Sam Haynes-Coote, University of Exeter performance golfer and Engineering and Management student took the win in the 2nd event of this years R&A Student Tour Series in Ireland at Malone Golf Club.
We caught up with Sam on his return to get his thoughts on the event and looking ahead to the rest of the season……
Talk us through the tournament and how it played out across the weekend?
In the first round I had a bit of a shaky start. Malone Golf Club was narrow and playing very long due to the storm soaking the course only a few days before we arrived. I hit some bad shots off the tee which didn’t allow me string many well played holes together and put in a good score. In the case of golf tournaments you can’t win it on the first day but you can lose it, and I honestly felt that I had played myself out of contention after finishing on +6, 8 shots behind the leader.
I played with freedom in round two and scored much better, to leave myself only one shot off the lead at the end of the day. I was able to take advantage of my distance and greatly improved accuracy off of the tee to convert my scoring opportunities, making 6 birdies and scoring -4. I also felt that I had got much more used to the greens and holed some crucial mid-range putts.
In the final round I was in the final group, with a player from Halmstad University, Sweden – tied on the same score as me at the start of the day, and the leader. Although I dropped a shot on the first hole, I was able to harness the work I had been doing with our psychologist to view the day as a challenge and take the round shot by shot, keeping my emotions on an even keel. I was able to stay within one shot of the leader on the front nine and took the lead after a birdie on the 11th hole. It was amazing to have our Head Coach Harry and the rest of the team come out and support me for the second half of the final round. The encouragement I got from their presence was very uplifting on the back nine as I continued to hit good shots and hole lots of putts, feeling like I honestly couldn’t miss. The 4 birdies that I made on the back nine kept the flow of momentum in my favour and extended my lead, resulting in a winning margin of 3 shots. I believe that my final round 64 (-6) ties the course record at Malone Golf Club, and also becomes my best round in competition.
Coming off the final green to celebrate with the rest of the team is something I’ll never forget. It is a privilege to be able to represent the University and win the first R&A Student Tour Series event for our programme. This is only the beginning!
What does the opportunity of playing in the R&A student tour series add to the University golf experience?
The R&A Student Tour Series events give us the opportunity to compete against the best golfers from all over Europe whilst representing the University, on courses that have very good pedigree from hosting professional events in recent years. The events are hard to enter due to the smaller field sizes and high standard of the entrants, but the competitiveness from the first two events of the year in Sweden and Ireland is something our team and I have been able to learn a lot from. It is great to be able to experience the golf community on a European student level, meeting competitors who we will build friendships with in both our University and individual events in the years to come. In addition, gaining the experience of travelling abroad and playing events will be extremely important in our golfing future and having the support of the University to do this is invaluable.
What do you enjoy most about the Performance golf programme at University of Exeter?
I absolutely love the team atmosphere we have in our programme. Having a group of people who turn up to every session with a collective desire to improve makes a huge difference in both pushing my limits with S&C and creating small games so that we can challenge each other and get used to pressure situations in training sessions.
Being in the programme for the first two years had a massive effect on my technical game and my ability to benefit from mental training. Whilst I was away on a year in industry placement last year, I came to truly realise how much I was missing out on with access to coaching, facilities and tournament golf opportunities we have whilst being in the Performance Golf Programme at the University and I’m definitely going to make the most of them now I’m back!
I would also like to take this opportunity to mention our Head Coach Harry Scott. Enough cannot be said for the time and dedication that Harry puts into the Performance Golf Programme and everyone who plays golf for the University in our 6 BUCS teams, and it is an honour to reflect his hard work in our first R&A win.
Photo Credit: Press Eye – Belfast – Northern Ireland – 9th October 2025, R&A Student Tour Series, Ireland Malone Golf Club, Photos by Phil Magowan / Press Eye
For more information about the Performance Golf Programme at the University of Exeter please visit our website