Michael Hoey is determined to break a family hoodoo and grab a piece of Walker Cup glory - injury permitting!

Hoey's father Brian never got a Walker Cup call-up, despite staking a serious claim to a place over 30 years ago.

Nor were there places for uncles Michael and Dermot, superb Ulster players of the past. But the 22 year-old Belfast hotshot Michael is determined to put the Hoey name on the Walker Cup roll of honour, despite pulling out of the Brabazon Trophy with back pain at Birkdale last weekend.

"I hurt myself when I was out running," he explained. "I had some physio on the lower part of my back but I could only play nine holes of the second round at Birkdale because I couldn't clear my hips. "But it's a lot better now and hopefully it won't hold me back. It's time to start getting some results because I really want to play in this Walker Cup."

A week's rest has helped the Shandon Park boy's recovery and now he feels ready to launch his Walker Cup bid in earnest, starting with the St Andrew's Links Trophy at the Home of Golf today (Saturday 26/5/01).

"My Dad got to the semi-finals of the British Amateur championship in 1970 at Royal County Down but unfortunately he didn't get on the team for the 1971 Walker Cup at St Andrew's," lamented Hoey. "I think he felt the selection process was always a little biased towards the players from Oxford and Cambridge back then, but it's always been hard for Ireland to get players on the team."

With his father winning two 'Norths', a 'West' and an Irish Close and Uncle Michael taking the North twice in the late sixties, young Michael is carrying on a proud family tradition. And after working harder than ever to get his game in shape for 2001, the big-hitting Ulster kid is ready to give it a lash.

"I need to finish high up in the next few championships, the St Andrew's Trophy and the British Amateur and then maybe win the Irish Close if I'm to get on this team.

"There's a lot of competition form the English players and of the Irish players Graeme McDowell is probably a touch ahead of me a the moment, so Ireland will probably be lucky to get two players on the side."

Like fellow Walker Cup hopefuls Noel Fox, Tim Rice and Andrew McCormick, Hoey will be skipping the East of Ireland championship in favour of the Amateur Championship at Prestwick and Barassie from June 4-9.

And even if he doesn't get into the Walker Cup side he's determined to follow in the footsteps of one of the greatest Irish amateurs ever ­ Padraig Harrington.

"I'd love to turn professional eventually and I see Harrington as the role model to follow," he said. "Darren Clarke is a great talent but I think Harrington gets the most out of his game.

"I like watching him play. At the end of his amateur days he led virtually every strokeplay qualifying and went out and shot really low numbers, which is what you need for the professional game."

Harrington played in three Walker Cup matches before turning to the professional ranks just six years ago. "I've worked hard this winter. I went to Asia and Australia for a few weeks as part of a Britain and Ireland two-man team, and played in the Indian amateur and the Australian amateur," he revealed.

"I've also been working with Bobby Browne from Laytown and Bettystown on technique and getting some guidance from him in general." Hoey's even seen a psychologist a couple of times over the winter to help banish those negative thoughts from his game.

"Yes, I did see a psychologist and he told me to take my mind away to nice places and just be happy, silly things like that," he admitted. "I've learnt to monitor my thoughts during a round and adjust them as I go along so I don't go to sleep. It's all about keeping in contention and I'm pretty happy with where my game is at the moment."

But if Hoey is to follow in the footsteps of Harrington he's going to have to put in some special performances over the next seven weeks, starting at St Andrew's today. After making a fast start to the season, reaching the final for the West of Ireland and losing only in a play-off for the Irish Amateur Open, he's certainly caught the eye of the Walker Cup selectors.

Now he needs to put in a series of solid performances before the Walker side is announced after the European Amateur Team championships in Sweden on July 7.

Hoey added 20 yards to his game over the winter but he has also matured greatly since left the University of South Carolina after just 18 months, back in 1999.

"Tiger Woods has shown that you have to be smart to play this game," he said. "You need a lot of organisational skills off the course, which is something that people don't see, but living in the States didn't make it easy for me to improve my game to be honest."

"I know you can't be thick to play this game and I don't think I'm that far away from having the game to play pro golf. It's just matter of making sure your life first in with what you do. And it love what I am do."

Golf Shorts

Sligo kid Martin McTernan made a big splash in the West of Ireland championship at Rosses Point.

But now it's brother Sean's turn to grab the limelight, this time in the US. The elder of the McTernan boys helped the University of Toledo's golf team to qualify for next week's NCAA Championship finals for the second time in three years.

And he could well find himself pitted against fellow Irishman Graeme McDowell. The reigning Irish Close champion continued his rise to stardom, leading the University of Alabama to the premier US College golf finals for the first time in their history.

Justin Kehoe will be going from Birr to Baltusrol next month. The UCD student has been included in the Great Britain and Ireland Palmer Cup team to play the United States at the famous American course from 27-28 June.

A collegiate version of the Walker Cup, the Birr clubman and Ireland international joins pal Graeme McDowell on the eight-man team for the fifth edition of the event. And GB and I will be hoping to make it two wins on the spin after taking the Cup for the first time at Royal Liverpool last year.

The event will even be televised by the Golf Channel in a two-hour highlights show on 6 September!

The team is: Jamie Elson (Augusta State University, USA); Philip Rowe (Stanford University, USA; Graeme McDowell (University of Alabama, USA), David Inglis (Tulsa University, USA); Oliver Wilson (Augusta State University, USA); Kyron Sullivan (University of Wales Institute, Cardiff); Stuart Wilson (University of Abertay); Justin Kehoe (University College Dublin).

Clandeboye's David Jackson is determined to retain his Irish Senior Amateur crown, on his home course.

The Ulsterman took the title after a play-off in Westport last year, and now he's ready to repeat the trick at County Down venue, starting next Friday (June1).

(Ladies) Ireland will launch a 10-strong attack on the British Ladies Amateur Open Championship from June 12-16. Wexford's Elaine Dowdall, Baltray girls Jenny Gannon and Deirdre Smith, Hazel Kavanagh of Grange, Royal County Down's Emma Dickson, Alison Coffey of Warrenpoint, Sinead Keane (The Curragh), Yvonne Cassidy (Dundalk), Fiona Healy (Headfort) and Christine Armanasco of the Christy O'Connor club will all be in action in the strokeplay qualifying over the first two days at the famous Ladybank club in Fife.

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© Brian Keogh 2000

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