LPGA Tour stars Charley Hull and Georgia Hall have been knocked out of the Sunningdale Foursomes after a comprehensive defeat to Tom Shadbolt and Ben Evans in their last-16 match.
Hull and Hall advanced past the first round on Tuesday with a narrow 1up victory over Ella and Daniel Butteriss. By the following day, they had hit their stride, dispatching Ellie Gower and John Wilding 3&2 at Sunningdale's New Course in the morning before a convincing win over Portmarnock's Brandon St. John and Sunningdale member Chloe Ryan on the Old Course in the afternoon.
That set up a last-16 clash against pros Tom Shadbolt and Ben Evans,. However, it wasn’t to be for the 2024 European Solheim Cup duo, as they suffered a 4&3 defeat at the Old Course, ending their involvement.
After reaching the last-16, Hall explained playing two rounds in a day had taken a toll, saying: "Playing 36 holes is actually not something we are used to anymore and it can take a lot out of you. We play the Solheim Cup, of course, but other than that we never play 36 [holes] in a day, and especially not in the colder weather like we have here at the moment. It is pretty brutal!”
Whether that was a factor in the defeat of the pair, who have four LPGA Tour wins between them, is unclear, although if they are looking for a consolation, it will come in the knowledge that they aren’t the only high-profile players to bow out at the last-16 stage.
Two-time DP World Tour winner Callum Shinkwin was in a team with Dan Brooks, but the pair was defeated 2&1 by former University of Minnesota golfer Angus Flanagan and Harry Walch.
Meanwhile, Shadbolt and Evans’ joy at defeating Hall and Hull didn’t last long - they later lost narrowly in the quarter-finals to reigning champions Harley Smith and Dylan Shaw-Radford, who are bidding to become the first back-to-back winners of the match since 2004. After their 1up victory, Smith said: “It feels great to get the win but that was our toughest match of the week. We just had to keep going."
In the semi-finals, Flanagan and Walch face Monty Holcombe and Oscar Lent while Smith and Shaw-Radford play David Corben and Harry Crocket. Both matches take place on Friday morning.
View the full Sunningdale Foursomes draw and results so far.
Sunningdale Foursomes Semi Finals Tee Times 2025
GMT
- (8:00am) - Harley Smith & Dylan Shaw-Radford vs David Corben & Harry Crockett
- (8:15am) -Monty Holcombe & Oscar Lent vs Angus Flanagan & Harry Walch
