Dubbo’s Ella Murray has added another “feather in her cap”, named the 2017-18 Regional Academy of Sport Golf Athlete of the Year.
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The 13-year-old, who spent last week at the three-day Harvey Norman ACT Week of Golf, is the first Dubbo Golf Club junior to receive the accolade – despite the club also producing Australian-All Schools champion Jones Comerford, now on a college scholarship in the US.
Ella was the youngest member of last year’s winning NSW All Schools Golf Championships team, the Western Region Academy of Sport, and earned a place in the Jack Newton Junior Golf Champion of Champions event in December.
But she says her Athlete of the Year scholarship will take her game to the next level.
“It should help me a lot with reaching my new goals,” Ella said.
“I feel like I’ve sort of outgrown my clubs at the moment, so new clubs are really going to help me get to the next level.
“I want to go to college in America for golf on a scholarship and hopefully get onto one of the tours.”
“It’s massive,” Dubbo golf professional Craig Mears said.
“JNJG select one junior per year who they feel has not only achieved in golf, but also based on their behaviour and work ethic, and Ella’s only 13.
“As much as we’ve had very successful juniors over the years at our club, she’s the first to [receive this honour] … they only select one per year and they picked her so it’s a big feather in her cap for sure.”
The scholarship includes balls, gloves, hats, umbrellas, a golf bag and shoes, supplied by JNJG product sponsors Titleist and FootJoy.
But the major feature is something that’s out-of-reach for most juniors: fitted clubs, tailored to a golfer’s height, worth about $7000.
“It makes all the difference,” Ella said.
“It gives you a better advantage because everything is fitted to you so you have a better chance of hitting each shot.
“When it’s fitted for your swing, your lie angle and your stance and everything so it just gives you the best opportunity to hit the shot even better.”
Ella beat more than 20 other juniors for the major scholarship, but she has no plans to rest on her laurels anytime soon.
The junior has already commenced five, 18-hole days at the Harvey Norman Sydney Week of Golf, and will recommence JNJG and school competitions in February.
She undertakes a satellite fitness program via Skype once a week, works with a human movement specialist and nutritionist, and travels to WRAS in Orange and Bathurst, and JNJG in Sydney, for three days every six weeks.
“We travel a lot but it’s just something that everyone does that lives out here,” said mum Lisa, who was “excited” to notify Ella of her “enormous” award win.
“But the support is really good out here: Craig is really good with the lessons and the golf club is very supportive … Jack Newton are very supportive out here.”
