The Grove played host to the inaugural Junior Open as some of golf’s young talent descended on the Watford venue.

Former Ryder Cup player and multiple European Tour winner David Howell, the Grove’s first golf ambassador, welcomed the 60 emerging players to the venue.

Jack Kelly ultimately came out on top in the scratch competition with a score of 70 (-2), while Sam Hadley won the handicap prize with a nett 64 (-8).

Howell was impressed with what he saw.

He said: "I am passionate about getting children excited about golf and the fun, family-friendly environment at The Grove is ideally suited to help stimulate a young golfer's appetite for the game.

"It is great to see so many juniors taking part in this competition and enjoying the experience of playing one of England’s finest courses under tournament condition."

The Grove share in Howell’s ambition of getting more youngsters to play golf and their director of golf and resort experiences, Anna Darnell, wants to make the Grove a favourite venue for young golfers.

"Following the success of this inaugural competition we now aim to establish this event as one of the UK's leading junior competitions over the coming years," she said.

"For all visiting golfers there is no formal dress code for the course and no requirement for a handicap certificate to be able to play, making The Grove the ideal venue for juniors taking their first steps into golf and hopefully we will be able to help develop one of the next golfing greats."