Robertson thrilled to land Walker Cup captaincy and says preparation is key
Dean Robertson, a DP World Tour winner and now a highlyrespected performance coach, has been appointed as Great Britain & Ireland captain for the 50th Walker Cup match in California next year.
The 53-year-old’s selection for the post follows a change in thinking by The R&A that led to back-to-back Solheim Cup-winning skipper Catriona Matthew being appointed as GB&I captain for this year’s Curtis Cup at Sunningdale.
Robertson, who succeeds fellow Scot Stuart Wilson after he was at the helm for the last two matches against the United States, is a great choice to lead GB&I at Cypress Point next September.
As a Cochrane Castle member, he enjoyed a glittering amateur career, which included victories in the Scottish Youths, Scottish Stroke Play and Scottish Amateur Championships, beating his close friend, Raymond Russell, in the final of the latter at Royal Dornoch in 1993.
He played alongside Russell and Padraig Harrington in the 1993 Walker Cup at Interlachen in Minnesota before turning professional later that year. His highlight in the paid ranks was winning the Italian Open in 1999 while another proud moment was being crowned as Scottish PGA champion in 2006.
His career in golf then took a different direction when he moved into the performance side of the game and numerous players, the most recent being 2021 R&A Women’s Amateur champion Louise Duncan, have benefited enormously from working with him in his current role as High Performance Golf Coach at the University of Stirling.
Having been Europe’s head coach for the Arnold Palmer Cup, another big team event, in 2009, he ticks lots of boxes for this new challenge, which will start when he leads GB&I into battle in the St Andrews Trophy against Continental Europe at Royal Porthcawl in July.
“To have represented Great Britain and Ireland in the St Andrews Trophy and the Walker Cup was the pinnacle of my amateur career and an incredible privilege,” said Robertson, one of the most enthusiastic and hard-working individuals in the game.
“Now to have the honour of captaining Great Britain & Ireland is something I could not have imagined but it is one that I am thrilled about.
“I very much look forward to working closely with the players for the matches ahead with an important focus on being well prepared and playing to win.”
The Scot has a tough task on his hands after the last four of the biennial encounters all resulted in wins for the Americans, including a 14.5-11.5 victory at St Andrews last year. Nairn’s Calum Scott and Blairgowrie teenager Connor Graham both represented GB&I in that encounter and have now been handed a big incentive to be involved again next year.
Robertson’s appointment has been warmly welcomed. “Not before time,” wrote former Amateur champion Stephen Dundas in a post on social media. “Achieved so much and I am sure he will be a great captain.”