GOLF
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AFTER talented teenager Dylan Thompson surprised himself by claiming the Bathurst Golf Club’s coveted A grade Matchplay and Club Championship double crown earlier this year, he said he may have to look at contesting tournaments in Sydney to best capitalise on his form.
As it turns out, his excellent touch in the opening half of 2015 will take him much further than that.
It was recently announced that the teenager was awarded a scholarship with Montana’s Rocky Mountain College. He will begin an exercise science degree there in a little over a month, while at the same time expose himself to a whole new level of golf.
Competing on the highly competitive American college circuit, the Rocky Mountain men’s golf program has landed four conference championships and finished second five other years since 2000.
Two seasons ago they qualified for their first national tournament and finished 13th in the country.
Thompson will be working under the college’s director of golf Randy Northrup and head coach Aaron Pohle – two men who have already been impressed by the Bathurst talent.
“I went through a recruiting process. I had to play in a tournament first and then do some skills testing, all done over here. After that I had to send through things like my school reports and golf swing videos,” he said.
“There were a couple of colleges that contacted me. I also had offers from New York University and Missouri University, but I ended up going with Rocky Mountain.
“I felt they had the better facilities and coaches to help my game.
“It was pretty good to hear I got it and a bit of a surprise. I always wanted to try and get myself over there. I’m happy I get to do that.”
Given what Thompson has done on Australian soil this year it is little wonder he fielded more than one offer.
In May Thompson won the Bathurst Golf Club’s A Grade Club Championship by a massive 19 shots over Brett Howard, Thompson having led from the opening weekend of competition until its conclusion.
“It’s probably one of the biggest results of my career, to be able to call myself Club Champion is a massive thing,” Thompson said at the time.
By winning the Club Championship, Thompson became the top seed for the A grade Matchplay Championship which followed. Again he delivered, taking out the final 4 and 2 against Todd McIntosh.
Though those victories came against older, more experienced rivals, Thompson knows when he tees off in the United States he will be facing even sterner competition.
Rocky Mountain are currently part of the division one National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics men’s golf competition. They contest the Frontier Conference.
Thompson will play his first competition on a foreign golf course on August 22, which comes only a week after his orientation. The first official conference tournament will be a single-day event in Shelby on September 19.
While good results are certainly something Thompson would love to continue, he has not yet set himself any goals.
“It’s been a pretty good last couple of months for me golfing wise, for sure,” he said.
“While lately my golf hasn’t been at its best I’ve been really happy with how it’s been this year. I’d love to be able to go pro, but we’ll see what happens.
“I’ll be there for four years for the course, but that depends on how far my golf can take me.”