Line-Up Confirmed For Historic Breadalbane XX
2026 may only be 13 days old, but already the excitement is building. This is the year of BBXX. The 20th Breadalbane will take place in the south of Spain at the La Cala Golf Resort; featuring more players than have ever teed it up in the competition's illustrious history. The field increases to 24 given the historical importance of this year's event, brought forward to mid-August instead of the more customary September date.
The Rider Cup, now in its 5th year, will again be a major talking point. The Kenmore dynasty was brought crashing to its knees at Belton Woods just 4 months ago as Taymouth finally got over the line, led by their Captain Craig Roberts. And the 2026 Captains is a good place to start.
In what was only the 2nd Breadalbane competition, a fresher-faced Eddie Roberts and even fresher-faced Alex Smith battled it out on the Sunday at Slaley Hall. It was a poignant battle. In the previous year, Roberts had gone up against Alex's Dad, Alex Smith Snr, in the now famous play-off.
He had been defeated that day, but was now playing for a Quaich bearing the name of the man who defeated him, after his sad passing following that initial weekend.
Both men wanted to win. In the end, Roberts was the victor and was presented with his award by Smith himself; sport at its best.
Smith would make the move to the New Zealand Satellite Tour before the next Breadalbane and thus never having the opportunity for revenge.
Until now.
18 years have passed since then but, fittingly, both men will Captain the respective Taymouth and Kenmore teams in Spain; Roberts returning to the defending champions, whilst Smith joins the navy blue side for a Rider Cup debut. Taymouth keep the Captaincy in the family, hoping that will again inspire them to victory. And they need look no further than Eddie's own Rider Cup record for that inspiration, Roberts recording 5 out of 6 before retiring ahead of the 2024 event.
For Smith, a daunting task. Coming back into a vastly changed field after several years away and with the responsibility of picking up a side still licking their wounds from Grantham. However, he has been able to call on some experienced campaigners to aid the recovery mission.
With the field expanding, both teams have 12 spots available to them. Kenmore have decided to turn to two Breadalbane legends. Andy Roberts and Jimmy Ramsay will make their Rider Cup debuts; Roberts not seen since Benidorm in 2017 and Ramsay since the 10th event in Tenerife, 2016.
Added to that, Kenmore have one change from the side defeated in 2025. After a harrowing return of no points in the last two events, Dave Cook steps aside and Lex McTaggart returns (pictured, left). McTaggart pulled on the navy blue at Heron's Reach in 2023 and has experience of being in the winning side. Both he and Andy Roberts also have Breadalbane winner on their CV; something that has eluded Ramsay. Could it finally be his time?
After the high of winning The Rider Cup, Taymouth have unsurprisingly gone with an unchanged squad. Alongside the return of their Captain, they have opted for two men with Rider Cup experience. The enigmatic pair of Darren Petersen and Stephen MacKinnon will be back in the fold, both part of the first three Rider Cup events. However, it would be fair to say that their records could be improved; Petersen scoring 3 out of 9 and MacKinnon just 1.5 out of 9. Both have only tasted defeat at the hands of Kenmore having missed the 2025 showdown; can they change that this year?
The golf season will start in just under 3 months and both sides will have a shorter window of preparation than ever before. With so much at stake ahead of the 20th event, who will actually be prepared to put in the hard yards to try and gain that extra 1% advantage over their rival?
On paper, it has never been closer. Both teams have an almost identical handicap average as it stands, something that has never happened in the short history of The Rider Cup. Kenmore can point to having 7 Breadalbane winners in their squad of 12, whereas Taymouth have 3. But momentum is with the team in white and there will be laser focus on keeping their grasp on the trophy for another year.
La Cala marks two decades of the Breadalbane but can Taymouth make it two in a row? And who will end the weekend top of the field for the coveted Quaich?
With the line-ups now confirmed, the trash talk will no doubt begin.
Excellent summary Bruce and I just never realist had become so competitive 😉🏌🏽♂️