On Saturday, August 1, 10-year-old Ariel Collins of Locust Grove, was named the 2020 U.S. Kids Golf World Champion for the 10-year-old division. 

  The three-day tournament took place in Pinehurst, North Carolina and hosted boys and girls, ages six to 12, from all over the world.

  According to the U.S. Kids Golf Foundation website, it is described as “the pinnacle event for competitive golfers ages 12 and under.”

  On the final day of the three day tournament, Ariel found herself behind her competitors on the 16th hole. 

  However, she managed to score birdies on the 17th and 18th holes and overtook all 65 of her competitors to win the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship in her age group. She had a three-day total score of 10 under par.

  “It means a lot to me. It tells me that my work has paid off,” said Ariel. “All my practice that I’ve been doing. I just took it all to my tournament and did it there.” 

  Though winning the tournament was not easy, the experience taught her a lot about playing the game of golf in a competitive setting. 

  “I learned perseverance during that tournament,” said Ariel. “I wasn’t in the lead on the 16th hole and I came back on the 18th hole. When I made my last putt, I knew I won. It was very exciting.”

  Although Ariel has achieved this big win, she still recognizes that she has a lot to work on in order to be the professional player she dreams of becoming one day.

  “It’ll help me just work harder,” said Ariel. “When I played, I knew there was more I needed to work on, like my mental game and lots of other things.”

  This win has been a long time coming for Ariel, as she has competed in the U.S. Kids World Golf Championship since the age of six, but not achieved a top win in her age division until this year.

  “This is the first time she’s ever won the World Championship,” said Ariel’s father, Anthony Collins. “A few times she’s placed within the Top 20, but this was a real big accomplishment. Her mom and I were very proud of her.” 

  Since beginning to play golf at an early age, Ariel has dedicated countless hours to improving her golf game, practicing both at home and with a number of golf organizations. 

  At age four, she began receiving instruction from Golfing for Success, a nonprofit organization based out of Henry County, learning the mental and technical skillsets needed to excel at the sport.

  She has since moved on from playing golf with Golfing for Success and is now a member of the First Tee of Metro Atlanta.

  She is currently being coached by her parents, Tawana and Anthony Collins.

  Ariel competes in a number of state and local competitions to gain experience, and has finished in the top bracket in nearly each competition that she has participated in since 2018.

  After much time spent working to understand the game of golf, Ariel’s parents believe she has obtained the skills necessary to go far in the sport.

  “Now we are at a point where she is a good golfer, where she unconsciously understands the techniques, understands the the style of play she has to do,” said Anthony.

  For Ariel, golf is more than just a sport. Golf allows her to develop an even stronger bond with her family. 

  “Our relationship has gotten closer. We’re all together out there as a family. My brother, he supports me,” said Ariel. “My mom and dad go out and practice with me everyday. I can spend time with my family and I can learn more from them. They just help me keep going, they just help me all the way through.”

  Although Ariel is only 10 years old, she already has her sights set on attending the University of Georgia to play golf at the collegiate level and to study computer science and coding. 

  Her dream is to play golf in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).