Dean Robertson named new GB&I Walker Cup captain

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The highly regarded coach will take charge of the team seeking to win the trophy back from the USA at Cypress Point in 2025

Walker Cup captain

Great Britain & Ireland have a new Walker Cup captain. Dean Robertson has been appointed skipper for the 50th match at Cypress Point in September next year.

The 53-year-old succeeds fellow Scotsman Stuart Wilson in the role and the University of Stirling’s High Performance Golf Coach will bring a wealth of experience.

Robertson played in the Walker Cup in 1993, as part of the team that lost 19-5 in Minnesota, and acted as Head Coach of the European Arnold Palmer Cup team in 2009.

He begins his two-year term by captaining GB&I against the Continent of Europe in the St Andrews Trophy at Royal Porthcawl in July.

“To have represented Great Britain and Ireland in the St Andrews Trophy and the Walker Cup was the pinnacle of my amateur career and an incredible privilege,” said Robertson.

Walker Cup captain

Walker Cup captaincy is honour ‘I could not have imagined’

“Now to have the honour of captaining Great Britain and Ireland is something I could not have imagined but it is one that I am thrilled about. I very much look forward to working closely with the players for the matches ahead with an important focus on being well prepared and playing to win.”

Robertson enjoyed a notable amateur career, winning the Scottish Youths, Scottish Amateur Stroke Play and Scottish Amateur championships. A student at Midland College in Texas, he was part of the victorious GB&I side in the St Andrews Trophy at Royal Cinque Ports in 1992 before his Walker Cup appearance a year later.

The USA ran out comfortable winners at Interlachen Country Club, but Robertson, who featured in the same team as three-time major champion Pádraig Harrington, did enjoy a singles victory over Jay Sigel.

He joined the pro ranks the following year and won the Italian Open on the European Tour in 1999 and the Scottish PGA Championship in 2006. He represented Scotland at the World Cup in 1999 and 2001.

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Robertson has become a highly regarded coach on the amateur scene and currently works with Louise Duncan, the 2021 Women’s Amateur Championship, who is now a promising professional.

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Picture courtesy of The R&A

About the author

Steve Carroll
Steve Carroll

A journalist for more than 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long.

A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A’s prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.

Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men’s Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.

A part of NCG’s Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He’d like to tell you he floats around 10. The reality is more like 13.

Steve plays at Sandburn Hall, in York, and is a country member at Close House in Newcastle. He has served on various club committees during his time in the game, and is the current Rules Secretary at Sandburn.

Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NCTJ exams at Darlington College of Technology. He began his career working on weekly papers in Newcastle, before joining the York Press in 2001. After five years as a news reporter, he joined the sports desk – specialising in horse racing and snooker – and was Digital Sports Editor when he joined National Club Golfer in 2016.

What’s in Steve’s bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; Caley 01T irons 4-PW; TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges, Odyssey 2Ball Microhinge putter.

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