ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – This weekend, the United State Walker Cup Team will look to capture its fourth-straight victory at the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland. When the USA Team begins their title defense, two FSGA champions will be among them.
Nick Gabrelcik, a two-time FSGA champion and FSGA Player of the year, is a member of the 10-man roster and is competing in his first Walker Cup. Mike McCoy, a past Florida Senior Amateur champion and North Palm Beach resident, is leading the team as the captain of the USA Team.
Gabrelcik, McCoy and the USA Team will compete against Great Britain and Ireland in the 49th Walker Cup Match on Sept. 2-3 at the Old Course.
A Trinity native, Gabrelcik is coming off a successful summer where he earned a victory at the Southern Amateur Championship, firing a final round 8-under 64 to overcome a six-stroke deficit. He also had a Round of 32 appearance at the U.S. Amateur Championship in August. The rising senior at the University of North Florida also made the cut in the 2023 Valspar Championship on the PGA Tour, shooting a second-round 67.
Gabrelcik is a Florida Junior Tour alumnus and was the 2019 FSGA Boys’ Junior Player of the Year. The Osprey was the 2018 Amateur Match Play champion and the 2019 Amateur Public Links champion, while also being a three-time FJT winner.
He will be the fifth FJT alumni to compete in the Walker Cup and the first since Tyler Strafaci in 2021.
McCoy, an Iowa native, has competed in 67 USGA championships and was a member of the 2015 Walker Cup Team. He captured the win at the 2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at the age of 50 to become the second-oldest champion in the event’s history.
In 2022, McCoy added another trophy to his impressive collection at the 61st Florida Senior Amateur Championship at Avila Golf & Country Club and a victory at the British Senior Amateur Championship at Royal Dornoch.
The Walker Cup Match is a biennial amateur team competition between the USA and a team composed of players from Great Britain and Ireland, selected by The R&A. The Match is played over two days with 18 singles matches and eight foursomes (alternate shot) matches.
One point is awarded for each victory and a half-point is assessed for matches that are square at the conclusion of 18 holes. The United States holds a 38-9-1 lead over Great Britain and Ireland after claiming their third-straight victory in 2021 at Seminole Golf Club.
