The golf world has a new phenom.
With a victory Wednesday at the MENA Tour’s Al Ain Open, 15-year-old Josh Hill became the youngest winner of a professional tournament that awards Official World Golf Ranking points.
Hill, an English amateur who is based in Dubai, fired a final-round 62 to win by two shots at 17 under par.
At 15 years, six months and 27 days, Hill edged (by less than two months) the previous record set by Ryo Ishikawa in 2007.
Josh Hill is our Al Ain Open by Arena champion! He wins by two shots after a superb final round of 8-under par 62.@HarryEllisGolf is second and the leading professional at 15-under par.
— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) October 23, 2019
Ben Schlottman and amateur Curtis Knipes are T3 at -13. pic.twitter.com/N0y3kENb6N
Earlier this year, Hill, at 14, became the youngest player to secure his card through qualifying school for the MENA Tour, which hosts events in the Middle East and North Africa.
As Hill told the tour’s website afterward: “If you had told me during the summer that I will be winning a MENA Tour title against professionals and become the youngest-ever winner of an OWGR event, I would have laughed at the notion.”
Playing as an amateur, Hill had to forfeit the $13,500 first-place check. This was his second consecutive top-10 finish, following a seventh-place showing Oct. 6 in Abu Dhabi.
Overall, Hill is the second-youngest player to earn OWGR points, behind then-14-year-old Guan Tianlang.
This is incredible!
— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) October 23, 2019
We can now confirm that at age 15 years six months and 27 days, Josh Hill is the youngest winner ever in an @OWGRltd event beating Ryo Ishikawa’s record of 15 years and 8 months.
Won the Al Ain Open by Arena at @AESGC today on 17-under par. pic.twitter.com/oNXer2mICP