Up and Coming Golfers
People are always on the lookout for the next Tiger Woods. But while in previous years, many questioned whether the new breed of tour player would meet the level required, now, there are no such worries. The future of golf is in good hands, we have picked just four names that stand out and are worth keeping an eye on as their careers progress.
There are many ways to measure success but for any aspiring young golfers there are a few yardsticks that you must tick off on your way to becoming a top-level player. The Curtis Cup (women) and The Walker Cup (mens) are two competitions where players from the UK and Ireland take on players from the USA. In a similar format to the Ryder Cup however these two are for amateurs only. Being picked for the teams indicates that you are one of the best young golfers in your respective country.
Here we look at 4 players who have done that and ones who we could well be seeing grace the professional circuit sooner rather than later.
Name: Caley McGinty
Age: 21
Born: Bristol
Studying: Ohio State University.
McGinty has already ticked a few things of most people’s bucket list! The two time Curtis Cup player recently played at Augusta National, home of The Masters in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur where she finished a commendable 12th place. McGinty currently plays her golf out in America at Ohio State University, where she combines her golfing development while studying management. In her career in the States, she boasts a record of three tournament wins while also posting five top-10 finishes. We are sure it won’t be long until we see Caley on the LPGA Tour or the Ladies European Tour.
Name: Barclay Brown
Age: 21
Born: Sheffield
Studying: Stamford University
Our next golfer is a name that may already be known to a few of the eagle eyed. Barclay Brown, the 21 year old Sheffield native was recently a name seen at the top of The Open leaderboard at St Andrews. He was -6 through his first two rounds, and while his challenge faded going into the weekend, it was valuable experience to play that course with some of the greatest players in the world. Brown is another that has opted to play and study in the USA currently at Stamford. But we are sure it won’t be long for him to be back on European soil playing professionally after his promising Open showing.
Name: Hannah Darling
Age: 18
Born: Midlothian, Scotland
Studying: University of South Carolina
The 18 year old Hannah Darling is next up, and like McGinty, she is a two time Curtis Cup player. At the age of 13, she became the youngest winner of the Scottish Girls' Amateur Championship. In 2018, she was the inaugural winner of the British Girls U16 Amateur Golf Championship and after playing the junior Ryder Cup in 2019, she can be described as one of the most promising talents in British golf. She also hones her skills in America at the University of South Carolina.
Name: Conor Gough
Age: 20
Born: Slough
Studying: Charlotte University
Finally, to round off our list of ones to watch is 20 year old Conor Gough. Formally ranked as high as number two in the world amateur rankings, he became the second youngest competitor ever at the 2019 Walker Cup. That was to be a defining year for Gough as he also won the British Boys Amateur and McGregor Trophy championships. Like all listed before him Conor plays and studies over in America, this time at the University of Charlotte.
With lots of competition in this era, it won’t be easy for these players to break through. However, we believe that these four, in particular, have what it takes to reach the very top. We will watch with interest.
