West Australian Ben Ferguson is making his professional debut this week at the Nexus Risk TSA Group WA Open while also launching his own fashion label.
The 20-year-old, who first teed it up in the WA Open when he was 13, has made the transition to the pro ranks ahead of the Australian summer of golf. It’s a decision he made after a solid amateur career that saw him represent Western Australia in the men’s team from 2014 to 2017 as well as captain the boy’s team in 2016.
“I am very excited and I am happy that it is going to be on home soil,” Ferguson said. “The WA Open was the first professional event I played. It was at Royal Perth but the pre-qualifying was here at Mount Lawley. My second WA Open was also here at Mount Lawley.
“I was 14 in 2012, when I played here. I have some good memories; it was my first cut ever made in the WA Open as well. I remember that Jarryd Felton and I were the two amateurs to make the cut and he got the low amateur.”
Having received an invite into the field this week, Ferguson will look to pre-qualify for the remainder of the summer.
“I just felt like this is the right time for me to turn pro. I have played quite a lot of overseas amateur tournaments and professional events in my amateur career. I felt like there are some big events coming up on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia so it made sense to turn pro.
“This is my first start, then I am going to try and pre-qualify for the Queensland Open next week, then the New South Wales Open and Australian Open. Qualifying school is in December at Wembley for first stage.”
A win at the WA Open could open up a lot of opportunities for the rookie, who has his sights set on an overseas tour.
“This is a big event, winning here would take a whole lot of stress off the rest of the year and moving forward,” Ferguson added. “Hopefully I will get onto one of the major tours; the European Tour or PGA Tour, so this is all a learning experience building up to then.”
Asides from golf, Ferguson’s other passion lies in fashion and he will also debut his own casual golf line this week: Fergz.
“I am also debuting Fergz clothing, so it will be good to get that out,” Ferguson said. “It’s just a bit of a hobby on the side of golf. Fashion is something that I am slowly getting more and more interested in.”
The WA Open Championship tees off today with the winner decided on Sunday. In addition to the winner’s share of the $100,000 prize purse, the champion will receive Official World Golf Ranking Points and be fully exempt onto the PGA Tour of Australasia until the end of the 2019 season.
