spring Valley golf clubs, from 15-20 January • NSW Amateur at Mona Vale and Terrey Hills golf clubs, from 21-24 January • Avondale Amateur at Avondale, from 29 Jan-1 Feb

England players have a good record in these events, with recent successes including the wins of Gian-Marco Petrozzi, (2018), Scott Gregory (2017) and Paul Howard (2015) in the NSW Amateur.

Gill, 21, was in England’s winning teams at the 2018 Home Internationals and biennial match against France. He was joint runner-up in the Portuguese Amateur, tied third in the Brabazon Trophy and sixth in the Chiberta Grand Prix in France. Gill and Hague both helped Yorkshire win the English men’s county championship.

Hague, 22, played this tour in 2018 when he was runner-up in the Avondale Amateur and a quarter-finalist at the Australian Amateur. He’s played in three winning England teams in 2018: at the European Nations Cup, the Home Internationals and the international against France.