Delving into the historical archives of the World Amateur Team Championships (WATC) offers hints that many of today’s greatest golfers had provided glimpses of their stardom with standout performances in the women’s Espirito Santo Trophy and men’s Eisenhower Trophy.

Amongst them, take a bow, Lydia Ko and Tiger Woods.

Ko, a Korean-born New Zealander, made her WATC debut in 2010 as a 13-year-old prodigy when the NZ team finished tied eighth in the Espirito Santo Trophy in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Two years later, Team New Zealand finished equal fifth in Antalya, Turkey, where Ko emerged as the low individual performer with her stellar effort of 14-under 274.

Fast forward to 2025, and the 28-year-old Ko is now regarded as one of the leading female professional golfers of her generation following 23 career LPGA victories. She also holds the honour of being the youngest inductee to the LPGA Hall of Fame, thanks to her gold medal winning effort at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

With her bronze medal from Tokyo 2020 and silver from Rio 2016, the ultra-talented Kiwi now owns a rare set of Olympic medals, and she is also the first golfer in the modern era to win medals at three different Olympic Games.

Ko has great memories of her two appearances at WATC, which is conducted by the International Golf Federation (IGF). It was during those early years that she first competed against the likes of Min Jee Lee of Australia, Celine Boutier of France, Brooke Henderson of Canada, England’s Charley Hull and Sophia Popov of Germany, who are now all LPGA stars in their own right.

“You know, to be able to represent your country is a huge honour, even as an amateur and that is probably one of the biggest amateur championships at the time,” said Ko, who is the youngest golfer of either gender to become the women’s world No. 1 at the age of 17 years, 9 months and 9 days in 2015.

“I think I won as an individual, and we came in fifth in the team, which was the best that I had in the two times I played. It’s so much fun as some of the girls that I met then are pros now, and we play on the LPGA together. It’s definitely one of the highlights of my career.”

When an 18-year-old Woods appeared for his lone WATC appearance in 1994 with the United States Team, he was touted as a star in the making, as his resume included three successive victories in the U.S. Junior Amateur.

He arrived for the Eisenhower Trophy in Paris, France as the reigning U.S. Amateur champion and alongside Allen Doyle, John Harris and Todd Demsey, the U.S. Team dominated the Eisenhower Trophy with a commanding 11-stroke victory over Great Britain and Ireland.

“I loved it,” said Woods, whose rounds of 70-75-67-72 (sixth individually) all counted toward the team score in a format that tallied a team’s best three rounds each day.

While Doyle, a 46-year-old veteran, took the low individual honours, he predicted a bright future for Woods, who is now rated amongst the greatest golfers of all time following 15 major victories, second only to Jack Nicklaus, and 82 PGA Tour titles which has him tied with Sam Snead for most Tour wins.

“As talented as he is, Tiger’s going to have to be better with his head than with his hands,” Doyle told Sports Illustrated in 1994. “What I really like about him is that he knows he’s a long way from where he wants to get to. In golf, the way you get better is by knowing you’re not there.”

It proved to be prophetic as Woods would go on to dominate the men’s professional game through his immense ball-striking abilities and mental prowess, where he owns a 55–4 win record when holding at least a share of the third round lead.

Singapore, through the Singapore Golf Association (SGA), will host the Espirito Santo Trophy at Tanah Merah Country Club from October 1-4, followed by the Eisenhower Trophy from October 8-11. Anticipation is high that the future stars of the game will be on full parade, like how Lydia Ko and Tiger Woods once graced the premier amateur team competitions.

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About the IGF
The International Golf Federation (IGF) was founded in 1958 and is the recognised International Federation within the Olympic and Paralympic Movement. The headquarters of the IGF is located by the shores of Lake Geneva in Lausanne, Switzerland. The IGF promotes integrity, inclusivity, and clean sport through governance, development programs, and anti-doping initiatives.