Rhian rises from Royal Welsh to Ricoh in five years

Top Welsh amateur Rhian Wyn Thomas has been rubbing shoulders with all the best players of the world at the Ricoh British Open, just five years after first trying golf at the Royal Welsh Show.

And while she was underlining that remarkable rise through the ranks by competing for Great Britain and Ireland against the Continent of Europe in the Vagliano Trophy, the Golf Development Wales team were back in Builth Wells trying to find another Rhian Wyn Thomas.

“I definitely could not have imagined this when I first tried hitting a golf ball in the net at the Royal Welsh, not at all,” laughed Thomas as she looked back on her best few weeks so far.

“It has been a good five years but things are going particularly well at the moment. I have enjoyed every minute of it since first trying golf at the Royal Welsh.”

As fourth reserve for the British Open, missing out in a fourteen player play-off for the last place, Thomas has been enjoying full practice rights at Royal Lytham and St Anne’s – playing practice rounds with the likes of Australian pro Anna Rawson.

That follows being the second best points scorer for Great Britain and Ireland at the Vagliano Trophy, winning two points in the narrow overall defeat, just a couple of weeks after reaching the quarter-finals of the Ladies British Amateur Championship.

Thomas certainly shows what is possible, a talented sportswoman who found golf thanks to a chance encounter.

“While Rhian was competing for Great Britain and Ireland, we were at the Royal Welsh show again giving more youngsters the chance to give golf a try,” said Golf Development Wales manager Hannah James.

“It is great to see what Rhian has achieved in such a short time and it certainly inspires everyone to keep trying to unearth such potential stars.

“More than 400 children enjoyed the Tri-Golf sessions at Builth Wells this year as well. I am not sure if any of them will go on to do as well as Rhian, but I am sure that lots of them will get plenty of enjoyment from playing golf in the future.

“It is vital we take advantage of the impetus of the Ryder Cup in Wales next year. Golf can be such a good sport, providing plenty of fun, discipline and health benefits for life.”

Certainly Thomas is enjoying the impetus that has been given to her game this season after the disappointment of missing out on a Ladies European Tour card by one stroke over the winter.

“Playing in the Vagliano Trophy was pretty special, with good crowds and a real sense of excitement,” she said.

“We went into the singles on the last afternoon needing to win six and a half points out of eight. We only won five but it was a good comeback and the atmosphere that afternoon was great.

“It was definitely a step up for me and all good experience and following that up by coming here to the Ricoh British Open is awesome.

“Then I am playing in the ladies event in Harlech next week, which is a course I know pretty well and where I did well in the Ladies Amateur.

“Even though I am not playing in the main event, it has been really exciting to be here at the Ricoh , just to be hitting balls beside the likes of Paula Creamer is wonderful.

“It is important to meet and play with different players, it has been a great two days at one of the biggest events in ladies golf. It helps me to see how they do it at pro level and see it is the same sort of things we do at amateur level.”

Her performance at the Ladies Amateur and the Vagliano Trophy have put Thomas in the front line for next year’s Curtis Cup, but the involvement at the highest professional level has whetted her appetite to try again for her European card.

With her success comes some important decisions to make over the next few months.