Young golfer ready to take on Europe

At the tender age of 22, most of us didn't know what day it was, let alone what career path to follow.

But at 22, Shropshire golfer Jonathan Gidney has already turned pro, developed an impressive handicap and played in tournaments across America, Finland, Italy, France, Germany, Spain and Portugal.

"It started as a bit of fun really," says Jonathan. "But I was improving naturally as I was playing, and when I was 14 I entered my first county junior competition and won.

"Since then, I carried on competing at county level and by the time I was 18 I was doing really well in national competitions too.

"I'm naturally competitive - I think it's in my blood!"

Although he's played all over the country, Jonathan, who tweets from @JGidney, is closely affiliated with Church Stretton Golf Club on the Long Mynd and practices there most days.

"It's such a unique place and it's definitely my favourite course in the Midlands, although it's very cold on the hills at the moment!"

Over the past few years, he's played in the Portugese, Spanish, Finnish and Italian amateur competitions and played his favourite course, TPC Sawgrass near Florida, just two days after the epic Player's Championship took place there.

But the next 12 months will be the most crucial for Jonathan, as his performance in qualifying competitions next year could secure him a coveted place on the European Tour.

"I'll be playing all the events in next year's Euro Pro tour at the end of March, then some of the next year's Challenge tour, and the following year I'll play in the whole Challenge tour.

"If I do really well and go up a level, then I'll hopefully be invited to play in the European Tour."

As a newly-qualified pro, Jonathan says it's difficult to predict what will happen in next year's events.

"There's a lot of competition and the standard of playing amongst golfers my age is so high at the moment, but hopefully I'll make it."

He's also hoping to qualify for next year's Open Championships at St Andrews in July, so the pressure is on to get as much practice in as possible over the winter months.

"People think being a golfer is just good fun, and it is fun but it's also a lot of hard work and you really have to put the effort in."

One of the ways Jonathan tries to stay ahead of the game is by promoting himself on Twitter, sharing tips and advice, and following tweets from top Euro Tour golfers like @RorsMcIlroy.

"I've only been on Twitter for around three months but it's great. I use it to let people know what I'm up to, where I'm playing and generally getting my name out there.

"It's helped me build contacts and I recently got offered a sponsorship deal after someone saw one of my tweets, so it's been really good for me."

Follow Jonathan's progress at www.twitter.com/jgidney or visit his website at www.jonathangidney.com

By Lara Page