During the Scholarship celebration evening each year, we award one of our incredible Scholars the award of ‘Scholar of the Year’. This award recognises the student’s commitment to the scholarship scheme, their sport and the University as a whole. Our 2025/26 winner was Saul Guilford, a golf scholar who has achieved great things in his sport and whilst being a scholar.
For Saul, who has recently graduated from the University of Kent, the past three years have been about much more than earning a degree. Alongside studying for a BSc in Artificial Intelligence, he has developed his golf, represented Kent in competitions, helped grow the University’s golf society and supported efforts to make the sport more accessible and inclusive. After winning the ‘Scholar of the Year’ award, he reflects on his experience as a Kent Sport Scholar, the people and opportunities that shaped his university journey, and the lessons he’ll take into the next chapter of his career.
Q) What did you study at Kent and what are your plans now you have completed your studies and graduated?
A) Artificial Intelligence BSc, now that I’ve graduated I’m looking to spend the next year focusing on my golf to get the highest level it can be and working in jobs which give me the time to improve whilst developing my portfolio of projects to be in a position to get a Data Science job in sports.
Q) How did you first hear about Kent University and the Sports Scholarship Scheme and what attracted you to come to study here/join the Programme?
A) I first heard about Kent online. I was impressed by its computer science department and knowing I wanted to specialise in AI, the modules at Kent helped me to learn and develop the skills, and were very practical, something that I prefer. Once I visited the campus I knew it was the one, after growing up in the countryside outside of Leeds I needed some greenery and the campus has a great offering, particularly on the walk from the Sports Centre to the Pavilion. I heard about the scheme on an Open Day and knew it was too good an opportunity to waste, I’m glad I did.
Q) You came to university later in life than most undergraduates, what advice would you give to people coming to university at a later age?
A) If anyone is thinking of going to University later in life I would recommend it. I had a truly great experience and made so many amazing friends. There’s sometimes higher expectations given greater experience beforehand but I’ve learnt so much from so many. The amalgamation of upbringings and cultures means everyone approaches everything differently and can really round out your skills, personality and outlook on life.
Q) Can you comment on the benefits of the Sports Scholarship Scheme at Kent and how it has supported you as a student athlete whilst at University as well as prepare for life after Kent?
A) I’m really grateful for everything the scheme has offered me in my 3 years at Kent, specifically with the personal training provided by Harry and Jim which helped me to maintain my performance levels throughout. The membership to Kent Sport facilities was another great benefit allowing access to book the top class facilities such as the indoor tennis courts or 3G pitches as well as the gym use and further benefits such as sports massages and physio.
I also learnt a lot from the many workshops put on which covered a variety of topics, most notably an online talk from Jodie Stimpson in which she offered insights on what brought her success but also how she navigated University life to facilitate that success.
I must also show thanks for the financial support of the scheme for which I may not have been able to play golf without and has allowed me to represent the University without having to question whether I can afford to.
Q) What advice would you give to future scholars joining the scheme?
A) I would recommend getting to know as many scholars as possible, with approximately 60 each year, across so many sports everyone approaches their training for their sport differently and the balance of both fun/discipline and studying/sport.
The scheme is very much a support network, and it’s down to you as the scholar to reap the benefits on offer. Don’t be afraid to ask for the support or take the support offered, and throw yourself into it 100% to make sure you get the best experience.
In the personal training sessions, try to find a partner or group that drives you to improve. I was very fortunate to spend most of my three years training with Aaron, who was better than I was but helped motivate me to make those improvements.
Q) What are your earliest golfing memories, and how did you get into the sport?
A) My parents bought a set of plastic clubs to use in the garden aged 5 and I really took to it. I started lessons at Wike Ridge with their 12-hole short Par 3 course, which was a great course to grow up on, and gave a lot of opportunities to Juniors.
One of my first memories was playing with James, one of my friends at the time, aged 7, and witnessing his Hole-in-one in the HSBC Wee Wonders Competition, a feat yet to be achieved nearly 20 years later.
Q) What advice would you give to an aspiring golfer looking to start playing at university?
A) I’d focus on expectations and time-management. Knowing that the first and last couple weeks of each term are busiest and any practice you get in should focus on maintaining your level and in the middle of term times avoiding deadlines you should get more opportunities to undertake bigger technical changes or fine tune your performance.
Golf can be quite isolating, I’ve always been fortunate to be part of top teams across my time in Leeds and Kent. Brainstorming, practicing and competing against one another, drives feedback, performance and enjoyment. This is something I was very happy to have been a part of developing within the University team.
In terms of competitions at University, focus on the BUCS individual events, a great way to play top courses across the UK whilst competing against some of the country’s best players and it has world ranking points on offer.
Q) You’ve played an important role in developing and growing the golf society, especially women’s golf at Kent, how did you find this experience and what have you learned from it?
A) When I joined Kent, my first 18 months were spent growing the size of the society with the number of members and to also spread awareness for prospective students.
Once we achieved this, we were able to address the gender bias within golf and our society. We achieved this utilising the support offered from Kent Students’ Union. We were able to host taster sessions to provide free golf, coaching and transport as part of initiatives such as ‘This Kent Girl Can’ and ‘We Can Too’ set up respectively by Toni and Anna as VP of Sports.
The success of these events proved that with access the interest was there and we ran a ‘Queen of Clubs’ section this past year which represented 30% of the society and provided these opportunities more frequently and provided an inclusive environment to learn and integrate into our weekly sessions.
I’ve relished the chance to grow the golf society. When I first joined I could never have imagined building what we have and this helped reinforce the concept that lots of consistent effort really does reap results, and I hope to be able to support any future efforts of the society to continue this journey.
Q) You also held various committee roles within the golf society, such as captain and treasurer (Think this is right (Technically Coach 1st yr otherwise right)), how valuable did you find this experience?
A) Holding various committee roles in the golf society helped develop a lot of skills in a leadership positions. The general organisation of events, admin, financial restrictions, and finding solutions to reduce debt year on year, whilst continuing to grow the society. Being treasurer helped to provide experience of general operations of a moderate size group and particularly implementing processes and planning for the future management beyond my graduation.
The role of captain, was a position new to me but I was able to take inspiration from those I had played under growing up, In particular Ray, Nora and Lawrance, who all had different approaches and all 3 built teams who reflected their own strengths. The opportunity to apply this to the golf team and achieve success was one I’ll always be grateful for and be able to apply to my career and any future golf teams.
Q) You set up a golf simulator on university open days, what inspired you to do this and was it a success?
A) This is going to be the maddest idea I ever attempt (I hope).
As a part of trying to offer greater access to all to golf, I had explored many options (many being impossibly ambitious). I’d explored ideas as mad as converting lecture halls to swing rooms, building a driving range at campus, or smaller ideas such as hiring the University Mini Golf equipment, I’m not sure there was an idea I didn’t have.
Ultimately, through a number of ideas merging, I realised the possibility of building a simulator in a marquee. Through months of planning, custom building and ordering, plus the bad idea of camping in Scotland a few days before, the marquee simulator was complete. It was an enormous effort not just conceptualising but assembling on the day, which took a huge effort and I’m especially grateful to have had the support of the society members, and other friends.
Installing this during Freshers Week was a great success despite some technical hiccups and with some well-planned fallback ideas. The grandiose nature of it allowed us to attract plenty of attention and it was the perfect advert for the society in week one.
With some minor upgrades and tweaks, the second installation, during the Undergraduate Open Day, was a great success and not only provided a great opportunity to meet prospective students, but we also recruited some current students to the society, as well as having a more intimate opportunity to answer questions and provide insight into life at Kent. We were also able to run an evening for the society the night before and this was one of the most fulfilling nights of the year for me seeing all my hard work being enjoyed by so many.
Q) Juggling University commitments, alongside sporting commitments, can be challenging for many students, especially with the duration of golf events and the long travel distances required. How did you manage to balance this during your time at Kent?
A) Time management has been by far the hardest part of University for me. If I listed my commitments, I can’t believe how much I achieved on a weekly basis.
Having a routine was initially a challenge, a lot of late-night library trips, away matches and 3 day tournaments prevented that, but once I had a routine, a lot of it became second nature. Fortunately, the BUCS tournaments fell mostly in the holidays, which allowed me to play (and camp in 0°C) in Scotland before term started, easing a large amount of the travel issues. I’m also grateful for the privilege to have taken a couple of months off now I’ve graduated which allowed me to push through to my limit and burnout in term-time.
The duration of golf can be difficult to manage, especially with travel, but I found playing for the team beneficial in many ways, maintaining my sharpness and also providing great confidence with only one loss in 3 years. With this level maintained I was able to peak for events with just a week of increased practice.
Q) Golf can be a particularly challenging sport mentally for many people, how do you deal with this and pick yourself up after a particularly difficult hole or a disappointing round?
A) I believe golf is quite unique as a sport and due to the duration and scale of the game, every round has moments of struggle and moments of greatness. Riding the wave on the highs and preparing yourself during the struggles is a skill in itself. As a Junior I was at the club 8-6 everyday and if you win you had time to celebrate, otherwise you go back to practicing. This shaped my mindset and disappointing rounds just provide motivation to put the time in and make the necessary improvements.
I’ve always had an aggressive playstyle, this means when I’m not playing well I have to accept there will be a lot of bad shots and bad holes, but this playstyle is what has brought me a lot of success and I’m happy with that trade-off, and it means I just have to fight harder when I am struggling, and remind myself of its positive returns.
Q) You regularly played 5-aside alongside your golf whilst at Kent. Can you comment on the sports facilities and opportunities available to students?
A) In my first year I played a lot of 11-aside football and tennis and in my final year I played a lot of 5-aside football, these opportunities to play sports I used to enjoy competitively in a more social environment, helped meet more friends and get closer to friends I had. Socially they grew my circle enormously and allowed me a release away from golf.
The facilities are incredible for both of these sports with the indoor tennis centre being one of the big attractions to me joining Kent, The two 3G pitches allow matches all year round and there are so many opportunities for all levels. The ability to book these is such as great opportunity to stay fit and play with friends.
Q) Where is your favourite place in Canterbury and is there anywhere you recommend new students check out?
I have so many places in Canterbury I love. The top three would have to be, Penny Theatre’s Wing Wednesday, Chuck and Blade’s milkshakes, pool and snooker at Cousins. Just walk down the high-street and there’s so many gems to discover. If you’re into your football the best place will always be Woody’s, the atmosphere for big games is always electric and another great place to meet new friends.
Q) In your final year you received recognition from both the Scheme and the student union, winning Scholar of the year and sportsman of the year. How proud are you to have won these awards and your legacy here at the University of Kent?
A) I normally try not to think about awards too much, but after being nominated for both twice before my final year, I thought about them a lot. To win both is a huge privilege and I’m extremely grateful to all the scholars, golfers and friends and family who voted, nominated and supported me.
I feel particularly proud to win the Scholar of the Year, after two of my close friends Bomi and Jorja had won it in recent years. Being able to follow them and win the award is a great privilege, after seeing their contributions in making the scheme as successful as it is now, brings me much joy.
Q) Finally, now that you have graduated from the University, could you summarise your time on Campus and share your fondest memories of your time at the University of Kent?
A) A lot of my favourite memories are tied to wins, the golf teams cup win this year, winning the 11-aside league in first year, picking up a double at Team Kent Awards, All incredible experiences but mostly because of everyone I got to share the celebrations with.
There are many more personal memories I cherish, time shared with friends, whether it was movie marathons, watching 2nd division German football on a friday, Poker nights. These last three years have been an incredible experience, I’ll always look back on fondly.
From competing for Team Kent and developing the golf society to building an ambitious golf simulator for Open Days, Saul’s time at Kent has been defined by taking opportunities and making the most of them. As he looks ahead to developing a career in Data Science within sport while continuing to pursue his golf, his experience is a reminder of the opportunities that can come from combining academic ambition with sport, community and a willingness to get involved.
Are you interested in becoming a Kent Sport Scholar? You can read more about our scholarship scheme, the sports we offer and how to apply here.