England’s golfers head to Turkey

The four-man English effort for the upcoming Turkish Open Amateur Championship at Antalya has been announced by England Golf.

Ben Taylor of Walton Heath, Surrey, takes his place alongside three recent stars of the sport – the three-man team who defeated France earlier in May.

Jack Hiluta of Chelmsford, Essex, is the first of these; he will turn 23 on May 28th, before the Turkish Open begins on May 31st.

Hiluta is having a successful year so far, claiming the Spanish Amateur championship at Alcanada in March.

Neil Raymond of Corhampton, Hampshire, is next up; the 26-year-old claimed the New South Wales Medal in Australia over the winter after winning a play-off.

Toby Tree of Worthing, Sussex, is the youngest of the four – and will celebrate his 18th birthday on the final day of the Turkish Open on June 3rd.

However, he is already a consistent performer, and his victories already this year include taking the Gauteng North Open title in South Africa.

At 19, Taylor also has plenty of victories under his belt, with a particularly successful year back in 2010.

He claimed the South East Junior Championship, the Daily Telegraph Junior Championship, and the South of England Boys Championship.

Last year, he followed this up with a good number of high-ranking finishes in senior competition.

A second-place finish in the South East of England Links Championship, and third-places in the Lagonda Trophy and Jones Cup hold plenty of promise for this still up-and-coming star of the modern English game.

The Turkish Open Amateur Championship normally takes place in September; however, the Turkish Riviera courses where it is staged are due to be in use this autumn in the Eisenhower Trophy.

As such, the 2012 event has been brought forwards, and will take place between May 31st and June 3rd over 72 holes.