By the time the first three-ball commence play in the Irish Independent East of Ireland Championship on Saturday, the holder, Noel Fox, will be well on his way to Prestwick. That is the unfortunate consequence of what has become a familiar clash with the British Amateur.

"It is not something I would have wanted," said the 27-yearold Portmarnock international. "In fact I feel a great, sentimental attachment to the East, which gave me my first championship win in 1996, so it will be a wrench for me to miss it."

But Fox is forced to look towards higher things. And if he is to realise his ambition of gaining selection on the British and Irish team which defends the Walker Cup at Sea Island, Georgia in August, he knows he must compete in next week's British Amateur at Prestwick.

As it happens, Fox will be sharing an apartment closeby this wonderful old links, with fellow internationals Andrew McCormick and Michael Hoey. Which means that they, too, will be absent from Baltray.

Fox and Hoey shot three-over-par aggregates of 291, 10 strokes behind the winner Steven O'Hara in the St Andrews Links Trophy last weekend. So there is still work to be done if they are to make the necessary impact on the Royal and Ancient selectors, including the Irish representative, Rupert de Lacy Staunton.

"I have no intention of putting pressure on myself at this stage and there is certainly no question of panic," added the Dubliner. "I'm playing well and I haven't missed a cut all year, but unfortunately I have paid dearly for having one slack round in recent, 72 hole events. On the other hand, I proved I'm an capable of shooting low numbers, especially with the 66 I had in the Irish Amateur Open at Royal Dublin.

"Naturally, I will be trying to win at Prestwick but I don't feel I need to do so to get into the team. Either way, there is still next month's Irish Close and the final chance comes in the European Team Championship, for which I'm hoping to be selected."

He is scheduled to play his first qualifying round for the Amateur at Kilmarnock Barassie next Monday, followed by a second round at Prestwick on Tuesday, after which the leading 64 go forward to the matchplay stages. "This will be my first experience of both courses but I have heard very good reports about Prestwick," he said.

The Irish challenge could be strengthened by a late arrival from Graeme McDowell. As a golf-scholarship student at the University of Alabama, McDowell will be obliged to compete in this week's NCAA Championship in the US, if his college qualifies. But he could catch a flight on Saturday night and compete without a practice round.

Fox won last year's East on the third hole of a sudden-death play-off, after he and Waterville's Mark Murphy were tied on 287 - five under par. It was a testament to the competitive qualities of the Portmarnock player who seemed out of contention after starting with a 78.

There was an original entry of 190 for the East which had to be reduced to 150, with the result that a number of two-handicappers failed to get in. Such matters would have been of no concern, however, to the 1999 champion Ken Kearney, who has the distinction of being the lowest handicapper in the field, off plus three.

As it happens, the field is increased by the inclusion of specially nominated youths, who would not otherwise make it on handicap. Against that background, and the perennial problems posed by slow play in this event, it seems decidedly odd that the organisers should have waited until 8.0am on Saturday, to get the championship under way.

With the last three-ball due off at 3.39pm, it would be fanciful to expect a finish before 8.30.