An all-time great is behind PGA professional Jade Shellback’s aspiration to usher in the next generation of elite Australian golfers.
It was only four years ago that Jade Shellback was sharing the stage with the brightest female talents in Australian golf.
Three years out from becoming a major champion, Grace Kim took part in the 2022 edition of The Athena. So too did future LPGA Tour stars Karis Davidson and Cassie Porter, along with Kelsey Bennett and the ultimate winner, Kirsten Rudgeley, who are both now ensconced on the Ladies European Tour.
When Shellback played college golf for William Woods University in Missouri from 2016-2018, that too was her dream, yet by the time she teed it up at The Athena, a new path had been laid out before her through the PGA of Australia’s Membership Pathway Program.
Shellback is now a full PGA member coaching at Royal Melbourne Golf Club and is the 2026 recipient of the Karrie Webb Coaching Scholarship to further advance her coaching career. Assistant coach with the Victorian team for the past three Junior Interstate Series, Shellback hopes to emulate the likes of top Australian coaches Ritchie Smith and Khan Pullen in guiding young players to the highest levels of the sport.
“It’s a chance to learn from the best, push myself and keep building as a HP performance coach,” Shellback said of the Karrie Webb Coaching Scholarship. “It’s also about building something long-term and meaningful with the players that I work with.
“Ideally, I’m wanting to spend a lot more time with coaches like Ritchie Smith and Khan Pullen to see how they work with their players. Ritchie’s got such an amazing résumé of players. I have worked a little bit with him in the past and what I’ve learned is that the environment he creates is just so supportive. Having someone trust you with their own golf game is really important, but also building the connection that you can work together. Letting them know that it’s OK to fail and that I’ll be backing them every step of the way.”
To enhance the learning environment she creates for her players, Shellback has reflected on her own playing career. And while she aspires to guide players to the highest levels of the sport, Shellback is not losing sight of the steps taken on the journey to get there.
“As a player, there was always a massive goal at the end of it and I kind of didn’t enjoy the little steps along the way,” she says. “As a coach, I’m wanting to enjoy the little steps along the way rather than always just trying to get to the main step so quickly.
“The biggest thing that I’m learning is that there’s a lot more to coaching than standing on the range and teaching people how to get to a perfect position. That’s the side that I’m really learning to enjoy. Making really good connections with the people that I work with, no matter how old they are, is really cool.”
Want to coach golfers to be the best they can be? Applications for the 2026 intake of the PGA’s Membership Pathway Program open on July 1 and close on July 31. Visit golf.com.au/study-programs/pga-membership-pathway-program to learn more.
