Irish still searching for elusive US Amateur win

Irish golfers have won The Open five times, the US Open twice and the US PGA three times, not to mention nine British Amateur Championships.

But while the Masters continues to elude the men in green, so too does the US Amateur, which tees off at Olympia Fields in the Chicago suburbs today with Walker Cup hopefuls Paul Dunne, Cormac Sharvin and Gary Hurley hoping to show a watching skipper, Nigel Edwards, that they deserve places in his team.

Following his heroics in The Open at St Andrews, where he was joint leader with a round to go, 22-year old Greystones man Dunne received a special exemption from the United States Golf Association to join the already exempt West Waterford man Hurley and Ardglass golfer Sharvin in the 312-strong field.