When little Sam Gwilliams started swinging a golf club at balls in the back garden of his Shropshire home, his parents Alison and Andrew just knew he had a special talent.

The couple, from The Hazels in Annscroft, near Shrewsbury, enrolled their six-year-old son in the junior section at nearby Arscott Golf Club to help him to enjoy his hobby.

Just weeks later Sam has won one of the few places available at the Callaway Junior World Championships in San Diego, where he will compete from July 12 to 14 in the same tournament dominated by a young Tiger Woods in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

His proud parents are hoping he can go on to be a star at the sport. But they face a desperate fight to raise more than £3,000 in sponsorship to pay for the three of them to travel and stay in America during the tournament.

Mrs Gwilliams admitted she was left “gobsmacked” after her son, a pupil at St Thomas and St Anne’s School in Hanwood, won one of the places for the under six category at a qualifying event at 3 Hammers, near Wolverhampton.

Sam came third to win a place at the San Diego tournament.

Mrs Gwilliams said: “Sam was hitting some balls about in the back garden with a club and seemed to be really enjoying it, so we enrolled him in the junior section at Arscott Golf Club.

“We had no idea how good he was as we couldn’t compare him with other six-year-olds.

“He joined the golf club shortly before the Easter holidays and he has only had five lessons with the pro and a couple of group sessions.

“We were gobsmacked when his name was called out as one of the qualifiers and shocked he has managed to do it.

“A lot of the other children he was up against were sponsored and had been playing golf with coaches for a number of years Sam has just picked it up in the last few months.”

Mr Gwilliams said: “We do not want Sam not to have the opportunity to go. He has only been doing this for a couple of the months and his coach thinks he will be a star kids don’t just pick up a club and do what he has done.”

To help the Gwilliams family call Alison on 07854 859809.

By Peter Kitchen