By Steve Pike
Transcend Capital Advisors has signed a multi-year Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) partnership with 15-year-old amateur golfer Miles Russell, currently ranked No. 1 in the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) Boys rankings.
Russell, from Jacksonville Beach, Florida, was the youngest-ever winner of the AJGA’s Rolex Junior Player of the Year Award in 2023, surpassing the record previously held by Tiger Woods for 32 years.
Following an exemplary run on the Florida Junior Tour circuit, amassing 14 wins and 34 top-five finishes in 42 starts, Russell burst onto the national scene last year, when he won two AJGA Junior All-Star events – the TaylorMade TP5 Junior All-Star and Moon Golf Junior All-Star – by a combined 15 strokes. He was a member of Team USA at the 2023 Junior Ryder Cup in Rome, Italy, teaming up with fellow Team Transcend member Yana Wilson in foursome and fourball matches.
Russell has emerged as one of the game’s most exciting young talents. At the beginning of August, he won the 2023 Junior PGA Championship, shooting 18-under par over four rounds, seven shots clear of his nearest competitor. A few weeks later, he followed up with a win at the Junior PLAYERS Championship to become the youngest-ever champion in event history.
Russell closed out his sensational year with a second-place finish at the South Beach International Amateur, including a course record-tying 10-under par round of 60 in his second round, finishing two shots behind fellow Team Transcend member, Ben James. The only amateur to advance to the final Monday qualifier for last week’s Puerto Rico Open, Russell fired a five-under par 67 and advanced to a playoff for the last qualifying spot, but fell just short in his effort to become one of the youngest players to qualify for a PGA TOUR event.
“I am so excited to be a part of Team Transcend,” said Russell. “Joining this team of exceptional amateur players is humbling and makes me want to work hard and get better every day. Thanks to Transcend’s support, I am able to pursue my golf dreams to the fullest and I couldn’t be more grateful for their belief in me.”
