European Junior Ryder Cup Qualifying Race Heats Up with French Junior Events

The race to qualify for the 2025 European Junior Ryder Cup team is well underway with the third counting events now complete for both boys and girls.

Six players will automatically earn their spots on the 12-player European team - set to take on the USA this September - through a season-long ranking system organised by the European Golf Association.

The French International Junior Championships, also known as the Carlhian (boys U18) and Esmond (girls U21) Trophies, held over Easter weekend, served as the latest counting events in the qualification race for Team Europe.

Despite missing the third counting event, Hugo Le Goff (FRA) maintained his lead in the Boys’ ranking thanks to his breakthrough win in the Spanish International Amateur Championship last month.

The Netherlands’ Björn Driessen has moved up one position to second after reaching the round of 16 of the Carlhian Trophy, but it was Charlie Rusbridge that emerged as the last man standing in the prestigious international boys’ event.

The English player finished third in the stroke play qualifying at Golf du Prieuré before cruising to the quarter-finals with 5&4 and 6&5 wins.

His next two matches en route to the final would be much tighter however, with 1up wins against both Kuan Zhou (USA) and Louis Le Sager (FRA) to set up a 36-hole final with Matous Zach (CZE).

Two rounds weren’t enough to separate the pair, with the English player ultimately claiming victory on the 41st hole of the day. The win vaults him from 15th to third in the Boys’ Ranking.

Louise Uma Landgraf (FRA) continues to lead the Girls’ Ranking. The winner of the first counting event of the season in Portugal reached the final four in the French International Girls’ U21 Championship at Golf de Saint-Cloud. The winner of the second event, Nagore Martinez (ESP), moved into second in the ranking after reaching the last-16.

But it was 15-year-old Alice Kong who lifted the Esmond trophy in Paris. The French junior tied for the lowest score in the qualifying stages but narrowly avoided a loss to Germany’s Sofia Maier-Borst in the opening match play round, winning on the third extra hole.

Comfortable wins in the round of 16 and quarter-finals set up a semi-final with Liz Siyu Hao Zhang (ESP). Another tight match would see Kong progress to the final after 21 holes, where she defeated Guia Vittoria Acutis (ITA) 5&4 to claim the title.

Having previously represented the Continent of Europe in the Junior Vagliano Trophy and Team Europe at the Junior Solheim Cup, Kong has now strengthened her bid to qualify for another European team this year. Her win pushes her up to 3rd from 9th in the Girls’ Ranking.

Formerly second in the Girls’ Ranking, Sara Brentcheneff wasn’t in the field for the Esmond Trophy. But, after two strong finishes in the opening tournaments, she remains in the mix and is well-positioned to return toward the top-three in the coming championships.

The next events for both boys and girls will be the junior German International Amateur Championships, set to take place at Golf Club Bad Saarow from 15 to 17 May.