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Cantlay Meets Cantlay at the Walker Cup

In an intriguing twist of fate, two strands of the ancient Scottish Cantlay family were reunited at the Walker Cup in Aberdeen over the weekend.

VisitScotland Chairman and the man charged with promoting Scotland as the home of golf to the world, Mike Cantlay, and leading amateur at this year’s US Open Golf Championship, Patrick Cantlay, have managed to trace their family trees back to 1700s, discovering that both lines emanate from the small farming community of Slains in the north east of Scotland.

“The more we uncover about the Cantlay family connections the more fascinating this story becomes,” explained Mike. “EventScotland is supporting the Walker Cup this year so when we heard that Patrick would be a member of the American team we decided to do a bit of digging.

“Cantlay is a relatively unusual name and it transpired that Patrick’s family had already discovered long lost relatives living in Ellon, just six miles west of Slains. “Further research revealed that there is real potential for a connection between our two families.

“With over 50 million people around the world claiming Scots heritage, ancestral tourism is an ever growing market worth in the region of £64 million per year to the Scottish economy.

“I am absolutely delighted to experience firsthand the great satisfaction in uncovering family origins and of being able to welcome Patrick and his family back to the area of their forefathers.”

During the Walker Cup, Patrick Cantlay was presented with the Mark H McCormack medal which means he is officially recognised as the world’s best amateur golfer for 2011.

For further information on the Walker Cup please visit www.walkercup.org or for further information on planning an ancestral journey to Scotland, go to www.ancestralscotland.com.

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