A TALENTED young golfer who won the Bradford Open and the Bradford Amateur Matchplay this season is turning professional for 2020, but admitted that he almost gave that dream up just 12 months ago.

Ben Rhodes, who plays out of Woodhall Hills Golf Club, has had an incredible 2019. As well as his victories in the Open and the Matchplay, he was the lowest scorer for Bradford in the Yorkshire Inter-District Union Team Championship.

Those three wins saw him pick up the end-of-season Karl Curran Trophy with an unprecedented 89 points, 43 ahead of second-placed Andrew Busfield, of South Bradford.

That was particularly sweet for Rhodes, as it was his near-miss in the Karl Curran last year which led to him originally shelving his plans to turn professional.

He said: "I'd come second to Terry Brushwood (Bingley St Ives) in the Karl Curran the last two years.

"Last year I had a chance to beat him but I lost to his club-mate Andy Town in the Matchplay final.

"I'd always wanted to turn pro but I didn't get the results I needed or wanted in 2018 so I'd put that idea to one side.

"But this year I got good results, in both Bradford and England tournaments, brought my handicap down to +4 and it's made a big difference.

"I know I've got the ability and I didn't want to look back in a few years and think 'why didn't I go for it?'. I want to see what's out there and whether I can handle the pressure.

"I'm going to go to Q (Qualifying) School next February or March, do a couple of professional events and try and play in some pro-ams. They're good fun and there's good money involved for the professionals."

Asked which win this season was most satisfying, Rhodes added: "The Open and the Matchplay were both similar but then, funny as it sounds, I don't really like the matchplay format. I prefer strokeplay now I'm a lot more consistent with my golf.

"In the Amateur Matchplay (earlier this month), I didn't play that well but my putting really dug me out of a hole."

Rhodes has also found success in the Yorkshire Inter-District Union League with Bradford this season, accruing a joint-best 21 points alongside Dane Bairstow (West Bradford).

The team did well too, improving on last year's mid-table finish to come second behind Halifax-Huddersfield.

Rhodes puts much of that success down to Chris Foster, who took over as captain from Martin Gaffney this season.

He enthused: "Chris has been massive for us, don't get me wrong, Martin was a great captain, but I know Chris well and what he puts in.

"It's not all about winning for him. He picks players for the team spirit they bring and I feel like that makes you want to win more than normal."

Finally, Rhodes paid tribute to Woodhall Hills, saying: "They've been massive for me. I've worked and played here for five years and the members all look after me, asking how I've done. I just get massive support from them all."