April 21, 2010: 2009 Faldo Series Europe champion, Jonathan Bell, lived up to his burgeoning reputation when he made the cut on his first European Tour start at the Madeira Island Open BPI – Portugal at Porto Santo Golf.
The 18 year-old English amateur international from the Royal Blackheath Golf Club near London earned a place in the Madeira field as part of his reward for winning last year’s Faldo Series Europe Grand Final in Rio de Janeiro and he made full use of the opportunity by posting rounds of 70, 73, 73, 74 to finish in a tie for 66th place behind compatriot, James Morrison.
Bell also had the opportunity to play a competitive round with 2009 South African Open champion, Richie Ramsay, and the Scot, who won the 2006 US Amateur Championship, took time out to pass on some advice to help Bell take his game to the next level.
“I had a fantastic time in Madeira,” said the 2004 English Under-14 champion. “It was a great experience and a tremendous opportunity to play alongside some of the top Tour players.
“I set out with the intention of making the cut so I was delighted with my opening rounds of 70 and 73 but I would have to admit I didn’t play quite as well as I would have liked over the weekend.
“I had three bad holes at the end of the round on Saturday and then on Sunday my putting wasn’t as good as it should be.”
Bell spent the third round in the company of Ramsay and he was delighted to find that he could compete with the Scot from tee to green.
“It was great to play with Richie especially as he was the highest ranked player in the field,” said Bell.
“I would say that from tee to green there wasn’t much to choose between us but he did show me a thing or two about getting up-and-down. He also spent a bit of time passing on some advice on playing golf at the top level and I’d like to thank him for that.
“It was all very useful.”
Bell’s next big event is this month’s Lytham Trophy and he will then play a full amateur schedule in the hope he can grab the attention of the international selectors.
“My main goal this year is to get into the EGU’s Elite Squad and then kick on and maybe get a place on next year’s Walker Cup side.
“That’s the goal but I’m well aware it won’t be easy,” he added. “I think the first thing I have got to do is to work on my consistency and on churning out good scores. That’s something I saw at first hand in Madeira. The Tour pros don’t necessarily hit the ball well all the time but they still find a way to get the ball round.”
Bell’s ultimate aim is to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Rory McIlroy, Marc Warren, Nick Dougherty, Oliver Fisher, Yani Tseng and Melissa Reid all of whom have graduated as Faldo Series winners and then gone on to make a name for themselves as Tour professionals.
Sir Nick Faldo created the Faldo Series (charity number 1102719) back in 1996 to develop new generations of young champions and in 2006 the concept was expanded to include a Faldo Series Asia.
This year, the Faldo Series Europe and the Faldo Series Asia will attract over 5,000 boys and girls aged between 12 and 21 and will comprise more than 30 events in 25 countries throughout GB & I, Europe, South America, the Middle East and Asia, with the winners from all the qualifying events being invited to compete in either the European or Asian Grand Final, both R&A World Amateur Golf Ranking events.