North Wales golfer Adam Runcie cannot wait to be part of Wales’s challenge to be European golf champions on home ground in Conwy. To view Adam's video interview click here
The Abergele player is also a former member at Conwy and says it will be a huge advantage for Wales that the European Amateur Team Championships are being played on a familiar course in front of plenty of support.
“It is great for North Wales golf that events like this are being held here,” said the 20-year-old.
“I am very excited to come to somewhere I know, it is definitely a positive, I am looking forward to it and cannot wait now.
“I was a member here for couple of years and played quite a few matches for the scratch team. I love it here, it is a great challenge of golf and has really good facilities.”
Runcie is the one member of the Wales team based in North Wales, so he is well placed to judge the effect that hosting one of amateur golf’s biggest events can have on the area.
He thinks it can spur the Wales team on to reach the later stages of the competition.
“It is huge for North Wales to have a big event like this here, I think we will get a lot of support and North Wales is growing in golf now so this is awesome,” he said.
“It is a huge advantage to be playing here, we have a great team and we all know the course well. I think the team spirit is very, very good and we all believe we can do it because everyone is playing well.
“We definitely believe we can go all the way. In the strokeplay every shot will count so we want everyone shooting the best score they can while the matchplay will be a different mentality.
“Everyone still needs to play to their goals and then hopefully we can go all the way to the final, patience will be the key.
“The closing holes will be key, you just have to commit to a target and go for it and try to treat them the same as the rest of the holes.”
It is a view backed up by Welsh Amateur champion Ben Westgate, who thinks the Wales team is coming together thanks to the work being put in by national coach Neil Matthews and the director of player development and coaching Nigel Edwards.
To view video interview with Ben Westgate, click here.
“It is huge to be on familiar territory, we came up here earlier in the year and also play the Aberconwy Trophy here every year,” he said.
“We have experienced the last three holes in all conditions so that should hold us in good stead.
“The weather is nice, it is great to play with the sun on your back. Links courses are designed to be played in the wind, I would prefer to play it like that when the course is tough.
“The work that Nigel and Neil have been doing over the last two years is beginning to bear fruit so the team are united, hopefully we can go forward day by day.”
Westgate has been in good form this season, second in the Lytham Trophy and sharing both the Duncan Putter and the Trubshaw Cup titles, with a lesson to all club players on how to get better.
“I worked on my short game in the winter so when I do miss a green I tend to get it closer now and obviously it is easier to get a five foot putt than a 15 footer, that is something everyone can do because we can all get better from 100 yards in,” he said.
“You have got to be on the fairway here because it will be firm and bouncy, then we can be more aggressive in the matchplay because it is more boom and bust golf.
“They have made a few changes here to help us, but you still have to be mentally strong to play links golf because you will get a bad bounce, bad kick, lip into a bunker and then have to play out backwards, so you have to be able to cope with that.”
The strokeplay stages start on Tuesday for two days, with the matchplay running through to finals day on Saturday.