MARLBOROUGH golfer Ben Amor is chuffed to have been fancied for France after earning an England call-up for a pair of tournaments across the Channel.

The 19-year-old, who is a member of the England A squad, is on the Basque Coast today to represent his country in the Open De Chiberta, which runs until Sunday, and then on July 16-19, Amor will tee off in a second international strokeplay competition – the Biarritz Cup.

The Wiltshire youngster, a former England U18s champion, who also won the county title last year, was picked as part of a squad of just three players for the two French tournaments and hopes that his selection signals that he’s held in high regard by England Golf.

“There’s a team of three picked for this and then it’s running at the same time as the European Team Championship (in Sweden), which has six people in the squad,” said Amor.

“That means that you’re part of nine out of 25 players, so you must be doing something right.

“They’re both stroke play tournaments and all three in the team play and two of the scores count. A lot of different governing bodies are invited and there are obviously a lot of French players too.

“I’m happy to have been picked and hopefully I can play well.”

Late last month, Amor finished tied 15th in his first appearance at the Men’s Amateur Strokeplay Championship – the Brazabon Trophy – and turning professional is something that he’s keeping as a long-term goal.

He said: “It’s something that you think about but for me, I’m still learning all the time – it’s not something that I want to rush in to.

“If I’m playing well, then maybe I could go to Tour School this year. The registrations are in by the end of July but it’s somethi9ng that costs a lot of money.

“I want to try and get selected for the Home Internationals against Ireland (on August 12-14). That’s a big aim for me and playing well in France could help me get there.”