Practice partners Joe Harvey and Joe Long will battle it out in an all-English final at the 125th Amateur Championship.
The two 23-year-olds will go head-to-head at Birkdale in Sunday’s 36-hole showdown with the winner securing exemptions to the 149th Open at St George’s next year and the US Open as well as an invitation to play in the Masters.
Harvey earned his place in the final with a 3&2 win over Ireland's Mark Power having beaten Dane Victor H Sidal Svendsen 4&3 in the last eight.
Power was looking to follow in the footsteps of compatriot James Sugrue who won the competition last year, and earlier on Saturday he beat England's Callan Barrow in the quarter-finals after Barrow knocked out the top-ranked Ben Schmidt in the third round.
Harvey said: “By far, this is the greatest achievement of my golfing career, by a good stretch. I know I have still got 36 holes tomorrow and it’s going to be a massive grind, but I’m capable of winning, so I’ve just got to go out there and play well and make birdies.
“Everyone knows what is on the line so it’s going to be a tough game. It will just be amazing. I’m just looking forward to it. I can’t wait.”
Long, who played with Harvey in a midweek medal a few weeks ago, said: “I’m over the moon with it. I just stayed in the present, all day, all week with it and tried to make that my goal. And now I’m in the final — it’s just crazy really.”
Long joined Harvey following a 2&1 victory over compatriot Jake Bolton following his 6&5 quarter-final success against another Englishman, Barclay Brown.
Meanwhile, England's Annabell Fuller came up just short as she lost the final of the 117th Women's Amateur Championship to Aline Krauter by a single hole.
The 18-year-old, who won the English Women’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship last week, took three of the first four holes at West Lancashire and after the German had fought back to lead by three, reduced her advantage to just one going up the 18th.
However, 20-year-old Krauter’s par at the last proved enough to take the title.
Fuller said: “It is tough to take, but it was good fun. I knew I had to play well from the very beginning against a great, great player. This week has given me more motivation to practice even harder and achieve more.”
