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While his friends are probably still playing with toy cars and building blocks, nine-year-old Kayle Wykes of Johannesburg is jetting off to Scotland to represent South Africa at the US Kids Golf European Championship.
The young genius, who qualified for the tournament with just two years’ experience on the golf course, is hoping to triumph over the world’s best young players in East Lothian, Scotland, in the tournament that runs from 28 to 30 May.
Although he initially excelled at soccer, cricket, swimming, tennis and karate, his interest in golf was sparked two years ago by his father, Derek, who often took to the greens with other family members.
“I started [playing] golf because most of my family played golf,” Kayle said during a radio interview on SAfm, “so I wanted to become a golfer to support them.”
In 2011, the same year he began playing, he took part in his first tournament and last year won the SA Kids Golf event. He qualified for the Scottish tournament shortly afterwards, and has also qualified to play in the US Kids Golf World Championship for the next three years (this year’s event is in August).
Kayle is now in Grade 4 at the Sacred Heart College in Johannesburg and would like to be a pro golfer in future. In fact, by the time he’s 17, he’d like to be competing with his golfing heroes Tiger Woods and Louis Oosthuizen.
– Christiaan Boonzaier
Sources: facebook.com, SAfm
