John Petrie slams LGU for excluding Charley Hull from Curtis Cup
Chief Executive of England Golf Union (EGU), John Petrie has slammed the decision of LGU (Ladies Golf Union) to remove Charley Hull from the Curtis Cup squad.
Petrie has demanded that LGU review its move in order to restore Hull’s confidence.
Petrie made the comments right after the LGU decided to disallow Hull to play the Britain-Ireland Curtis Cup.
LGU took the step following Hull’s decision to play the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
LGU said that since the English teen skipped the Curtis Cup team trial scheduled to be held at Nairn, Scotland, from March 23-25, she has technically been excluded from the event.
The Kraft Nabisco Championship is going to be played from March 29 to April 1, at Mission Hills, Rancho Mirage, California.
Hull, who ranks 9th in English golf, is one of 5 amateurs picked to play at Mission Hills this month.
However, LGU Head of Golf Operations Susan Simpson said that Hull was well aware of the rules for the Curtis Cup and it was her responsibility to abide by those rules and procedures.
“We made it plain to the players that if they didn't play in the training session, they wouldn't play in the match," Simpson said.
According to the reports, Hull had agreed to participate in the Curtis Cup team trial, which meant that she should have remained loyal to her agreement.
However, Petrie has a different point of view regarding the whole issue. He said that Hull should not have been excluded from the training session at Nairn, as her participation would have proved beneficial for Great Britain & Ireland in the Cup.
He expressed his resentment over LGU’s step, saying ignoring a player as good as Hull will put a negative impact on the overall image of golf. He demanded that LGU review its hasty decision.
He stated, "For a 15-year-old player, ranked ninth in the world, to be invited to play in one of golf's majors is an outstanding achievement and for Charley to be punished for her success makes no sense".
Tags: