Eccles turns pro before masters, state championships

Torquay golfer Ben Eccles has turned professional following a stellar year.
Eccles tied for third at the 2015 Victorian Open, captained the winning Men’s Interstate team and took out the NSW Open last weekend.
“It leaves me 10 months ahead of where I planned to be,” said the 20-year-old.
“I’m really happy with the decision that I’ve made (to turn professional) and I’m really looking forward to what’s to come.”
Eccles is no stranger to professional tournaments, competing with the pros as an amateur for the past three years.
His decision to go pro has been made just in time for the Australian Masters next week.
Eccles said he was confident that his form was strong enough to match it with the rest of the professional field.
“I just want to have fun and enjoy the week. Playing with the best pros from Australia is going to be awesome as well.
“I just want to enjoy the experience and see what I can do. If I can back up playing like last week then that would be awesome as well.”
Eccles has been busy competing in a bag of tournaments, including the Riversdale Cup and South Australian Classic, and trips to the home of golf at St Andrews and America.
He started playing at age six, nominating his dad as his biggest influence, having introduced Ben to the game.
“Dad is an avid golf fan and still plays off four and my older brother is off a handicap of two, so it’s a bit of a golfing family.
“I feel thrilled that I have the opportunity to go places at this age. It’s good being busy, I enjoy it. We’ll see if it opens any doors to bigger events and we’ll go from there.”
Eccles will have the opportunity to improve his third place finish at the 2016 Victorian Open, to be held from 4 to 7 February at Thirteenth Beach Golf Links for the fourth consecutive year.
The tournament has been beefed up for 2016 with up to 132 men and 132 women vying for a share of the increased $600,000 prize pool, split equally between the fields.
Total prize money is up $100,000 on last year.
Golf Victoria CEO Simon Brookhouse said he was confident that the event would continue to build on recent successes.
“Since taking the event down to the Greater Geelong region it has experienced a complete resurgence,” Brookhouse said.
“The mounting crowds have been a strong indicator of the quality of golf and also the spectator experience provided at Thirteenth Beach.”