Tommy Morrison is a junior at the University of Texas and will represent the United States at the 2024 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. Morrison won the 2024 European Amateur Championship and played in the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon. He discusses his time in the U.K. over the summer, his motivation to qualify for the Spirit, how competing in amateur golf tournaments in high school helped his development, his experience playing competitively at Whispering Pines Golf Club, his relationship with teammate David Ford, and more! 

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf

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Gerardo Gómez is a freshman at the University of Arkansas and will represent Mexico at the 2024 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. He is Mexico's National Amateur Champion, a tournament he won in the summer of 2024.

The SGA caught up with Gómez about his high school experience at Montverde Academy (FL.), why he chose the University of Arkansas, winning Mexico's National Championship, his long-time dream of qualifying for the Spirit, and more! 

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Nacho Gervás is the managing director of the Spaniard Golf Federation and a former member of the DP World Tour (formerly European Tour). Gervás competed for Team Spain through his junior, amateur and professional golf career. In this episode, he talks to the SGA about the growth of golf in Spain, how the federation is developing the next generation of golfers, previews Team Spain's four players competing in the 2024 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship, and more. 

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf

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I Need to Start Writing Things Down by Chris Zabriskie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Source: http://chriszabriskie.com/darkglow/

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Tiffany Joh has been successful in all aspects of golf since competing in the 2007 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. 

After a stellar college career at UCLA, Joh went on to have a successful 11-year career on the LPGA TOUR. Following retirement in 2021, Joh immediately set her sights on helping develop the next generation of the game. After spending three seasons coaching at USC, Joh has recently joined the coaching staff for the U.S. Junior National Team.

The SGA talked with Joh about her career, what the U.S. Junior Golf Development Program is doing, and how the world of amateur golf has changed since she won two U.S. Public Links Championships.

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf 

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Artist: http://chriszabriskie.com/

Omar Morales, a rising senior at UCLA, will compete on Team Mexico at the 2024 Spirit International Amateur at Whispering Pines Golf Club. Morales has been a member of Mexico's National Golf team since he was 12, and he shared his journey climbing the ranks of amateur golf with the SGA. Morales also discusses the players who influenced him growing up, and shares his takeaways from the last two U.S. Opens. 

Follow The Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf 

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Source: http://chriszabriskie.com/darkglow/

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In episode 2 of the Spirit Golf Podcast, the SGA catches up with 2011 Spirit Alum Austin Ernst. Ernst is a 3x winner on the LPGA TOUR and represented the United States in two Solheim Cups. 

Ernst reflects on her illustrious career, how her amateur career prepared her for professional golf, how amateur golf has changed since she won the 2011 NCAA Division 1 Championship, and the newfound joys of motherhood.

Follow The Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf

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Artist: http://chriszabriskie.com/

In episode 1 of the Spirit Golf Podcast, the SGA briefs you on the history of the Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship and interviews 2024 Team USA captain Nathan Smith. 

Smith is a 4x U.S. Mid Amateur winner, leading him to compete in four editions of The Masters Tournament. We caught up with Nathan on his captain duties, what it means to return to The Spirit, and updates on the world of amateur golf. 

Follow The Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf 

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Cameron Adam is a senior on the Northwestern University golf team and will represent Scotland at the 2024 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. Adam dishes on what it was like to grow up in Scotland's deep-rooted golf culture, how he began representing Scotland at the national level, winning his nation's title, how the Stephen Gallacher Foundation was crucial to his development, and more! 

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf

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Source: http://chriszabriskie.com/darkglow/

Artist: http://chriszabriskie.com/

Dominic Clemons is a junior at the University of Alabama. He talks about his 2024 victories at the Scottish Men's Open and the Folds of Honor Intercollegiate. He also discusses his amateur golf journey, beginning at Hutchinson Community College, then to Stetson University, and now at Alabama. Clemons also qualified for the 152nd Open Championship, and he talks about his experience at Royal Troon and how he began competing for the English National Team. 

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf.

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Ashton McCulloch is a senior at Michigan State University and will represent Team Canada at the 2024 Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship. McCulloch joined the SGA and discussed growing up as a sportsman in Canada, joining the Canadian National Team, early wins in amateur golf, competing at the U.S. Open and RBC Canadian Open after winning the 2023 Canadian Amateur, playing at Michigan State alongside 2021 #SpiritAlum James Piot, hearing about The Spirit from 2021 #SpiritAlum Johnny Travale, and more!

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf.

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Jasmine Koo is ranked third on the World Amateur Golf Rankings and is a freshman at the University of Southern California. She joins the SGA after winning back-to-back tournaments at the Windy City Collegiate Classic and the Stanford Intercollegiate. Koo already has a major amateur win as she was victorious at the Women's Western Amateur and finished fourth at the Augusta National Women's Amateur. Koo has represented the United States at the Wyndham Cup, Junior Solheim Cup, and the 2024 Curtis Cup. Already well accomplished at the amateur level, Koo also finished low amateur in an LPGA major at the 2024 Chevron Championship. She also discusses her friendship with fellow 2024 Team USA teammate Asterisk Talley. 

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf.

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Christiaan Maas is the 14th-ranked player in the Official World Amateur Golf Rankings and the No. 1 ranked male amateur golfer in South Africa. He's a junior on the University of Texas Men's Golf team. Maas talked with the Spirit Golf Association about golf courses in South Africa vs. the United States, the adjustments he's made to his game to improve, how John Fields and the Texas Golf staff have helped him develop, his friendship with 2021 #SpiritAlum & fellow South African Christo Lamprecht, and his playing experience at Whispering Pines Golf Club for the 2024 Big 12 Championship.

Follow the Spirit on X and Instagram, @thespiritgolf

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Artist: http://chriszabriskie.com/

Australia's Kai Komulainen and Josiah Gilbert are leading the Men's Medal leaderboard after shooting 12-under 60 in the opening round of The Spirit! They talked to SGA post-round.

Caitlyn Macnab | Team South Africa

Age: 22

Hometown: Johannesburg, South Africa

College/University: University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) - Senior

Lowest Round: 63

World Amateur Golf Ranking: 32

Collegiate/Amateur Highlights:

• #38 in Clippd Scoreboard individual standings (as of Nov. 6)
• Played in the 2021 Spirit - T32 in Individual Division; T15 in Women’s Team (Kaylah Willliams) and 8th in Overall Team Division
• 2022, 2023 & 2024 WGCA All-American
• 2022, 2023 & 2024 Golfweek All-American 
• 2023-24 All-SEC Second Team
• 2022, 2023 & 2024 Augsta National Woman's Amateur Participant 
• 2023 & 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup Participant
• 2024 NCAA Bermuda Run Regional Medalist
• 2024 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll
• 2023 Mason Rudolph Championship Medalist
• 2022 Schooner Fall Classic Medalist
• 2021-22 & 2022-23 All-Big 12
• 2021-22 Big 12 Freshman of the Year
• 2021-22 First-Team Academic All-Big 12
• 2021-22 Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team

Getting to Know Caitlyn: 

Has four career holes-in-one …Senior at the University of Mississippi …studying Allied Health Studies …Favorite golfer is Henrik Stenson, the Ice Man

“It is always such a privilege and honor to represent your country, and I am ecstatic to have the opportunity to represent SA again this year at the 2024 Spirit!” — Caitlyn Macnab

Adela Cernousek | Team France

Age: 21

Hometown: Antibes, France

College/University: Texas A&M - Senior

Lowest Round: 65 at the 2024 U.S Open qualifier

World Amateur Golf Ranking: 10

Collegiate/Amateur Bio:

• #2 in Clippd Scoreboard individual standings (as of Nov. 6)
• 2025 GOLF Channel and Golfweek Preseason First Team All-American
• 2024 NCAA Division I national champion, winning by three strokes
• Posted eight top-six finishes and named to numerous All-American teams
• Finished fourth among amateurs in the 2024 U.S. Women’s Open
• Member of  Team International for the 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup
• Averaged a program-record 69.94 stroke average last year becoming the first Aggie women’s golfer to shoot below 71 for the season
• 5th in the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur

David Ford | Team USA

Age: 22

Hometown: Peachtree Corners, Georgia (Rivers Academy HS - Alpharetta, Ga.)

College/University: North Carolina - Senior

Lowest Round: 62, three times

World Amateur Golf Ranking: 6

Collegiate/Amateur Highlights:

• ranked #1 in PGA TOUR University rankings
• #2 in Clippd Scoreboard individual standings (as of Nov. 6) 
• named ACC Men’s Player of the Month in October
• finished 33rd in the 2024 U.S. Amateur
• member of United States winning teams in the 2023 Walker Cup, 2023 and 2024 Palmer Cups and 2023 World Amateur Team Championship
• competed in the 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational, earning an exemption by vote of his Palmer Cup teammates in 2023 based on the teammate who best represents the legacy and values of Arnold Palmer
• has played in three NCAA Championships – his highest finish was T5 in 2022
• UNC’s all-time leader in stroke average with a 70.58
• three-time All-ACC and All-America selection
• ACC Player of the Year in 2023 and Freshman of the Year in 2022
• made his PGA Tour debut in 2023 in the Barbasol Championship, where he made the cut by two shots and finished T58 at 7-under
• played in the 2022 Southern Amateur and 2023 Jones Cup
• four-time AJGA champion

In the men's medal, Team USA's Tommy Morrison and David Ford are three shots back of Team Australia after opening 9-under 63, thanks to Morrison's seven birdies and an eagle on the sixth at Whispering Pines Golf Club.

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USA | Nathan Smith | Captain |Team USA

Smith was a three-time gold medalist in the 2011 Spirit. He won gold in the individual men’s division (tied with six other players) and he and Kelly Kraft teamed to win the men’s team division at 18-under 270. He also won the international team division (Kraft, Austin Ernst, Emily Tubert) with a 31-under par in the 72-hole, best-ball stroke play championship.…Smith has played in 48 USGA championships and has won four U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships…he has played on three Walker Cup teams - 2009, 2011 and 2013 - and provided the match-winning point for the USA in 2013 at National Golf Links of America in Southampton, New York…In 2025, Smith will captain the U.S. Walker Cup team…he was paired with golf legend Arnold Palmer at the 2004 Masters in Arnold’s last round at Augusta National…he resides in Pittsburgh, Penn.…played golf at Allegheny College where he earned NCAA Division III All-America honors and is a member of the Allegheny College Sports Hall of Fame 

“It is an amazing honor to have played in The Spirit and to be asked to serve as captain of Team USA in this incredible event.”

Carla Bernat Escuder | Team Spain

Age: 22

Hometown: Castellon, Spain

College/University: Kansas State - Senior

Lowest Round: 64

World Amateur Golf Ranking: 33

Collegiate/Amateur Highlights:

• 2023-24 Second Team All-American (WGCA)
• 2023-24 Third Team All-American (Golfweek)
• 2023-24 All-Big 12 (Coaches)
• 2024 Big 12 Golfer of the Month (March)
• 2022-23 AAC Women’s Golfer of the Year (Coaches)
• 2022-23 All-AAC (Coaches)
• 2022-23 Second Team All-American (WGCA)
• 2022-23 Third Team All-American (Golfweek)

Getting to Know Carla: 

Tied for third in program history with two individual wins … Majoring in kinesiology … Favorite golfer is John Rahm … Has one career hole-in-one

“Proud to be representing Spain.” —Carla Bernat Escuder

Cayetana Fernandez Garcia-Poggio | Team Spain

Age: 19

Hometown: Madrid, Spain

College/University: Texas A&M - Sophomore

Lowest Round: -8

World Amateur Golf Ranking: 29

Collegiate/Amateur Highlights:

• #24 in Clippd Scoreboard individual standings (as of Nov. 6)
• 2024 All-SEC Second Team
• 2024 All- SEC Freshman Team
• 2024 Golf Channel Preseason Second Team All-American
• 2023-24 ANNIKA Award Preseason Watch List
• 2024 Golf Channel Preseason First Team All-American
• Finished fourth at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur (2023)

22 Spirit alums are competing in the 2025 Chevron Championship this week. In this episode, we hear from Stacy Lewis, World No. 1 Nelly Korda, Augusta National Women's Amateur champion Carla Bernat Escuder, and Vanessa Borovilos. 

The Spirit caught up with Glenn Weckerlin, Executive Director of the Chevron Championship, to start the week in the Woodlands for the first of five LPGA major championships on the 2025 schedule. Weckerlin discussed the third year (54th overall) of the Chevron Championship at the Nicklaus Course at Carlton Woods, what the Chevron Championship does for local charity and the Houston community, plus we deep dive into the eight amateurs who are in the field this week at the Chevron Championship.