Denmark Takes Gold in Women’s Team Competition; Mexico and England Tie in Men’s Team Competition
Photos From The Spirit
Gold Medal Combined Team Photo (attached) Cutline: Nellie Ong, Dominic Clemons, Matthew Dodd-Berry, Patience Rhodes, Tournament Director Shelby DeVore – Courtesy of Hugh Hargrave/The Spirit
Media Contacts:
Will Doctor, Spirit Golf Association | wdoctor@spiritgolf.org | 713.471.8603
Tammy Boclair, Alday Public Relations | tammy@aldaypr.com | 615.500.2930
Mike Alday, Alday Public Relations | mike@aldaypr.com | 615.714.4954
Trinity, Texas (Nov. 16, 2024) – Team England followed up a strong Friday performance with another great round on Saturday to win the gold medal in the Combined Team Competition at The Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship played at the top-ranked Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas. England finished with a record 44-under par score in the three-day event. Korea and Spain tied for the silver at 39-under, meaning all three squads surpassed the 54-hole scoring record of 38-under set by the United States in 2015.
This is the third overall Combined Team Championship for England. They also won the gold in 2005 and 2007.
Captained by Stephen Burnett, Team England was led by Alabama junior Dominic Clemons, LSU junior Matthew Dodd-Berry, Ohio State freshman Nellie Ong and Arizona State sophomore Patience Rhodes. The men shot 28-under par and the women finished at 16-under for the tournament.
“44-under sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? It’s just a great week,” said Burnett. “That’s the score you need to have to win an event like this. They were awesome, absolutely awesome and we are honored to win this wonderful event. We look forward to being back in two years to defend our championship.”
England’s men’s team also shared first place in the Men’s Team Competition with Mexico, which was led by UCLA senior Omar Morales and University of Arkansas freshman Gerardo Gomez, who had a sizzling six birdies and an eagle in the final round. Team Australia finished in third place.
“This is a great honor. Winning a medal at this very prestigious tournament is a great thing,” said Morales. “We both played really well (all week) and Gerardo played incredible today. Three very solid rounds are hard to beat.”
Denmark’s women rode the hot play of North Carolina State freshman Marie Madsen and New Mexico State junior Emma Bunch to capture a two-stroke victory over Spain. Madsen had three birdies and an eagle in her last five holes to spur the winning effort. Team Canada finished third and received a bronze medal.
“It’s so easy when you have great players,” said Denmark Player/Captain Kristian Bressum. “I really didn’t have to do anything but show up and make sure that everyone is having a good time, which we are. The girls really played well this week.”
The men’s and women’s individual competition is based solely on birdies and eagles with one and two points awarded for each respectively. Australia’s Josiah Gilbert, an Auburn sophomore, captured the men’s title thanks to his 21 birdies over the three rounds. Mexico’s Morales finished second with 19 points and teammate Gomez finished tied for third with England’s Clemons.
In the women’s individual competition, Kansas State senior Carla Bernat Escuder had 21 points based on 17 birdies and two eagles during The Spirit to win by one over 16-year-old Soomin Oh from Korea. Denmark’s Madsen finished third to win the bronze medal.
Team USA finished 8th in the combined team competition with a final score of 32-under. The men, led by Tommy Morrison, a junior at The University of Texas, and University of North Carolina senior David Ford, finished in fourth place and the women, featuring University of Southern California freshman Jasmine Koo and 15-year-old Asterisk Talley, tied for 13th in the 20-team field. Three-time Spirit gold medalist and renowned amateur player Nathan Smith served as coach of the USA team.
A full leaderboard for all competitions can be found at www.thespiritgolf.com.
The 11th edition of The Spirit has brought together 20 countries consisting of teams of two males and two females. The teams play a 54-hole four-ball stroke play competition with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals presented to the top three finishers in each competition. The event was founded in 2011 by Corby Robertson Jr., owner of Whispering Pines, as a celebration of goodwill through the game of golf.
2024 The Spirit International Amateur Championship Medal Winners
Combined Team Competition
- Gold – England (Captain: Stephen Burnett; Nellie Ong/Patience Rhodes/Dominic Clemons, Matthew Dodd-Berry)
- Silver (tie) – Korea (Captain: Hyungtae Kim; Minseo Jung/Soomin Oh/Seonghyeon An/Minsu Kim) & Spain (Captain: Sofia Marcos De Prat; Carla Bernat Escuder/Cayetana Fernandez Garcia-Poggio/Jaime Montojo Fernandez/Pablo Ereno Perez)
- Bronze (tie) – Canada (Captain: Salimah Mussani; Vanessa Borovilos/Lauren Kim/Justin Matthews/Ashton McCullogh) & Denmark (Player/Captain: Kristian Bressum/Oscar Holm Bredkjaer/Emma Bunch/Marie Madsen)
Men’s Team Competition
- Gold (tie) – England (Dominic Clemons/Matthew Dodd-Berry) & Mexico (Gerardo Gomez/Omar Morales)
- Silver – Australia (Josiah Gilbert/Kai Komulainen)
- Bronze – United States (Tommy Morrison/David Ford)
Women’s Team Competition
- Gold – Denmark (Emma Bunch/Marie Madsen)
- Silver – Spain (Carla Bernat Escuder/Cayetana Fernandez Garcia-Poggio)
- Bronze – Canada (Vanessa Borovilos/Lauren Kim)
Men’s Individual Competition
- Gold – Josiah Gilbert, Australia
- Silver – Omar Morales, Mexico
- Bronze (tie) – Gerardo Gomez, Mexico & Dominic Clemons, England
Women’s Individual Competition
- Gold – Carla Bernat Escuder, Spain
- Silver – Soomin Oh, Korea
- Bronze – Marie Madsen, Denmark
The Spirit Alumni
Previous Spirit International competitors who are now or have previously been professionals on the LPGA and PGA TOUR include Lorena Ochoa, Brooke Henderson, Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Francesco Molinari, Lexi Thompson, Brandt Snedeker, Paula Creamer, Jason Day, Bronte Law, Martin Kaymer, Maria Fassi, Viktor Hovland, Rose Zhang and more. Spirit alumni have gone on to win more than 27 major championships, 675 professional titles won on the PGA TOUR, Korn Ferry Tour, DP World Tour, Challenger Tour, LPGA TOUR, Ladies DP World Tour; 17 Olympic appearances, 22 PGA Tour winners, 25 European Tour winners, 35 LPGA winners and 21 Ladies European Tour winners.
The Course – Whispering Pines
Whispering Pines Golf Club is one of the best private golf clubs in the country. The club was founded not only to offer its discerning contributors a superior golf experience on an exceptional course, but also to promote amateur golf and to benefit charitable causes on a local, national and international level. Whispering Pines is ranked #1 in Texas, ranks #31 in the top 200 modern courses in the country by Golfweek, and is #11 in America’s Top 50 Greatest Golf Retreats by Golf Digest.
The Host – The Spirit Golf Association
The Spirit Golf Association, 501(c)(3), serves as the host for The Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. The Spirit Golf Association (SGA–formerly the World Health & Golf Association) was formed in 1999, by Houston philanthropist Corbin (Corby) J. Robertson, Jr. With a passionate vision, Corby turned the SGA into reality by establishing a unique charitable organization that benefits health-related causes while promoting the global goodwill of amateur golf. With the encouragement of close friends and family, Corby established the SGA with a mission for philanthropic-minded people to support charitable causes, membership privileges at a world-class golf property, and to conduct The Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship.