Chris McDonnell will join a decorated list of North East professionals who have represented the Great Britain and Ireland team against the USA in the PGA Cup when he tees it up in September.
The 35-year-old McDonnell, a winner on the European Challenge Tour and the 2014 PGA Professional Champion, learned his golf at Stocksfield in Northumberland.
Currently based at Golf at Goodwood as their academy manager after two years at the Royal Golf Club in Bahrain, McDonnell was close to pulling off a second win in the recent Titleist and FootJoy PGA Professional Championship before Paul O’Hara clinched the title with five birdies in a six-hole blitz.
But McDonnell’s finish in the PGA Championship was good enough for him to make it into Albert MacKenzie’s side to take on their American counterparts at Foxhills on September 15-17 in what is dubbed the club pro’s Ryder Cup.
In recent years, NE/NW PGA members Alex Wrigley, David Ridley, Michael Nesbit, Steve McKenna, John Harrison, Graeme Bell and Craig Goodfellow have all played for the GB&I side as well as North East born Bob Cameron and Cameron Clark, who is one of Mackenzie’s vice-captains for the September clash.
GB&I team: Phillip Archer, Robert Coles, Matthew Cort, Christopher Currie, David Higgins, Garry Houston, Greig Hutcheon, Damien McGrane, Andrew Raitt and McDonnell.
