Great Britain & Ireland Rally to Defeat U.S. and Win Walker Cup

At Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland on Sunday, 22-year-old Englishman Josh Hill hit a bunker shot to 3 feet and birdied the 18th hole to defeat Tyler Watts, ranked No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, 1 up. His singles match victory secured the final point Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) needed to complete a 13 1/2-12 1/2 upset over the United States. The win gave GB&I its first Walker Cup title since 2015 and ended a five-match winning streak for the Americans.

GB&I had held a one-point lead following Saturday's foursomes and singles matches. However, the U.S. team surged ahead to a 9 1/2-6 1/2 lead by sweeping all four foursomes matches on Sunday morning.

In the Sunday afternoon singles, GB&I mounted a strong rally. Irishman Stuart Grehan defeated No. 1-ranked amateur Preston Stout 2 and 1. Luke Poulter, son of English professional Ian Poulter, beat Ethan Feng 3 and 1, while Jack Whaley, who won the U.S. Amateur earlier this summer, secured an 8-and-7 victory over William Jennings. The U.S. failed to win any of the first eight singles matches, losing six and halving two, including a match where Miles Russell halved with Connor Graham.

Ryder Cowan and Josiah Gilbert won the final two singles matches for the U.S. to narrow the overall score. However, the U.S. fell short of the 13 points needed to retain the cup or the 13 1/2 points required to win outright.