LITTLE Maggie Whitehead followed in family footsteps by picking up a golf club – and now she has landed a trip to America.

The nine-year-old from Belmont, Durham, has qualified to play in next year’s Junior World Championships at Pinehurst after becoming the US Kids Golf British Junior champion.

It has been a fantastic year for the youngster, who also capped off a great summer by winning the Durham City Junior Open by four strokes, and she will spend the winter working on her game ahead of a huge 2016.

She will head to North Carolina to play at the home of the 2014 US Open, Pinehurst, in August just four months after appearing at the European Championships.

“Maggie has been doing really well and the big thing for her now is the trip to America, she can’t wait,” said her father, Andy. “After winning at Woodhall Spa in the British Junior Championship by one shot, she then went up to St Andrew’s as well and did really well in the Wee Wonders Championship.

"She is only nine and finished 11th in the 9-10 year age category and the majority of girls were older than her. There was only one nine-year-old girl who finished ahead of her.”

Maggie has grown up in golfing circles. As well as Andy being a nine-handicapper at Ramside Hall Golf Club, her grandparents Ray, who was a six-handicapper, and Margaret Cowie had captaincy spells at the County Durham course.

And the schoolgirl continues to impress having fended off competition from more than 125 youngsters from 13 different countries to clinch that British Championship and a place at Pinehurst, where there will be 1,450 competitors from 51 different countries taking part.

Her success has also earned a spot at the Junior European Championships held in Scotland in May, having already been up there earlier this year for the Wee Wonders Grand Final after qualifying events at Matfen Hall, Northumberland and Dumfries.

Maggie completed a hat-trick of wins locally, which saw her top the order of merit on the Durham Srixon Tour - meaning she represented Durham against Cumbria and Northumberland in the Northern Counties Final.