Those following golf at the highest levels, the PGA Tour, LPGA Tour, and college golf, have seen a dramatic shift on the leaderboards. There are many more players from outside the USA. Over the past 25 years international players have come to fill college golf rosters, thus reducing the number of college scholarships that could go to US golfers. Inspired by the success of subsidized junior golf programs around the world, the USGA in 2023 initiated a men’s and women’s United States Golf Development National Junior Team.
The team is made up of 12 of the finest boy and girl golfers age 13-18 in the USA. In addition, by 2033 it is intended that all 50 states will have junior development teams.
Originally developed in Australia, other countries have followed such as Japan, Canada and Sweden with subsidized junior programs. The US team has had matches against Australia and Canada with another against Sweden in the near future.
“The program is based on the anachronism THRIVE,” said Beth Brown who is the Senior Director of Athletic and Program Development. “It’s a holistic approach to athletic development.”
* Training - Technical, tactical, transfer to the course.
* Health - Physical and psychological
* Relationships
* Individual development
* Values
* Equipment
“The goal of the program is to foster future generations of golf talent,” said Brown. “We’re developing athletes who “Thrive” and who win in a healthy way. I think Scotty Scheffler and Nellie Korda are good examples of that. The US is underperforming in the number of college scholarships going to US players, particularly women. 40% of the Power 4 conferences women’s scholarships go to international players. We want to see the US numbers increase for both genders.”
“The Australian program is a generational program, not a short term experiment,” said Brad James, Director of High Performance for Golf Australia. “Over a ten to twenty year time frame you will see goals being met.” There are more Australians ranked in the top 100 golfers, men and women, professional and amateur, per capita, than the United States and every other country in the world. The Australian program has been underway for 15 years under James’ direction.
“We are not trying to replace anybody, but fill the gaps in training,” said Brown. “Thus the program is not going to replace the coach that has developed the player, but broaden the knowledge of the player.” Areas such as nutrition, physical training, statistical analysis, and course management are the focus of the staff. There is a nutritionist working in the program along with four sports psychologists. “We work with the player to expose the areas they are not doing well in,” said Brown. “Maybe it’s your emotions around your self image as a golfer and such. We work with them on how to deal with a caddie, how to take care of your body. How to give yourself time to recover. We also work on individual development and how to work with others.”
“We help them be the best they can be. You can’t have long term sustainable excellence without well being,” said Brown. “We also work with the parents on how to parent a high achieving athlete.”
As a team member financial support is provided for travel to some events such as the British Amateur and the World Amateur, along with team gatherings and support. However, unlike the program in other countries, no direct financial support is given.
To pay for the program the USGA has developed a fund raising campaign looking for both corporate and individual gifts. Ally Bank has stepped forward as major sponsor of the program. It was recently announced that The Masters has made a $1.5 million gift over the next three years to support state teams. At the present time there are 16 states with programs that are operating.
“The money will help bridge the gap on some important initiatives with competitions, coaching and teaching,” said Jon Mays, Executive Director of the Minnesota Golf Association. The Minnesota program was established in 2025. “Recognition by The Masters is important. The fact that they want the grass roots to be supported is important.”
Players are chosen to be on the Junior National Team, along with each of the state teams, based on finishes in designated events throughout the year. “It’s kind of like recruiting for a college team. We go out and meet the players to make sure they fit in the program,” said Brown. States are given flexibility to select each team.
“Team members value being around other high performing, high achieving athletes,” said Mays. “They push each other. There is a bond created as they push each other.”
The program is headed by Managing Director Heather Daly-Donofrio, a former LPGA Tour player. She is a former womens golf coach at Yale University and was the Technical Delegate for the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 2021. The head coach of the program is Chris Zambri, the former head coach at USC. Tiffany Joh, a former LPGA Tour player, USGA Champion and assistant mens and womens golf coach at Cal State San Marcos is on the coaching staff also. There are several consultants working with the team in performance, nutrition, and strength training. The USGA provides support in fund raising and the operation of the program.
It has been shown that gathering the best athletes together in any sport advances the talent level of the participants. Australia has proved it true for golf. It doesn’t happen overnight, but with the long term commitment of the USGA we will see more USA college students filling the roster of university golf teams, and more USA born golfers on the PGA and LPGA Tours in a Life In Golf.
