‘The Future Is Now Presented by Ally’ Earns Prestigious Hashtag Sports Award

The USGA and U.S. National Development Program is pleased to announce that its series documenting the first year of the U.S. National Junior Team has won the Hashtag Sports award for Best Original Film or Series: Long-Form.

In the series, we take viewers behind the scenes as we ushered in a groundbreaking initiative — the creation of the inaugural U.S. National Junior Team. Shot over the course of seven months, we meet players and coaches that make up the golf team, featuring footage and interviews from team camps and matches, at-home visits with players and more.

The U.S. National Development Team is paving the way for the future of American golf, establishing a coordinated pathway to nurture and elevate the country’s top talent. Its creation signals a bold promise: more Americans capturing major championships and more Ryder and Solheim Cup victories for Team USA. By sharing this story through long-form, documentary-style storytelling, we’re giving fans a deeper understanding of the commitment behind the program while fostering genuine introductions and connections with the future stars of the game.

We set out to combine compelling storytelling with the digital-first format that today’s audiences crave. Documenting the inaugural year of the U.S. Junior National Team, the series provides a raw, behind-the-scenes look at the journey of young athletes, meeting the growing demand for authentic and accessible content. Designed specifically for YouTube, the series harnesses the platform's visual and interactive strengths to deliver shareable episodes that keep fans connected, engaged, and invested as the story unfolds. By collaborating with junior team members and tapping into their audiences, we amplified promotion in a way that felt organic and true to their individual voices.

We took an athlete-first approach and provided content directly to the players on the team to post on their own social channels, encouraging their followers to go watch the full series. In a commercially quiet way, our main characters were talking directly to the sports fan and owning the content themselves.

Launched in 2024, the United States National Development Program (USNDP) is a groundbreaking initiative by the United States Golf Association, operating like a startup within the USGA. Its mission: to identify, develop, and elevate the next generation of American golf talent. Building up the program’s brand and earning trust within the golf community is a top priority. This docuseries was created to not just tell, but show what the USNDP is all about—bringing its vision to life and highlighting the future of American golf.