With a victory in the Webex Series event at Castle Hill, Declan O’Donovan made an impressive start to his professional career.
ROOKIE professional Declan O’Donovan has wasted no time making his mark in the play for pay ranks.
His talent came to light when he became the first back-to-back winner of the NSW Amateur Championship in almost 50 years.
And no sooner had O’Donovan made the decision to turn professional when he stunned his rival professionals storming to a five-shot win at Castle Hill Country Club in the Webex Players Series Sydney.
It seemed a natural progression to see him added to the Golf NSW Futures Program, one of a handful named in the 2026 program, which earmarks some of our best young men and women golfers for much bigger things in the months [and years] ahead.
O’Donovan, a member of Avondale Golf Club, began his journey to stardom in July, 2025 when he won the 120th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Royal Ottawa Golf Club.
He became the first Australian to claim the title since 1993 which earned him a start at the 2026 RBC Canadian Open on the US PGA Tour.
He followed that with second place at the prestigious Eisenhower Trophy in Singapore, helping Australia to a second-place team finish in the 36-nation event.
He then made the leap into the pro ranks and the Golf NSW Futures Program continues to support O’Donovan as he builds a distinguished professional career.
There’s plenty of other talent in the NSW squad for 2026 too.
They include:
Ella Scaysbrook: who announced herself on the world stage in 2025 with a stunning run to the semi-finals of the prestigious US Women’s Amateur at Bandon Dunes. The Australian Golf Club member backed it up with a ninth-place finish at the Women’s Western Amateur and represented Australia at the Espirito Santo Trophy in Singapore. Closer to home, she defended her Avondale Bowl title in January 2026, adding to a year that also included a runner-up finish at the 2025 Australian Master of the Amateurs. Scaysbrook has also been selected in the 2026 NSW Interstate Team.
A member of the Golf NSW Futures Program, Ella Scaysbrook was a semi-finalist at the 2025 US Women’s Amateur.
Rachel Lee: who became only the second Australian in a decade to win the Australian Women’s Amateur Championship, claiming the title at Commonwealth Golf Club in January, 2025 with a dominant three-shot victory. Also a member at Avondale, she set the pace immediately, shooting an equal course record 65 at Cranbourne in the second round to take command of the field, emulating her clubmate, Grace Kim who won the same title in 2021. The achievement was the highlight of a remarkable run of form that had already seen Lee grab a share of the first-round lead at the Australian Women’s Open as a schoolgirl in 2023, win the Women’s NSW Open Regional Qualifying at Mollymook, and claim strokeplay honours at the NSW Amateur. She has represented Australia at the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Championship in New Zealand and is a member of the 2026 NSW Interstate Team.
Kayun Mudadana: Already one of the most prolific and well-travelled performers on the Australian amateur circuit. In 2025, he claimed three ranked victories, the South Australian Amateur Classic (which he defended from 2024), the NSW Cup and the UAE Cup, along with eight further top-10 finishes, including a third-place result at the Scottish Men’s Open. He opened 2026 by winning the Avondale Amateur at 10-under par. Internationally, he represented Australia at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Dubai and at the 2024 Toyota World Juniors in Japan, and was selected for the Cam Smith Scholarship in 2024, earning invaluable time with the 2022 Open Champion. A member of NSW Golf Club from Barden Ridge, Mudadana is also in the 2026 NSW Interstate Team.
Sam Cascio: He made history in 2024 as the first Wollongong golfer to win the Australian Junior Championship, joining an honour roll that includes Adam Scott, Jason Day and Cameron Smith. The Australian Golf Club member delivered a dominant performance at Gosnells Golf Club in Perth, winning by four shots with a final round six-under 64, and earned an invitation to the Australian Open off the back of the title. He has also recorded victories at the NSW Champion of Club Champions and the Wollongong Golf Club Championship and was recognised as the JNJG Most Improved Junior Boy in 2023 following wins at the NSWCHS All Schools Championship, Macarthur Junior Masters and Ballina Junior Masters.
Harry Whitelock: He earned his ‘call-up’ after becoming the youngest-ever winner of the Royal Canberra Golf Club Championship in 2024 at just 17 years of age, and has built a strong record of titles, including the Webex Players Series, Greg Norman Junior Masters, Greg Chalmers Junior Masters and Peter O’Malley Junior Masters. In 2023, he was named the JNJG Junior Boy Master of the Masters following a nine-shot triumph in Bathurst. He demonstrated his readiness to compete at senior level with a T4 finish at the prestigious Avondale Amateur in 2025 and has been a member of the ACT Junior Boys State Team in both 2024 and 2025. The Royal Canberra Golf Club member also claimed the Federal GC Club Championship and the RCGC Matchplay Championship.
Camilla Kim: She is one of the most decorated junior golfers to have come through the Golf NSW pathway in recent years. Named JNJG Sub Junior Girl of the Year in 2023, she won five Junior Masters titles that season, including the Jack Newton International Sub-Junior Classic outright, outperforming older competitors to do so, and claimed the ACT Week of Golf by eight shots. In 2024, she advanced further with a T3 finish at the NSW Amateur Strokeplay and a T4 at the Victorian Junior Open. In 2025, she was crowned joint NSW Junior Girls Champion after an epic five-hole playoff and made the cut at the Ford Women’s NSW Open as a 15-year-old, finishing at four-under. Kim is named in both the 2026 NSW Junior Girls and Senior Women’s Interstate Teams.
The 2026 squad is a great reflection of the depth of the state’s player pathway as well as the ambitions of a program that has helped produce the likes of Grace Kim, Steph Kyriacou, Cameron Davis and Travis Smyth.
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