T
here’s something special about seeing junior golfers you’ve followed since they were in high school now showing up on TV in big, national tournaments. Whether it’s USGA, LPGA or PGA Tour events, we Texans feel a rush of pride when “our golfers” get broadcast airtime and make the most of it.
We got a big dose of that feeling a couple weeks ago when former Texas Amateur champion Will Zalatoris of Plano contended for one of the biggest prizes in all of golf. In his first-ever Masters appearance, Zalatoris posted a four-day total of 9-under 279 to finish in second place. He’s often said that his 2014 win at the 105th Texas Amateur was his first major victory.
Will’s display of incendiary shot-making and unflappable nerves at Augusta National made the entire state of Texas proud.
It’s happened before, and it’ll happen again. From Scottie Scheffler of Dallas contending for the title at last year’s PGA Championship to Austin’s Kaitlyn Papp taking Low Amateur honors at the 75th U.S. Women’s Open, it’s so much fun to watch them ply their crafts while knowing we knew them way back when they were really young.
Everyone knows the Lone Star State is fertile soil for producing elite golfers. That’s not hyperbole, the World Golf Hall of Fame is chock full of Texas greats like Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Babe Zaharias, Kathy Whitworth, Jimmy Demaret, Jackie Burke Jr., Lee Trevino, Betsy Rawls, Betty Jameson, Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw and Sandra Haynie.
During the past decade or so, major champions Jordan Spieth, Stacy Lewis, Jimmy Walker, Brittany Lang, Angela Stanford and Patrick Reed have carried forward the state’s well-earned reputation as one of the game’s ultimate proving grounds.
Now a new crop of uber-talented, young guns has emerged. A slew of former Texas Junior Golf Alliance and Texas Golf Association alumni have put in the time and hard work necessary to realize their potential at the highest levels of competitive golf. Over the next several pages, we’ll highlight some of these stars in the making who used junior and amateur golf in Texas as a springboard to their success.
We hope you’ll make it a point to watch and cheer on these newcomers as they advance to the next stage in their careers and go up against the world’s best on the biggest stages in the months and years to come. And know this, too: There will be another group of young Texans making themselves known right behind this one. We’ll document their accomplishments in the years ahead as well.
