Renowned venues in Great Britain and Ireland and beyond will host The R&A’s amateur championships, international matches and Student Tour Series in 2026.
The 123rd Women’s Amateur Championship will make its debut at Muirfield as The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers welcome the world’s best women amateurs to its famed links in Gullane, Scotland from 22-27 June.
Muirfield most recently hosted the AIG Women’s Open when Ashleigh Buhai of South Africa emerged as champion in 2022 and has also hosted the Curtis Cup in 1952 and 1984 as well as The Vagliano Trophy in 1963 and 1975.
The 131st Amateur Championship will head to famed venues Royal Liverpool – host to The Open on 13 occasions – and West Lancashire from 15–20 June, with a pre-qualifier at the latter on 12 June.
LAST TIME AT HOYLAKE
Mikko Ilonen of Finland was victorious when The Amateur Championship was last held at Royal Liverpool in 2000, while West Lancashire – which has hosted Final Qualifying for The Open on three occasions in the past four years – also co-hosted The Amateur with Formby most recently in 2009 when Matteo Manassero triumphed.
The Curtis Cup, the biennial encounter between leading women amateurs from GB&I and the USA, takes place at Bel-Air Country Club in California from 12-14 June 2026 with Catriona Matthew OBE captaining the visitors who currently hold the Cup.
Later in the year on home soil, the men’s equivalent, the Walker Cup, will be contested at Lahinch from 5-6 September.
The Walker Cup and Curtis Cup being played in the same year is part of a realignment, which will see the two matches played in the same year but on opposite sides of the Atlantic.
Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, Executive Director – Championships at The R&A, said, “It is a priority for The R&A to reinforce the status of our amateur championships, international matches and Student Tour Series as leading events in elite amateur golf.
“We aim to attract the best players from around the world and staging these competitions at some of the game’s most prestigious venues in 2026 underlines their importance.
“We are particularly pleased that Muirfield will host The Women’s Amateur Championship for the first time, adding another significant chapter to the championship’s distinguished history.”
OTHER EVENTS
The R&A Girls’ and Boys’ Amateur championships will be held at Craigielaw and Gailes Links respectively from 10-15 August, with the R&A Girls’ U16 Amateur Championship returning to Gog Magog from 24-26 April. The R&A Women’s and Men’s Senior Amateur championships will be played concurrently at Frilford Heath from 7-10 July.
International matches between GB&I and the Continent of Europe will also take place in 2026 with the Jacques Léglise Trophy and the Junior Vagliano Trophy contested at The Island from 21-22 August.
The Student Tour Series, which provides competitive opportunities for student golfers outside of the USA and Mexico, returns for its sixth season in 2025 and 2026 and continues to take place on prestigious courses.
The Series begins at Halmstad in Sweden (10-12 September 2025) before continuing onto Malone, Ireland (7-9 October 2025), Troia, Portugal (3-5 February 2026) and La Sella, Spain (24-26 February 2026). The Student Tour Series Final will then take place in St Andrews from 30 March to 1 April 2026.
Read the full article here