Weaver Walker Cup boost as Grehan leans into Lahinch knowhow
Stuart Grehan of Team GB&I during a practice round prior to the Walker Cup at Lahinch Golf Club. Pic: Oisin Keniry/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)
Great Britain & Ireland’s bid to stop the USA making it six Walker Cup wins in row at Lahinch this weekend has received a big boost with confirmation that men’s amateur world number two Tyler Weaver has passed fit to face the Americans.
England’s Weaver, 21, has not played all summer due to an oblique injury, missing several key individual tournaments in order to prioritise a second Walker Cup appearance, having debuted in the defeat at Cypress Point 12 months ago. He did link up with his potential team-mates at Lahinch in July, for a short training camp at the Old Course, and though he did not hit driver Weaver earned rave reviews from GB&I captain Dean Robertson for his shot-making around the revered Co. Clare links.
On Thursday, the skipper gave Weaver the green light to lead the home charge on Irish soil against a stacked American team which has not been beaten in this two-day amateur team matchplay contest since 2015 at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
“Tyler is a really mature athlete,” Robertson said. “He's been through a real difficult year with an oblique injury, and he's had to sit out. He's taken the difficult decisions to miss Merion, to miss the U.S. Amateur and prioritise the Walker Cup this week. He's good to go Saturday, and he's controlling the ball flight nicely, and he's just hitting it nice and easy.”
GB&I will need all the firepower and course knowledge they can muster to defeat an American team boasting seven players of their 10 ranked inside the world’s top 10 and a lowest ranking of 25.
The home side has WAGR number two Weaver and seventh-ranked Luke Poulter, the son of European Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter in that same elite group but can als count on both the US Amateur champion, Jack Whaley from England, and the British Amateur champion Stuart Grehan, the Co. Louth golfer and Ireland’s sole representative at Lahinch this weekend.
Grehan, the oldest GB&I player this week at 33 who made his Walker Cup debut in 2025, is relishing the responsibility of flying the Irish flag in front of a sold-out home crowd.
“It's amazing,” Grehan said. “Something I've always kind of looked towards, look forward to. To be here now, yeah, it's pretty cool.
“I've got some family that's come in last night, and it's kind of starting to hit home when there's a few more people floating around, so the excitement is building.”
Grehan’s knowledge of Lahinch’s intricacies includes winning the South of Ireland Championship there in 2015 and he added: “I've played here a bunch of times. I've probably played 30, 40 times out here, and I don't have to, I suppose, practice as much as around the greens as most of the guys. I kind of know the little subtle breaks.
“I've been trying to give my best advice to them, but look, they're all really good players and we've done incredible prep, I feel like, over the last few days, and we'll see how it goes. But I think we're all very, very happy where we're at.”
Grehan gave his verdict on what it takes to win matchplay matches at Lahinch.
“Look, for me, I think the rough is not that heavy this week, but at the same time you've like zero control of the ball out of it. I think if I prioritise fairways myself, if I was just playing like a singles game and then take it from there, I'm well able to shape the ball and flight it down and stuff like that.
“As long as I get the ball in the fairway, I think I have a great chance against anyone.” Captain Robertson acknowledged the threats posed by a much stronger American opponent but insisted Lahinch itself was just as intimidating an adversary.
“First of all, we've got to master the challenges that are in front of us with the golf course. We've got confidence in our preparation, and we have got a game plan, and we'll stick to our game plan.
“It's going to be a brilliant Walker Cup match, I'm sure. It's going to be extremely difficult. The Americans are so strong. But we are prepared. We'll be playing our own game, and we'll just see where that takes us.”
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