Eight-year old Adam Buchanan from Northern Ireland has triumphed in a national competition to find the UK’s most improved junior golfer.
Adam, who plays at Carrickfergus Golf Club, beat off competition from more than 100 other juniors to win over £1,000 worth of golf gear, courtesy of american golf, the UK’s largest retailer of golfing equipment and accessories.
The retailer ran the competition throughout the summer to find the junior that showed the greatest dedication, performance improvement and love of the game. A panel of judges from american golf assessed each entry and selected Adam following several outstanding performances in his first competitive season.
Coached by his father Colin,he came third in his first ever competition, the Baidearl Junior Masters in May. The following month he came joint second in the Blackwood Forest Feast, before triumphing in a qualifying event for the ‘Wee Wonders’ national golf tournament.
Facing some of the UK’s best junior golfers at the ‘Wee Wonders’ Grand Final, Adam finished eighth in the seven to eight year old boys category, despite never having played links golf before. His success at this event has earned him a place at next year’s US Kids European Golf Championships.
Adam, who first played golf when he was just four years old, can drive up to 150 yards off the tee. The competition prize includes £500 worth of junior gear such as clubs and waterproof clothing, and a set of customer fit irons for his Dad Colin worth £650. Colin and Adam will collect the prize from their local american golf store at BoucherRetailPark in Belfast.
Adam said: ‘I love golf. I play everyday at home chipping in my garden and putting in my hall. I want to thank american golf for picking me as their competition winner. I’m going to use the gear they gave me to practice outside during the winter because I want to work hard to improve my short game.”
Dan Gathercole, Head of Marketing at american golf, said: “We selected Adam as our winner due to several outstanding performances in his first competitive season, which culminated in a top 10 finish in a national golf tournament. We would like to thank all of the juniors and their parents and guardians who entered this competition. It has proved to be a resounding success and we plan to repeat it next year.”
american golf retails the leading brands in golf, including Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist, Ping, Cobra, Nike, Wilson, Mizuno, Adidas, Galvin Green, Footjoy and Puma. The business was founded in the late 1970s by brothers Howard and Robert Bilton with a single store in Ashton in Makerfield. An affiliate of Sun European Partners acquired a majority stake in American Golf from private equity firm LDC in December 2011.
American Golf www.americangolf.co.uk