Peter Lawrie has become the first Irish golfer to be named as the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year. Lawrie, aged 29, was selected by a joint panel comprising The European Tour, the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and the Association of Golf Writers.
Lawrie follows in the footsteps of England’’s Nick Dougherty as the 39th recipient of this prestigious Award, which is presented to the European golfer judged by the panel to have produced the most outstanding performance in his first year as a Member of The European Tour.
Lawrie graduated to The European Tour through the European Challenge Tour, finishing fourth in the Rankings at the end of 2002, helped by a superb victory in the Challenge Tour Grand Final. His elevation to The European Tour was testament to his determination, having spent one year on the Asian PGA Tour and three seasons on the Challenge Tour before achieving his goal.
During a highly successful first season on The European Tour Lawrie finished in the top 20 on six occasions, while coming close to a first title in the Canarias Open de España, where he was edged out in a sudden-death play-off with Sweden’’s Peter Hedblom and eventual champion, Kenneth Ferrie of England. Those performances enabled him to qualify for the season-ending Volvo Masters Andalucia, where he finished tied 42nd to secure a final position of 56th on the Volvo Order of Merit.
Lawrie commented: “I looked at the list of past winners of the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year some time ago and was amazed to discover that no Irishman had ever won it, especially when you think of how well people like Darren Clarke and Padraig Harrington played early in their careers on The European Tour.
“It’’s nice to get one up on the lads – this is a trophy they won’’t get another chance of winning! Seriously, though, this is a great accolade and when you look at the great players who have won it in the past, it makes me feel very proud.”
The Dubliner added: “It’’s taken me about five years of trying to reach this level and I definitely have to thank the Challenge Tour for helping me prepare for life on The European Tour. After three years of learning about 72 hole competition and the constant travelling around Europe, I felt ready to compete when I finally got onto the Tour.
“A combination of factors have helped – my girlfriend, Phillipa, my coach, Brendan McDaid at Rathsallagh, Aidan Moran, the Sports Psychologist at University College, Dublin, and my parents. They have all been incredibly supportive.”
Tony Jacklin (1963), Nick Faldo (1977), Sandy Lyle (1978) and José Maria Olazábal (1986) are past winners of the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award who have gone on to capture Major Championships while Colin Montgomerie, the 1988 winner, went on to set a unique record of seven successive Volvo Order of Merit victories.
