Golf star Liz Young has introduced golf to the pupils of her former school in Hampshire in response to England Golf’s ‘Get into golf’ campaign.
Liz was England’s top woman player in her amateur days and is now a leading player on the Ladies European Tour where she’s currently 20th on the Order of Merit.
She teamed up with PGA professional Colin Murray to host a special day of masterclasses for 240 pupils, aged 6-13, at Walhampton School in Lymington, Hampshire.
“It was fantastic,” said Liz, whose long-term aim is to get golf on the curriculum. Colin, who is the professional at the nearby Walhampton Golf Club, introduced the youngsters to the game, while Liz impressed them with a long driving display.
“Then we got them hitting golf shots and they just loved it when they got the ball up in the air. The smile on their faces said: ‘Wow! I can do it,’” said Liz. “It was a success from start to finish and there were some really good players with natural talent. The school was really pleased and is very open to inviting other schools and staging competitions in the future.”
Now all the youngsters are being offered two free Saturday lessons in Murray’s junior groups and they have the opportunity to learn with him in school on Thursdays.
“If we can get more kids involved in Colin’s Saturday sessions and do another day in school in September with the new intake, we could see some significant developments,” added Liz, who is attached to Brockenhurst Manor Golf Club in Hampshire.
As an amateur – playing in her maiden name of Liz Bennett – she was the English stroke play champion, the winner of the England women’s order of merit, an England international and a Curtis Cup player. Liz has been playing on the LET since 2009 and already this season has tied for ninth and 11th place in the Lalla Meryem Cup in Morocco and Buick Championship in China respectively.
Thanks to a great start to the season, she is now well placed to qualify for the Ricoh Women’s British Open when it is played on the Marquess Course at Woburn from July 28-31.
“I’ll be six-and-a-half months pregnant by then but if I get to play my final tournament of the year at my favourite golf club in my own country, it will be amazing,” said Liz, who won the Prince of Wales Amateur Challenge Trophy on the Duke’s Course at Woburn in 2002. “I haven’t played the Marquess Course but it’s lined with pine trees and each hole is enclosed, they have amazing practice facilities and a beautiful clubhouse. You feel really special when you play there and it’s my idea of the perfect golf club. I really hope I can get into the tournament and play my last event of the year there before having a break.”
