This week young Hugo Duqueen in Scotland at just 12 years old. It was in East Lothian, not far from Edinburgh, that the European Championship was played at US Kids Golf, the largest junior competition on the European continent.
The best young golfers from all over the world meet there every year for this major unexpected event. More than 630 players from over 50 different countries bat on the Scottish Greens for 3 days. He was 71 in the boys’ 12 category, Hugo.
After playing the first 2 days under Par (-2 Tuesday (70) and -4 Wednesday (68)), the young talent of Rigenée (Villers-la-Ville) was the leader after 2 days.
The third round was epic. Dantesque weather conditions with a lot of wind and rain, which never stopped falling, made the game very complicated for all players. No one fared better from the cross and the victory came at the end of suspense at the final hole of the magnificent course at Glenn Golf Club in North Berwick. The young Belgian eventually trailed third place winner Sebastian Desoisa from Gibraltar by two places. Irishman Sean Keeling slipped to second, one stroke ahead of Hugo. The dominant trio was at the very top this week, 4 strokes behind our little Belgian champions.
“I’m really happy with my game this week and with this fantastic result,” Hugo smiles, all to us. “It was fantastic to play here in Scotland! The course was fantastic, I had good feelings all week. All the best players in the world were there. I played really well but the level was incredible, really!”.
For his coach Simon Desmond, who went with him to the Cadiers in Scotland, “it’s great to see young talent like Hugo as if having so much fun on the greens at such a level”. To add more: “We had a really good time, which is the main thing. But I am surprised by Hugo’s level of play this week as well. He was awesome. It is great for a coach to have a young boy under his wing who is motivated to progress. Hugo and I really feel great. I hope that our cooperation lasts longer as we both are really having a lot of fun! “.
Icing on the cake, the young Belgian U12 champion was selected to take part in the European Van Horn Cup this Friday, a prestigious competition played at the Gaulne Golf Course, one of the most prestigious in Scotland. The top 2 “West Europeans” and the top 2 “Rest of the World” players from each age group competed in the “Junior Ryder Cup” for half a day. Hugo proudly wore a European color, an honor for the young Belgian. And even though the “International” selection eventually won against European players, the fact remains that Hugo’s head will have lasting memories in this Scottish adventure.
In this way Hugo confirms his position as the young hopeful of Belgian golf. The youngest youth of AFGolf (Association Belge Francophone de Golf) has once again shown that it has the potential to rise to the level of the best youth of their age from where they come.
Return to Belgium this weekend for the young golfer and it is now his CEB (which he will soon pass at the Martin V Fundamental School in Leuven-la-Nurve) which will become “his next priority” …
