Josiah Edwards and Isabella Leniartek were named as the Golfers of the Year at the annual GolfWA Junior Presentation Day hosted by Kwinana GC.
Gosnells golfer Edwards, aged 17, capped off another stellar year by winning the Jack Newton International Junior Classic in NSW in October.
Prior to that, he made his Australia debut in a Ryder Cup-style clash against the USA in July and captained WA to a highly creditable third place in the 2024 Junior Interstate teams Matches.
Edwards pipped WA and Australia team-mate Spencer Harrison to the award after the Royal Perth golfer also enjoyed a breakthrough year that saw him finish runner-up in the Australian Boys’ Order of Merit and win the Mandurah Open Amateur and the WA Boys’ Amateur Championship.
Mount Lawley’s Leniartek, meanwhile, claimed the girls’ award following the most successful year of her fledgling career to date.
As well as winning all three of GolfWA’s major junior titles, the 15-year-old won all seven of her individual matches at junior and open level at the Interstate Teams Matches.
Amongst the other awards announced on the day, Ruby Han (Mount Lawley) and Noah Hollyock (Royal Fremantle) were recognised as the Most Improved Golfers of the Year.
Sixteen-year-old Hollyock’s handicap reduced from 46 to 17.6 over the course of 2024, while Han, aged 14, lowered hers from 27.1 to 9.7 to become a single-figure golfer.
The awards presentation was preceded by a light-hearted Ambrose team event, which was won by Joondalup Country Club’s Ronan, Zach and Jay Nayar, and WA state player Nate Johnson.
Full list of award winners
Junior Golfers of the Year: Josiah Edwards (Gosnells); Isabella Leniartek (Mount Lawley)
Nominees: Spencer Harrison (Royal Perth); Hayley Rasmussen (Pinjarra); Declan Pereira (The Vines); Chloe Veeran (Royal Perth); Sienna McCulloch (Joondalup); Mandeep Singh (Royal Fremantle); Heejoo Cho (Royal Fremantle), Halia Edwards (Gosnells); Nicholas Tanner (Lake Karrinyup)
Most Improved Golfers of the Year: Noah Hollyock (Royal Fremantle); Ruby Han (Mount Lawley)
Nominees: Lucas Cowton (The Vines); Lewis Baker (The Vines); Kai-Raina Walker (Pinjarra); Jack McDonald (Royal Perth); Sophia Reed (Royal Perth); Rose Moorby (Hartfield); Jade McCulloch (Joondalup); Ollie Ware (Rockingham); Nalynn Kim (Gosnells); Lewis Raftery (Lake Karrinyup); Sam Williams (Lake Karrinyup)
Junior Stroke Average awards
- Boys 11 and under: Lucas Beagley, Rockingham (85.28)
- Boys 12/13: Thomas Pyke, Royal Fremantle (77.06)
- Boys 14/15: Spencer Harrison, Royal Perth (70.42)
- Boys 16/17ChampionJosiah Edwards, Gosnells GC (70.50)
- Girls 14 and under Isabella Leniartek, Mount Lawley (72.52)
- Girls 15/17: Chloe Veeran, Royal Perth (76.47)
Most Improved Golfers of the Year Ruby Han and Noah Hollyock
