Dylan's sizzling summer haul

As the saying goes, ‘there’s no rest for the wicked’. And there’s no rest for the very good either, as Huddersfield’s Dylan Shaw Radford has been finding out this summer. In July the 17-year-old added the prestigious Carris Trophy – one of the biggest prizes in junior golf, the English Boys’ Open Amateur Championship – to the Scottish Boys’ Open he lifted in April, plus the Henry Cooper Junior Masters title in June. They in turn joined the Yorkshire Boys title and the England County Boys Championship from last year in what must be a very cluttered Shaw Radford home trophy cabinet. Yorkshire Golfer caught up with Dylan as he prepared for The Amateur Championship staged at Lindrick and Worksop. It was clear there would be no time to rest on his Carris laurels. Following The Amateur where he qualified in the top 64 but went out in the last 32, it was bags packed again and the trip north to represent England in the Home Internationals at Downfield in Scotland. From there the Shaw Radfords would be staying in Scotland for the Boys’ Amateur Championship the following week. Reflecting on the Carris win at the Silloth on Solway links in Cumbria, Dylan said: “Obviously it’s nice, but in the events I have coming up, the standards are very good too.” Supporting him at Silloth were his grandparents and grandad John was present on the final day to watch the drama unfold. “It’s nice – he supports me a lot and helps out so it was nice to get it done when he was here,” added the champion. “He enjoyed being in the pictures too!” Dylan was also part of the England team that won the Nations Cup at the championship. He teamed up with Doncaster’s Josh Berry and Tyler Weaver to claim that prize ahead of Italy. On what’s going particularly well at the moment, he said: “I think I’m making fewer mistakes generally. There have been a few less shots that have cost me. And then if I take those out on course, my game gets better.” Is it a mental or a skills thing? “A little bit of both. It’s about believing in my practice and developing my game.” In terms of winning the Carris, he said: “I concentrated on getting in play off the tee, so I took a lot of 3-irons off the tee. I managed to do that quite well.” He was paired with one of Scotland’s top juniors Niall Shiels Donegan in the final round, having shot a 70, 65 and 71 to rise to the top of the leaderboard, one shot behind his partner Donegan. An eagle at the 5th and birdie on the 9th saw Dylan turn two in front. When Donegan bogeyed 16, a birdie-par finish saw the Fixby star close out a three-stroke win with a 67 for a brilliant -15 total. Off the course, Dylan is still undecided about his future as he studies his A levels online. “I am having a little bit more interest from the US, but I’m still the same as I was – 50-50 as to whether I go or not. It definitely will depend on what sorts of offers I get,” he said. It’s difficult to imagine one of the most successful British junior golfers of recent years won’t be in high demand.