Stuart Grehan has opened up about the weight of responsibility he carried as Great Britain and Ireland staged a record-breaking comeback to win the Walker Cup, a victory achieved for the first time since 2015.
The tournament reached a dramatic climax as GB&I recovered from a significant deficit to defeat the USA by a final score of 13.5-12.5. Heading into Sunday’s singles, the Americans had swept all four matches on Saturday to take a commanding 9.5-6.5 lead, meaning Great Britain and Ireland required a 7-3 margin to reclaim the trophy.
Grehan set the tone early in the singles session by securing a crucial win over world number one amateur Preston Stout. His victory helped ignite a rally that saw Josh Hill complete the turnaround on the final hole, beating Tyler Watts to seal the historic triumph.
Taking part in the Sky Sports Golf podcast alongside teammates Jamie Weir and Chris Wood, Grehan discussed the internal dynamics that fueled the surge. He admitted that he and Eliot Baker had struggled significantly during the morning session, contributing to a disappointing 4-0 loss at halftime.
“Sunday morning, I actually felt very flat, to be perfectly honest with you,” Grehan said. “I was very flat myself. It was probably all the mental energy I kind of expended on Saturday… I think we were still 300-par and in pretty testy conditions. But at this level, that’s just not good enough.”
Despite the slump, Grehan credited his teammates for their resilience and positivity during the interval. He highlighted comments from Tyler Weaver, who suggested the adversity would only make for a better story, as well as upbeat messages from Luke Poulter and captain Dean Robertson.
“Collectively as a team, we were still pretty good. ‘Go out there this afternoon and give it your all,'” Grehan recalled Robertson telling the squad. “Then the music got going at half-time as well. Then we were all kind of up for it already.”
Grehan also revealed that he had proactively sought a leadership role within the squad, a position he discussed with Robertson approximately two months before the event. As the only Irishman in the team and the reigning amateur champion, he felt a duty to guide his peers.
“It’s something that I wanted to take on,” he explained. “Obviously I’m a little bit older and I probably knew the golf course more than anyone else, which is another thing. There’s loads of leaders, they’re all leaders in their own sense, but to be able to go out there and hit first… It was an incredible moment for me.”
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