When Eli Kalogerias teed it up in the TeeMates Autumn Cup last year, his handicap was 22, which he managed to better on the day with a 21-over-par 93.

Fast forward to this year's Autumn Cup, and the TeeMates member also bettered his handicap — only this time Eli shot a cool 1-under 71 at Westward Ho Golf Club playing off just 6.5.

The incredible scoring was enough to earn Eli the win, and his first competitive under-par round, an unbelievable feat so early in his golfing life.

"I first played in the TeeMates Autumn Cup in 2024, and while my performance that day was modest, the experience of competing alongside some incredibly talented juniors inspired me to become a better golfer," said Eli.

"Winning the Autumn Cup this April and shooting under-par was a true reward for all the hard work I’ve put into my game."

Splitting his time between North Adelaide Golf Club, where his dad first introduced him to the sport, and Westward Ho where the 14-year-old is now a junior member, Eli works hard on his golf.

"Each afternoon after returning home from school, I grab a snack, finish some homework, then pack a couple of my irons, my putter, and driver into a backpack before riding my bike to North Adelaide for 2–3 hours of practice," he said.

"During school holidays, you’ll almost always find me out on the course and driving range.”

Eli has a goal to get his handicap down to below three by the end of the year, a sure bet if he keeps the low scores coming.

Golf is all about firsts – your first long putt, your first chip-in, your first par, your first birdie, your first hole-in-one, the first time you break 100. We are celebrating all our TeeMates Firsts in a special series across our Golf Australia channels.

Please send us your story of your TeeMates First to [email protected]. We’d love a photo or video and some information to help us tell the story.

To find out more about the TeeMates program, CLICK HERE.