CHEK Upside: Victoria golfer recipient of Olympic grant

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WatchWilliam Bishop is one of 55 recipients of the Petro-Canada Fueling Athletes and Coaching Excellence program grant.

For William Bishop, a career in golf is the ultimate goal.

“I’ve been working really hard, lots of hours put into this and it really hit me around 2017, 2018 where I was playing competitive golf and I loved it,” says Bishop.

That hard work has led to a spot on the Canadian national junior golf squad for this year, which has seen Bishop touring Canada and the U.S.

“Right now I’m competing with the highest level juniors in Canada and then I’m also competing with many juniors down in the States when I play there,” says Bishop.

“It [his playing] is at a high level at the moment but I want to get it even higher for next year.”

Recently, Bishop’s golf dreams received a huge boost.

The 17-year-old was announced as one of 55 recipients of Petro-Canada’s Fueling Athletes and Coaching Excellence program grant, which awards $10,000 to young athletes and their coaches.

“It’s really helpful, it’s helped me a lot and the experience of going and travelling which is what tour players do and it’s really helped me with the whole experience and getting kind of a start at it which is really cool,” says Bishop.

It’s also a big moment for his family.

“He really deserves it, he’s put in a lot of time and effort which I haven’t done,” laughs Bishop’s brother and fellow golfer Gordie Bishop.

“So it’s good to actually see him get to that level that he wants to be at,” adds Gordie.

Now entering his grade 12 year at Claremont Secondary School, Bishop has already signed with Kent State University to be part of their golfing program and has his sights set on the PGA.

“I know it’s a long way from now but I’m kind of excited to go to Kent and I think it’s going to really help me with my journey to try to make the PGA tour,” says Bishop.

William Bishop is one of 55 recipients of the Petro-Canada Fueling Athletes and Coaching Excellence program grant. (Cole Sorenson/CHEK News)

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