ENGLISH GOLF UNION:
COUNTY FINALS MOVE TO JERSEY IN 2002 SCHEDULE

The English Golf Union will break new ground by taking one of its key events "overseas" for the first time. In the tournament schedule for 2002, just released, the end of season County Finals will be visiting the Island of Jersey. The County Finals, the culmination of nationwide tournaments to find the top County Team, will form part of the La Moye Golf Club's centenary celebrations and be played on 27th-29th September.

As far as EGU records show, no EGU championship or final has been played outside the English mainland before although regional and qualifying tournaments as well as county matches have been staged in the Channel Islands, part of the Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Channel Islands Golf Union and on the Isle of Man.

La Moye is the third oldest club in the Channel Islands behind the Royal Jersey and Royal Guernsey and was the venue for the Jersey Island Open on the PGA European Tour from 1978 to 1995. In more recent times the Seniors Tour has been a regular visitor to the St Brelade venue.

The tournament schedule for 2002 underlines the EGU's policy of playing its major championships over England's premier courses. The Brabazon Trophy, which is scheduled for Woodhall Spa this year and Royal Birkdale in 2001, stays in the North West at Royal Liverpool in 2002. It will be the fifth occasion the Trophy has been fought over the famous Cheshire links, the most recent being in 1989.

Similarly, the English Amateur, being played at Royal Lytham this July and at East Sussex National in 2001, will be staged at Walton Heath. That date will be 25 years after the last Championship visit in 1977, when Terry Shingler took the title.

The North West also hosts the Boys County Finals to be staged at St Annes Old Links in September, while the Cheshire clubs of Heswall and Bromborough will be the venues for the English Seniors in June.