He came third in the worldwide finals at Lough Erin, Northern Ireland – one of many highlights in a quite brilliant junior career.

Throughout his formative years Ben, who was a pupil at Philip Morant School, won many competitions at the Braiswick club and represented both club and county before deciding to try his hand as a professional on the MENA Tour.

Last year was his most successful yet with five top-10 places, including three top-fives. His best performance was at the Al Zorah Open UAE where, after three rounds of three–under-par, he narrowly lost out in a three-way play-off.

Ben birdied the first hole along with Australian Dan Gaunt, dropping the eventual Order-of-Merit winner South African MG Keyser, only to lose out to another Gaunt birdie on the second extra hole.

The opportunity to play at the Asian Tour Q-School cranks the door open for his future. But life on the bottom rungs of the golfing ladder is no cakewalk and is costly  – with players having to pay to enter every competition. The entry fee for the Al Zorah Open alone was more than £300 and the Q-School itself will cost Ben over £1,500 with air fares on top of that. Self-funding is getting more difficult and the need for sponsorship evermore a reality.

As with all top quality sportsmen, Ben is confident in his own ability and welcomes the forthcoming Q-School challenge at the Lake View Resort & Golf Club in Thailand.

His sights are firmly set on a top-35 finish to earn full playing rights on the Asian Tour. Before that it’s the Aya Golf Club in Jordan, then the New Giza Open in Cairo and finally to Thailand.

In the meantime, it’s practice, practice, practice. Throughout all the hard work Ben has still found time to help out the new youngsters at Colchester – always making himself accessible to help out with tips, and advice.

This great role model for the club carries the good wishes of everyone at Colchester Golf Club for a well-deserved, sizzling 2020.