Future Champions Tour trebles in size and golf’s the winner, admits Kev Caplehorn

The golf professional behind the rapid expansion of Hampshire Golf’s pathway programme for juniors is predicting a stellar future for the county after tripling the number of youngsters competing every month.

The Future Champions Tour (FCT) was established in 2024 as a pathway to help more juniors play golf at Hampshire’s 76 affiliated clubs across the mainland, the Isle of Wight and Channel Islands.

Co-ordinator Kev Caplehorn, who has worked in the game for more than 20 years, said: ‘The Foundation Champions Tour is now our pathway to help children enjoy golf.

‘Our younger juniors, aged from 6-12, don’t have handicaps. We are really trying to build their confidence and get them involved in competitive golf.

‘Our really relaxed, short nine-hole format is perfect and families are encouraged to help as caddies and with scoring, learning the rules.

‘Then it’s on to our FCT qualifying events, played over 18 holes with handicaps required and proper prizes for the winners.

‘It really gives a pathway into real competitive golf, as we try and fill entries up for the junior opens held around the county during the school holidays, from April to the end of August.

‘From there we can select the county squads for under-12s and under-14s. We can pick the boys who are really doing well and they then get more coaching.

‘We are seeing the players develop and squads have been built-up enormously over the three years we have been running the Future Champions Tour.

‘And now we have the Foundation Champions Tour as well to expand the scheme even more.

The former head pro at Lee-on-the-Solent and Hampshire under-14s coach, who is now working with the under-12s squad given his FCT role, added: ‘We have had an incredibly successful year with the Hampshire Boys teams at under-12, under-14, under-16 and under-18 levels.

‘We have won nearly all our matches in all four age groups, which has been unheard of. The players are all feeding off each other and get on so well socially on-and-off the course.

‘That helps breed real respect and camaraderie among the boys and girls, as well as encouraging them to support each other in their development as players.

‘The success of the players who have won the 22 tournaments we have organised this season has only helped to inspire the rest to try and match their good performances, which will make the county teams even stronger.

‘You can see the correlation between the way the Future Champions Tour has grown from 30 players in 2024, to 100 as we speak, having just held our third Grand Final at Ampfield.

‘I could not be more proud of the way the tour is growing – the look on the players’ faces every time they turn up to play. They enjoy it so much and are making friends hopefully for life in the process.

‘Add in the wonderful support we are receiving from our parents, whether we play in Southampton, Portsmouth, Winchester, Basingstoke, Gosport, Alton – or in the New Forest – and it is just a win-win situation for everyone.

‘That includes the golf clubs who want to attract more families to the game and support us so well by letting the kids get out on the course.’