Christ College Pupil Becomes Youngest Welsh Golfing Hopeful

A nine-year old Christ College Brecon pupil looks set to give Tiger Woods a run for his money as she becomes the youngest golfer ever to join the Welsh Nursery Squad.

Adelaide Francis, a pupil from Christ College Brecon’s new junior school St Nicholas House, recently attended an assessment day held by the Golf Union of Wales to find talent for the various Welsh squads for 2014 and 2015. Despite being the youngest person there by at least two years, Adelaide was amazed to be chosen for the first Nursery Squad for Wales – something she did not expect to achieve until she was at least 11 years old, despite her well-known talent.

She started playing golf when she was three and immediately showed a natural talent despite not having any relatives playing the game. She started by playing tri golf at Alice Springs Golf Club in Monmouthshire. She competed in her first golfing tournament aged five and won the Welsh Mini Masters for Girls. She has won the Wee Wonders Welsh Qualifier every year since she was five and also won the Welsh Mini Masters golf championship this year. Her golfing talents have seen her travel the world, competing in various tournaments, including the British Junior Callaway Qualifier in America where she represented Great Britain. She has a ladies’ handicap of 36, aged just nine years old. She is currently coached by John McDonald and will also be coached by Neil Matthews, who is the national coach for Wales, after Christmas.

Adelaide’s parents, Tom and Tracey Francis, said: “We’re so proud of Addie and we love the opportunities that golf is giving her. It’s amazing to see her play and she gets to meet so many new people and see the world. But we also appreciate that she is only nine and we want her to have lots of fun and access to other opportunities too, which is why we enrolled her at Christ College Brecon.

“Addie also loves hockey and plays for Gwent Girls’ 11 and under. She is very talented at maths too. She has won National Kumon Gold Awards since the age of six, working three years above her age in mathematics. She also loves performing and competes in the Eisteddfod every year doing solo singing, writing and performing arts. The new junior school at Christ College gives Addie the opportunity to explore and nurture all of her talents, including her golf, which is so important to children of her age. The support and guidance the school have given us has been fantastic.”

Mrs Emma Taylor, Head at Christ College Brecon, said: “We were delighted to have Addie join us in September. She’s a lovely girl with so many talents and she’s already become well-known to everyone at the school because she gets involved in so many of our activities and because of her outstanding golfing achievements. We are very proud of her making the Welsh Nursery Squad at just nine years old. She has a very bright future ahead of her.”