Matthew Speyer is the youngest participant in this year's Men's Amateur Championship. The oldest is 53.
Matthew Speyer just turned 16 in January of this year and will be heading into grade 11 this Fall at St. John Kilmarnock School near Guelph, Ontario.
But yesterday, the youngest player in the entire Men’s Amateur field, was grinding his way around the London Hunt Club in the first round of The Canadian Men’s Amateur championship.
“I played pretty well”, he told me following his round, “but a triple and two doubles did me in.” Speyer finished his round at 82, not a bad score for a golfer his age in a very competitive environment, and competing against the best ‘men’ in Canada.
Speyer plays out of the Galt Country Club and only started playing golf at age 12. He qualified for The Canadian Amateur event by finishing in the top 60 at the recent Ontario Men’s Amateur.
Speyer described the London Hunt Club as a “great layout with amazing greens and rough that was difficult but fair for everyone.”
He will move over to the famous Redtail Golf Course in nearby St. Thomas for his second round today and is hoping for a better finish. Speyer had a chance to play practice rounds at both courses in advance of the competition. “Redtail is a very different golf course, tighter fairways and generally a tougher golf course,” he says. “I am looking forward to my second round and even if I don’t make the cut this is a great experience.”
Speyer hopes to continue his golf career at a U.S. college once high school is completed.
Golf’s Small World:
Ralph Bauer, a coach based at the nearby Mystic Golf Course and a part of the Golf Canada coaching team is currently working with Matthew. Ralph is also the coach of Brights Grove college phenom turned professional Matt Hill who’s brother Graham was the Men’s Amateur first round leader.
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