26 November 2009 09:11 GMT

2008 Open Championship Silver Medalist, Chris Wood, has capped a tremendous debut professional season by being named the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year for 2009.

It was Wood’s remarkable performance in The 138^th Open Championship which effectively sealed the Award, which is judged by The R&A, the Association of Golf Writers and The European Tour.

A year after finishing tied fifth at Royal Birkdale as an amateur, Wood improved on that performance at Turnberry, missing out on a play-off by only one shot in finishing alongside Lee Westwood in third place.

That mature performance was one of five top-ten finishes for Wood during his debut season. He was also top scorer in the Vivendi Trophy with Seve Ballesteros, claiming 4 ½ points out of a possible five.

The 22-year-old, who has climbed to 71^st in the Official World Golf Ranking, is the 21^st English golfer to win the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award since its inception in 1960, when his fellow countryman Tommy Goodwin became the inaugural winner.

He succeeds the 2008 winner, Pablo Larrazabal of Spain, who joined a long and illustrious list of players who have graduated to great things after winning the award, namely Tony Jacklin, Bernard Gallacher, Sam Torrance, Sir Nick Faldo, Sandy Lyle, José Maria Olazábal, Colin Montgomerie and Sergio Garcia.

Wood said: “It is brilliant to win this award. Looking at the list of names who have won this title makes me appreciate that I am in good company, alongside people like Sir Nick Faldo, who is probably the greatest English golfer to play the game. It’s great to see my name on the same list as Sir Nick and some of the more recent winners like Paul Casey, Nick Dougherty and Ian Poulter.

“I’ve had my eyes on winning the rookie crown all season because it’s something you only ever get one chance to win. Fortunately I’ve been lucky enough to do it thanks to some good results like The Open and some pretty consistent finishes.

“I feel I’ve been able to step into the professional ranks quite easily,” he added. “The experiences of Birkdale and Turnberry have helped, and also getting my card at the Tour School at PGA Golf de Catalunya. Now I am closing in on the top 50 in the world and that must be a big goal in 2010. It opens a lot of doors to the Majors and the other top events where the best players are playing.

“Look at Martin Kaymer. He was Rookie of the Year two years ago and has just finished third in The Race to Dubai and must be a contender for the next Ryder Cup. That’s where I want to see myself in a few years time.”

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