Rookie Squad
The Golf Australia rookie program comprises male and female golfers in the final six months of their amateur career until the end of their fifth year of professional golf.
The Golf Australia high performance program has been expanded to allow a number of young professionals to receive the levels of support that have previously been unachievable.
Successful applicants will each receive a rookie scholarship that is offered for a period of one year. Fully funded Golf Australia rookies will receive up to $AU100,000 in reimbursed funding to cover expenses. Partial scholarships may also be offered.
Producing golfers who are capable of winning major championships, Olympic medals and top-100 world ranking positions are the most effective means to boost participation and attract funding to golf in Australia, because of the publicity such success attracts. If our athletes can reach their full potential, we believe Australia will enjoy continued and sustained success on the world stage.
As high performance is the face of participation, the growth of the game from grassroots to the professional level is the driving influence behind a national program.
There are essentially two funding streams with which the scholarship will assist:
1. Training and preparation
This is to support players with coaching, strength and conditioning, biomechanics, sports psychology, physiotherapy, nutrition, etc.
Through the rookie program, Golf Australia will pay the agreed costs which are part of the player’s annual plan with no requirement for them to repay any of those costs. Players may use their own service team or seek Golf Australia’s support in setting up their preferred service providers.
2. Competition and travel
This is to support the player’s competition and travel expenses that can include but not limited to: airfares, accommodation, entry fees, caddie fees, etc. Through the rookie program, Golf Australia will pay the agreed costs which are part of the player’s annual plan.
The criteria for consideration in Golf Australia's rookie squad are as follows:
Be an Australian citizen
Have a successful amateur record at national and international level
Be in the final six months of their amateur golf careers
Have turned professional within the past five years
Have in place a team of service providers
Be hard working and highly self-motivated to achieve their objectives
Submit a full business plan (see application)
Exceptional time management and organisational skills
Competing on a recognised professional golf tour (Tours include but are not limited to USPGA, LPGA, European Tour, Ladies European Tour, web.com Tour, JLPGA, Asian Tour, Japan Tour, Symetra Tour, PGA Tour China, Canada & Latin America, Australasian Tour, ALPG Tour)
Submit a GA rookie squad application form by the due date
Must have successfully completed High School or be in the process of completing High School
Golf Australia Rookie Squad members are expected to:
Abide by the Golf Australia athlete “Code of Ethics” and by such codes of their professional organisations/tours
Abide by the Golf Australia rookie contract
During the selection and renewal process for a Golf Australia rookie scholarship, the following criteria will be taken into consideration by the Golf Australia selection committee:
Results
World ranking
Tour status/pathway
Statistics
Playing evaluation
Athlete development processes
Organisation/management/life skills
Is the athlete tracking towards program objectives?
2023 Rookie Squad
Blake Windred • NSW
DOB: 03/12/1997 Club: The Australian GC Turned pro: 2019 Coach: Gary Barter Main tour: ISPS Handa Tour of Australasia, DP World Tour Social media: @BWindred
> Blake's world ranking and results.
About Blake
Blake turned professional soon after he shot a course-record 63 in the opening round of the 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in China to lead for much of the tournament.
He rapidly rose to become one of Australia’s top two male amateurs and reached a high of No.9 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
Windred recorded his first-ever pro win, at the 2021 Victorian PGA Championship at Moonah Links, and later that same season came runner-up at the NSW Open and at the National PGA Classic.
Those impressive results contributed to him finishing second on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit and he earned his DP World Tour card as a result.
Professional Wins
2021 Victorian PGA, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
Best Professional Results
2 - 2022 NSW Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T2 - 2022 National PGA Classic, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T15 - 2022 Cape Town Open, Challenge Tour
2 - 2021 Challenge de Espana, Challenge Tour
T12 - 2019 ISPS Handa Vic Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia/DP World Tour
T16 - 2019 Australian Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T3 - 2018 NSW Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T4 - 2017 NSW Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
Amateur Wins
2019 Avondale Amateur Championship
2018 Avondale Amateur Championship
Elvis Smylie • QLD
DOB: 23/04/02 Club: Southport GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Ian Triggs Main tour: ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @elvis_emylie
> Elvis's world ranking and results.
About Elvis
Elvis truly arrived on the Australian golf scene in early 2021 when he produced a stunning weekend of back-to-back eight-under-par 63s at Rosebud Country Club to finish runner-up in The Player Series event. The left-hander is one of Australia’s most exciting prospects, having already claimed four amateur victories and 13 top-10 finishes, including twice winning the Keperra Bowl and dominating to win the Australian Junior crown. Suffered a debilitating back injury late in 2021 which curtailed his season on the European Tour, but is now fit and back playing the local tour in Australia with aspirations to travel abroad once more.
Best Professional Results
T2 - 2023 TPS Victoria, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T12 - 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T18 - 2022 Queensland PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T12 - 2021 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
2 - 2021 TPS Victoria, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
T24 - 2020 Isuzu Queensland Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
T33 - 2019 Emirates Australian Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
Amateur Wins
2020 Keperra Bowl
2020 Queensland Stroke Play Championship
2019 Australian Boys’ Amateur
2019 Keperra Bowl
Gabi Ruffels • VIC
DOB: 14/04/2000 Club: Victoria GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Grant Waite Main tour: Ladies European Tour, Epson Tour Social media: @GabiRuffels
> Gabi's world ranking and results.
About Gabi
Gabi Ruffels played on the Epson Tour in the US in 2022 after missing out on graduating from the Q Series for the LPGA Tour by a single shot late in 2021. She narrowly missed out on the season-end top-ten who gained LPGA cards and she is playing on the Ladies European Tour in 2023 to take on a new challenge.
Ruffels turned pro in 2021 despite not having LPGA Tour or Epson Tour status, on relied on invitations to play. Previously she was one of world golf's brightest amateur stars, ranked No.6 in the world.
In 2019, Ruffels became the first Australian to win the world’s most sought amateur prize, the US Women’s Amateur, and has since looked right at home in her limited opportunities on the LPGA Tour.
Remarkably, Ruffels already has two top-15 finishes in major championships and she will look to capitalise on her full tour status in 2022 where the top 10 on the money list graduate to the LPGA.
Best Professional Results
4 - 2023 Magical Kenya Ladies Open, Ladies European Tour
3 - 2022 Carolina Golf Classic, Epson Tour
4 - 2021 IOA Championship, Epson Tour
T13 - 2020 US Women’s Open, LPGA Tour (as amateur)
T15 - 2020 Ana Inspiration, LPGA Tour (as amateur)
T5 - 2020 Symetra Tour Championship, Futures Tour (as amateur)
Amateur Wins
2020 Rebel Beach Intercollegiate
2019 US Women’s Amateur
2019 North and South Women’s Amateur
2018 Windy City Collegiate Championship
Grace Kim • NSW
DOB: 13/12/2000 Club: Avondale GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Khan Pullen Main tour: LPGA Tour, WPGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @gracekimmey
> Grace's world ranking and results.
About Grace
Grace Kim is one of Australia’s brightest young talents and she is the country's most recent graduate to the LPGA Tour after coming in the top-ten of the Epson Tour's season-ending standings in 2022.
Kim registered her first win as a professional at the Epson Tour's IOA Golf Classic last year and upon returning home to Australia for the 2022/23 summer, she came fourth at the ISPS Handa Australian Open.
As an amateur she was national champion at both junior and senior level and won a Youth Olympic Gold Medal. Turning pro at the end of 2021, she made an immediate impact in contending for the inaugural WPGA Championship before finishing runner-up. Also was runner-up at The Athena in February.
Professional Wins
2022 IOA Golf Classic, Epson Tour
2021 Oscar Williams Classic, Women’s All Pro Tour, USA (as an amateur)
2021 Sun City Championship, Cactus Tour, USA (as an amateur)
Best Professional Results
4 - 2022 ISPS Handa Australian Open, WPGA Tour of Australasia
T3 - 2022 Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic, Epson Tour
T3 - 2022 Firekeepers Casino Hotel Championship, Epson Tour
2 - 2021 WPGA Championship, WPGA Tour of Australasia
2 - 2022 The Athena, WPGA Tour of Australasia
T4 - 2022 TPS Murray River, WPGA Tour of Australasia
T10 - 2022 Drummond Golf Melbourne International, WPGA Tour of Australasia
Amateur Wins
2021 Australian Amateur
2020, 2021 NSW Amateur
2018 Youth Olympic Gold medal
2017 Tasmanian Amateur
2017 South Australian Amateur
2017 Australian Junior Amateur
Karrie Webb Scholarship 2016-19
Jack Thompson • SA
DOB: 06/02/1998 Club: The Grange GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Adrian Wickstein Main tour: Asian Tour, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @JackJohn98
> Jack's world ranking and results.
About Jack
Jack burst on to the Australian golfing scene with a second-place finish at the 2020 Isuzu Queensland Open as an amateur. The 23-year-old South Australian reached a high of World No.31 in the WAGR rankings. Prior to turning pro, the South Australian recorded a course record 65 at Kooyonga in the 2021 Australian Amateur Championship.
He won his first tournament as a pro at the Gippsland Super 6 in December 2021 and he won Asian Tour qualifying in early 2023 to earn his card.
Professional Wins
2021 Gippsland Super 6, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
Best Professional Results
T5 - 2022 Victorian PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T7 - 2021 Victorian PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
T12 - 2021 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
2nd - 2020 Isuzu Queensland Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
T13 – 2020 NT PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
T23 - 2019 Japan Open Golf Championship, Japan Tour (as amateur)
Amateur wins
2018 Riversdale Cup
Jed Morgan • QLD
DOB: 30/11/1999 Club: Royal Queensland GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Grant Field Main tour: DP World Tour, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @jediahmorgan_golf
> Jed's world ranking and results.
About Jed
Created history in just his second start as a professional last December by winning the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at his home club, Royal Queensland, by a record 11 shots. The Brisbane product had previously won an Australian Amateur Championship in 2020 at the same venue as part of a fine amateur career. That victory helped him take out the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit which gave him a start at the US Open and The Open last year. It also gave him a DP World Tour card for this year.
Another Grant Field protégé who has already travelled and stayed with Cameron Smith to learn the ins and outs of pro golf life.
Professional Wins
2021 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia
Best Professional Results
T7 - 2020 Vic Open, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia/DP World Tour (as amateur)
7 - 2020 NT PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia (as amateur)
Amateur Wins
2020 Australian Men's Amateur Championship
2017 NT Amateur
Louis Dobbelaar • QLD
DOB: 31/8/2001 Club: Brookwater GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Grant Field Main tour: Challenge Tour, PGA Tour Lationamerica, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @louisdobbelaar
> Louis’ world ranking and results.
About Louis
Dobbelaar secured two big triumphs in 2021 in America at the North And South Amateur and the Dogwood Invitational, having previously won the Australian Amateur and multiple state amateur championships. Secured playing rights to play in Latin America in 2021-22 and will head to Europe during 2023 seeking further opportunities. A graduate of the outstanding Grant Field school featuring Cameron Smith, who hosted him in Jacksonville for mentoring sessions.
Best Professional Results
3rd - 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia
T3 - 2021 TPS Sydney, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia
3rd - 2021 Queensland PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia
Amateur Wins
2021 Australian Amateur
2021 North and South Amateur (US)
2021 Dogwood Invitational (US)
2020 Tasmanian Amateur
2020 Queensland Amateur
2019 & 2018 Port Phillip Amateur
2018 Queensland Stroke Play
2018 Queensland Amateur
2017 Jack Newton International
2016 New Zealand Amateur
Steph Kyriacou • NSW
DOB: 22/11/2000 Club: St Michael's GC Turned pro: 2020 Coach: Gary Barter Main tour: LPGA Tour and WPGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @stephkyriacou2
> Steph's world ranking and results.
About Steph
Steph has had a rapid rise to fame in which she was Ladies European Tour Rookie of the Year in 2020, followed up with a top-three on the LET points list in 2021. Passed through the gruelling eight-round Q-series in Florida to secure her card to play on the LPGA Tour for the first time in 2022.
In her first season on the premier tour Kyriacou impressed at the majors with a tied seventh finish at the AIG Women's Open and a tied 10th result at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship.
She had a remarkable 2020 with six top-5 finishes on the Ladies European Tour earning her Rookie of the Year. Her year began with one of the most incredible golfing stories in recent memory, when she shocked the world in dominating the LET-sanctioned Australian Ladies Classic at Bonville near Coffs Harbour. The eight-shot win punched her ticket to the LET and she turned pro soon afterwards.
Before turning pro, Kyriacou routinely challenged at amateur events across the country and led NSW to back-to-back Interstate Series titles in 2018 and 2019.
Professional Wins
2021 Big Green Egg Open, LET Tour
2020 Australian Ladies Classic Bonville (as an amateur), LET Tour
Best Professional Results
T7 - 2022 AIG Women's Open, LPGA Tour/LET Tour
T10 - 2022 KPMG Women's PGA Championship, LPGA Tour
4 - 2021 Ladies Italian Open, LET Tour
5 - 2021 Open de Espana, LET Tour
T13 - 2021 AIG Women's Open, LPGA Tour/LET Tour
2 - 2020 VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open, LET Tour
T2 - 2020 The Saudi Ladies Team International (Individual), LET Tour
T4 - 2020 The Saudi Ladies International, LET Tour
5 - 2020 Lacoste Ladies Open De France, LET Tour
T17 - 2020 Omega Dubai Moonlight Classic, LET Tour
Amateur Wins
2019 Australian Master of the Amateurs
2019 Queensland Amateur
Cassie Porter • QLD
DOB: 14/09/2002 Club: Peregian Springs GC Turned pro: 2021 Coach: Dan Morrison Main tour: Epson Tour and WPGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @cassie_porter_
> Cassie's world ranking and results.
About Cassie
Cassie turned professional in December 2021 after a promising amateur career that included a win at the Keperra Bowl that same year.
She also represented Australia as an amateur and in January 2023 registered her first win as a professional by prevailing over her best friend Kelsey Bennett in a thrilling four hole playoff at the Drummond Golf Melbourne International.
Cassie will head to the United States this year to try play her way onto the LPGA Tour via the Epson Tour.
Professional Wins
2023 Drummond Golf Melbourne International, WPGA Tour of Australasia
Best Professional Results
T11 - 2022 ISPS Handa Australian Open, WPGA Tour of Australasia
T8 - 2022 Four Winds Invitational, Epson Tour
T4 - 2022 Vic Open, WPGA Tour of Australasia
Amateur Wins
2021 Keperra Bowl
Hayden Hopewell • WA
DOB: 26/11/2001 Club: Royal Fremantle GC Turned pro: 2022 Coach: Ritchie Smith Main tour: ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia, Challenge Tour Social media: @haydenhopewell
> Hayden's world ranking and results.
About Hayden
Hayden turned professional ahead of the 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship after a stellar amateur career where he represented Australia and Western Australia. He made waves in Australian golf during the summer of 2021/22 when he finished runner-up twice on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia while he was still an amateur.
Hayden has already won a professional event - the 2020 WA Open which he won as an amateur - and he will head to Europe in 2023 to play the Challenge Tour.
Professional Wins
2020 WA Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
Best Professional Results
T2 - 2022 TPS Murray River, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
2 - 2022 WA Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
T10 - 2022 ISPS Hanada Australian Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia
Amateur Wins
2021 North Shore Classic
Kirsten Rudgeley • WA
Age: 21 Club: Mount Lawley GC Turned pro: 2022 Coach: Craig Bishop Main tour: Ladies European Tour, WPGA Tour of Australasia Social media: @kirstenrudgeleygolf
> Kirsten's world ranking and results.
About Kirsten
Kirsten turned professional ahead of the 2022 ISPS Handa Australian Open after holding the mantle as Australia's top ranked amateur. She represented Australia, won tournaments overseas, competed in the Augusta National Women's Amateur and earned a maiden major championship start at the 2021 AIG Women's Open during her amateur days.
Only weeks after turning professional, Kirsten earned her Ladies European Tour card at Qualifying School and that is where she will ply her trade in 2023.
Best Professional Results
T7 - 2022 Vic Open, WPGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
7 - 2022 Australian WPGA Championship, WPGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
Amateur Wins
2022 Avondale Amateur
2021 English Women's Amateur
2021 Helen Holm Scottish Women's Open Championship
2021 North Shore Classic
2021 Rene Erichsen Salver
Connor McKinney • WA
DOB: 29/1/2002 Club: Joondalup CC Turned pro: 2022 Coach: David Milne Main tour: ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia, Challenge Tour Social media: @connormckinney__
> Connor's world ranking and results.
About Connor
Connor turned professional ahead of the 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship after a dominant amateur year that included victories at the Australian Amateur and the St Andrews Links Trophy.
He represented Australia in international competition and will spend more time overseas now that he will play the Challenge Tour in Europe.
Best Professional Results
T5 - 2021 WA PGA Championship, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
T9 - 2021 WA Open, ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia (as an amateur)
Amateur Wins
2022 Australian Amateur
2022 St Andrews Links Trophy
2022 South Australia Amateur Classic