WKU Hilltopper Golf head coach Phillip Hatchett of Russellville announced Thursday the signing of Dominic Brettkelly (Darfield, New Zealand) to a national letter of intent in the 2017-18 signing class.

Brettkelly is ranked No. 31 in the current Junior Golf World Rankings.

“Dominic is a program changer,” Hatchett said. “His level of play will move the needle for us as a team on the rise. Not only is he a great competitor with national and international success, he is an awesome young man who will fit into our program well.”

Brettkelly is currently playing for Canterbury men’s team in the South Island Champs and recently competed for the Canterbury Under-19 team that won the New Zealand provincial championships. He also won the Canterbury club champs with his club team, playing in the No. 1 slot.

In the New Zealand Amateur, Brettkelly was eliminated in match play in the round of 16 by the eventual winner and the No. 2 ranked player in the country in extra holes.

In 2016, he finished third overall and first in the U-19 division in both the Canterbury Strokeplay Championships and Russley Open, and also won the title at the Bottle Lake Open.

He also has several other wins at the junior level, including his first open championship win at the Waimakariri Open at the age of 15.

“He has the skill set to play and win at the highest levels,” Hatchett said. “On his official visit, it was obvious he really liked what WKU has to offer in the form of player development and the goals we have set forth as a team. His best golf is in front of him, and I couldn’t be more thrilled that he will be representing Hilltopper Golf in the years to come.”