Michael Stewart

Enjoyed a stellar amateur career playing on the winning 2011 Walker Cup at Royal Aberdeen. Stewart won the Scottish Boys in 2008 before adding the Scottish Amateur two years later. Also won the South African Amateur before turning professional.
He got a card for the Sunshine Tour in South Africa at the end of 2012 but spent six weeks and most of the time trying to pre-qualify for events. He spent three grand and didn't get a chance to make a penny of it back. I then played on the Alps Tour and the EuroPro Tour, but by the end of 2019, I was thinking of not playing anymore. He tried caddying for a friend on the European Tour, and then Covid came along and wiped out the entire EuroPro Tour season.
A friend's dad owned a company that made hand sanitizers, and Stewart ended up working for him for 13 months. They had an NHS contract to supply 190,000 bottles a week. He did everything, even got a forklift license. He loaded stuff onto wagons, made deliveries, and cleaned up the yard. There was so much uncertainty about when or if he would ever play golf again. He convinced himself that his job would be in a chemical factory, not as a pro golfer.
His friend David Law inspired him to play again, and with the help of Alan McCloskey, who coached him, he gained confidence in his game. In 2021 played the whole year on the EuroPor Tour. Played 15 events making seven cuts with one top-ten, T-5th at the Wright-Morgan Championship. He played again on the EuroPro Tour in 2022 and in 14 starts making 13 cuts. He had nine top-ten finishes securing his maiden professional victory at the Eagle Orchid Scottish Masters at the Levin Links. He also had 2nds at the Lancer Scott Championship and Spey Vally Golf Resort. He finished 2nd in the Order of Merit. Fortunately for Stewart, he graduated to the Challenge Tour while the EuroPro ceased soon after.
2023 Notes: Playing on the Challenge Tour, his best finish is T-11th at the Challenge Presented by KGA. He was also T-14th at the Copenhagen Challenge and T-15th at the Abu Dhabi Challenge.
In talking about his debut at the Open at Hoylake, Stewart told reporters that Hoylake was one of the very few Opens I have been at. He played in the Junior Open in 2006 (at Heswall) and went along as a spectator. He has many fond memories of the place, watching Tiger Woods win.