WELLINGTON – Oct. 5, 2004 - Fourteen-year-old golf sensation Sam Shin has earned selection in the Kiwi team to contest the prestigious Aaron Baddeley World Junior Championship in Fiji.

Shin, runner-up in the Junior British open and the only player to win all games in the recent under-18 international with Australia, has been included in the four-strong team to contest the tournament from 7-10 December.

The North Harbour teenager is included in a team with fellow New Zealand junior representatives Jae An (Rotorua) and Aaron Leech (Wellington), while Taranaki teenager Mathew Blackbourn completes the line-up.

An, Shin and Leech were all members of the New Zealand under-18 team that was narrowly beaten by Australia two weeks ago in the Clare Higson International, and the trio will compete in the annual Jack Newton Junior Invitational in New South Wales next week.

Blackbourn is the newcomer, forcing selection after finishing third in the New Zealand under-19 championship in Auckland last week.

The Fiji tournament is supported by Baddeley, the two-time Australian Open champion, with the individual winner earning an invitation to the 2005 Australian Open. The format has changed this year, reverting primarily to a team strokeplay format.