FIONN DOBBIN
LISBURN GOLFER PUTTS PLAN IN PLACE TO ACHIEVE HIS USA GOLFING DREAM
Fionn Dobbin has been selected by the Trust to receive £500 bursary to boost his sporting journey
Mary Peters Trust has announced that it has chosen Lisburn teen, Fionn Dobbin (15), to receive a £500 bursary from Hughes Insurance, as part of an ongoing partnership with the insurance broker.
Fionn, who started playing golf at just six years old, inspired by his Dad’s trips to the golfing range, is a member of Malone Golf Club and plays off an impressive handicap of 1. Having been selected as part of the Ulster team for inter-provincial championships numerous times and having represented Ireland at the English Under 14 (Reid Trophy) in 2019, Fionn has now set his sights on becoming a professional golfer.
The £500 bursary provided by Hughes Insurance is a show of support that Lady Mary Peters says is crucial to young athletes like Fionn.
Lady Mary Peters said: “As we all already know, local golfing talent has put Northern Ireland’s sporting ability on the global stage. It’s wonderful to see new faces like Fionn starting to be recognised and rewarded for their talent. Motivating our young athletes is crucial – the dedication they give to their sport can mean that many sacrifices are made along the way. With that in mind, I am so pleased that Hughes Insurance generous funding has allowed us to award Fionn a bursary. I
congratulate him on being selected and wish him all the best in his upcoming competitions and future career.”
Fionn’s career plans are already in full swing and knuckling down to do well in his GCSEs is the first step in his sporting journey. He says: “I start Year 12 in September, so I’ll work hard to balance my golf practice and studying for my GCSEs. I want to play college golf in the USA after my A-Levels, so I
know I need to keep the grades up, as well as my performance on the course.
“It will take a lot as my golf practice is already quite intensive. In the summer I spend most days at the golf course, working in the short-game practice area and playing holes. As the evenings will start to get darker earlier soon, and as I’ll be back in school, winter, my practice will be at the local driving range.
“I love playing golf – I’ve made lots of friends and played some fantastic courses right across Europe. Golf is largely an individual sport so getting the opportunity to play team golf is always a lot of fun
and I’ve been lucky to have been selected to many times. However, it is a very expensive sport to play competitively with a lot of travel required to take part in competitions so being selected by Lady Mary and her Trust is really good news.
“I think it’s great that Hughes Insurance has given young athletes like myself this support. I put a lot of effort in it’s always nice when the hard work pays off. It’s a sense of achievement when a part of your game that you’ve been working shows improvement, and this is a similar feeling realising that people care and are willing to support your journey.”
The Mary Peters Trust is the only province-wide organisation to provide support to young athletes from all recognised sports and bursary programmes such as its current partnership with Hughes Insurance contribute significantly to its work.
Harriet McCandless, Senior Marketing Manager at Hughes Insurance said: “Mary Peters Trust is a really important and valuable organisation and we are delighted that its work allows us to support young athletes from across Northern Ireland on their sporting journeys. Supporting community is really important to us and we look forward to awarding more athletes like Fionn throughout the rest of the year.”