St Andrews graduate Natalie Jones wins Bobby 

Jones Scholarship: year-long study in Atlanta

The Ladies Golf Union backroom team at the Curtis Cup. Left to right:Natalie Jones, Thomas Dunwell, Susan Simpson, Gillian Roy, Sebastiano Galeppini

By COLIN FARQUHARSON

St Andrews University graduate Natalie Jones has been awarded the prestigious Bobby Jones Scholarship to study for a year at Emory University, Atlanta in Georgia.
The native of York, who recently finished studying Modern History and graduated with a 2:1, is delighted, saying ‘The Bobby Jones Scholarship is an incredible opportunity to travel and study abroad and I feel very fortunate to have been selected.’

The year will give Natalie the opportunity to study various classes including, Photography, Digital Video and French which will help to prepare her for a career in digital marketing.

Over the recent years Natalie has been involved with a myriad of paid and voluntary positions within sport which have all helped her to realise her passion for inspiring people to engage with sports.

Natalie grew her experience over the past two years, working at a number of golf events as a Ladies Golf Union website updater, including the Ricoh Women’s British Open, the Vagliano Trophy and the recent Curtis Cup. She also worked at the Dunhill Links Championship and the Open. 

Getty Images' leading golf photographer Dave Cannon says: “Natalie’s an absolute sweetheart and has got natural ability with the media. Got it from the word go, she was full of life when working with her at the Dunhill Links."

Natalie has a golfing handicap of 12 and is a keen member of the University Ladies’ Golf Club and the Athletics Club.

Alongside her many other commitments, Natalie has also recently set up a wellness initiative currently based in St Andrews which promotes ‘real’ and ‘honest’ conversation and women in sport. This project has grown to partner with a local gym and she hopes to spread the message of ‘positive but not pressured’ reasons to exercise through their website: www.takeonlife.com whilst she is in America.

‘My time at St Andrews has given me so much more than simply my history degree’, said Natalie.

 ‘I feel extremely grateful to have had opportunities to learn from leading academics, work at national and international sporting events and change the way sport is thought about within the University and the wider world.

“Going to Emory allows me to further my skills so that I can follow my passion. A passion which I discovered during my time at St Andrews!’

MORE ABOUT THE BOBBY JONES SCHOLARSHIPS
The Robert T Jones Scholarships (also known as Bobby Jones scholarships) support students for one year of study at Emory University in Atlanta. They are among the most valuable and prestigious available to students at St Andrews and cover all mandatory costs. They are available to students who are completing their final year of undergraduate study and can be awarded only to British nationals.