SANDERS DEFENDS HIS ENGLISH TITLE WITH A BYE

Mark Sanders will begin his defense of his English Amateur Championship at St Mellion with a second round tie against either Kevin Freeman (Stoke Poges) or Ross McCue (Sutton Green) after being given a bye through the first round.

Sanders, from the Bristol & Clifton club who clinched the title a year ago at Woodhall Spa by beating Simon Gorry (Sudbury) 6 & 5 in the 36 hole final, is among the eight top seeds who will sit out the first round when the Championship gets under way at the Cornish venue on Monday 26 July.

Eight more seeds have been named but these will start in the opening round and those in Sanders' part of the draw are 1997 champion Aran Wainwright, runner up in last month's Amateur Championship, who starts against Andrew Fells (Canons Brook), the England International Ben Mason (Sand Moor), who also gets a bye and Richard McEvoy (Thorpe Hall), semi-finalist in the Amateur Championship, who meets Matthew Lock (Newquay).

In the top section of the draw, Internationals Philip Rowe (West Cornwall) and Simon Dyson (Sand Moor) have byes while former England Boys Captain David Griffiths (West Hertfordshire) meets Richard Coulson (Hull), a member of the EGU School of Excellence and John Wells (Beverley and East Riding), capped for the first time against Spain in May, plays Graham Mitton (Accrington).

Luke Donald (Beaconsfield), recent winner of the NCAA Championship, the leading collegiate competition in America and voted their Player of the Year, and Kenneth Ferrie (Alnmouth), also back from his US college, have byes but Boy International Nick Dougherty (Shaw Hill), winner of the individual prize in the Boys World Team Championships in Japan last month, faces Justin Phelps (Ruislip), while the other seed, Mark Side (Shirley Park), winner of the Brabazon Trophy this year, tackles Steve Vinnicombe (Leighton Buzzard).

Gary Wolstenholme (Kilworth Springs), who has yet to win the English title which his later father Guy twice secured back in the 1950s, has a bye then meets the winner of the first round tie between former Boy International Oliver Wilson (Coxmoor) and Jonathan Evans (Guildford).

In the same segment of the draw, Paul Casey (Burhill), like Wolstenholme, a member of this year's Walker Cup squad and who carded a round of 60 in a recent collegiate competition in America, also has a bye. Local hope, Adam Frayne (St Mellion), plays Matthew Cox (Royal Birkdale), while, in the pick of the first round ties, International Chris Rodgers (Royal Mid Surrey) takes on Sandeep Grewal (Heswall) a member of the four man team which recently retained the World Boys Team Championship in Japan.

This will be the first time in its 75 year history that the English Amateur Championship has been staged in Cornwall and the Jack Nicklaus designed course at St Mellion, which has hosted a number of top professional events, is sure to provide a tough test for the 248 strong field.

Play starts at 7.30 am on Monday 26 July with first round matchplay ties and climaxes with the 36-hole final on Saturday 31 July.