9 Things You Didn't Know About Alison Whitaker

9 Things You Didn't Know About Alison Whitaker

1. Whitaker was born November 23 1985, in Melbourne, Australia.

2. Her father, George, played football for Australia's Under-23 football team.

3. She majored in psychology from Duke University in North Carolina, and minored in theatre studies while also playing collegiate golf. Alison joined the university in 2006, which was the best ranked Women's College Golf School in the NCAA at the time.

4. Alison became a professional golfer in 2010, where she earned conditional status on the LPGA Tour for the 2011 season, after finishing 22nd at qualifying school.

5. The Australian then joined the Ladies European Tour from 2012, eventually leading to her invite to commentate on the LET. She first commentated on the LET in 2014, before becoming more of a regular for the 2015 season, which helped supplement her dwindling golf career.

6. Whitaker's first call-up for commentary duties came despite the broadcaster wanting a European voice for the final round - they had to settle for the Australian's accent instead.

7. Her stock has risen ever since, and she regularly works on the Men's European Tour and LPGA Tour - plus the women's golf at the Tokyo Olympics.

8. She transitioned from playing golf professionally to commentating because she was suffering from both glandular fever and vertigo, though she didn't know she had the illnesses when she first picked up the microphone. Her transition into retirement occurred quicker than expected, simply because of the offer of more opportunities to commentate on golf.

9. Whitaker claims that fellow golf commentators Kate Burton and Richard Kaufman are two of her most influential mentors, helping her to develop her skills in describing the action.