Hannah O’Sullivan has accomplished more in her 16 years of living than many do in a lifetime.
The 16 year-old junior at Hamilton High School has already won two Arizona State Championships in golf (while at Xavier Prep), two state player of the year awards, Rolex Junior All-American each of the last three years, qualifier for the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open held in Kohler, Wisconsin, one of 12 Americans selected to the 2014 Junior Ryder Cup in Scotland, and most recently last August, a semifinalist at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. Now another opportunity to obtain great experience is on the horizon for the 13th ranked golfer in the AJGA Polo rankings.
O’Sullivan has been selected to be a Tournament Sponsor Exemption to be able to compete in the Gateway Classic next week at Longbow Golf Club.
“I am very excited and I am very thankful,” O’Sullivan said. “I would like to thank Longbow Golf Club and Mr. (Bob) McNichols and the Symetra Tour for giving me this great opportunity. I can’t wait and I think it will be a lot of fun.”
The Gateway Classic is one of the many stops on the Symetra Tour, which is considered ‘the Road to the LPGA.’ There is never a substitute for experience, and for O’Sullivan, this is yet another to add to the impressive resume.
“Getting to compete with the up-and-coming professional golfers is going to be a different experience,” she mentioned. “Experience can help a lot and I have faced a lot of pressure situations you could say. Learning how to work through that and be exposed to all that comes along with these big events. It’s going to help me a lot to stay focused and focus on my own game and do my best.”
Last May, O’Sullivan committed to play golf at the next level at USC and is already sporting Trojan pride with the cardinal and gold letters on her golf clubs. That along with graduating high school is at the fore-front but a future on the LPGA is the ultimate goal.
Next week at the Gateway Classic is a rare opportunity for her to see what it takes.
“I think it will be a great learning experience to see how the pros play and learn a lot about my game and what it’s like out playing like a pro,” O’Sullivan explained.
The Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club begins the 16th of February with practices rounds and runs through the 22nd.
