Everyone figured that James Lepp would wind up being Canada’s next professional golf superstar, following in the footsteps of Mike Weir.

As it turns out, Lepp would rather be the next Donald Trump. The 24-year-old Abbotsford product, who won the NCAA championship in 2005, is putting his pro golf schedule on the back burner in order to focus on a burgeoning business career.

Lepp recently created a company, Kikkor Golf, that will produce trendy-looking golf shoes for a younger demographic. Down the road, the goal is to branch into men’s and women’s golf apparel.

“Getting away from golf has kind of happened over the last three or four years,” Lepp explained in an interview with The News. “What kind of makes me tick is mastering a skill. With golf, I wasn’t seeing any improvements . . . It wasn’t fun to go practice anymore.”

While Lepp’s passion for golf has waned, his enthusiasm for his new business is palpable. He’s been immersing himself in the duties of growing the company – traveling to trade shows, developing product catalogues, attracting investors.

“I’m not a trend-setter, but I’m learning more about fashion,” said Lepp, who plans to have Kikkor shoes available in stores and online (www.kikkor.com) in mid-March or early April. “It’s really, really exciting. It’s kind of like how golf was for me as a junior. I was always learning when I was younger, and I’ve got that sense again.”

Lepp’s sparkling amateur career included a pair of national junior championships (2001-02), four consecutive B.C. Amateur wins (2002-05), and three straight RCGA order of merit titles (2003-05).

His signature victory came in 2005, when he became the first Canadian to win the NCAA Division 1 golf championship – a title previously held by the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods.

After turning pro in the summer of 2006, Lepp turned in some stellar results on the Canadian Tour, but consistency proved elusive. He notched his first title as a pro at the Greater Vancouver Charity Classic in 2007, and finished second in a playoff at the Times Colonist Open in Victoria in June of this year. But while he finished a respectable 32nd on the CanTour’s order of merit with earnings exceeding $17,000 this season, he missed the cut in six of 11 events.

“Maybe when I wanted to see improvements and didn’t get them, it pissed me off,” Lepp analyzed with a wry chuckle.

Lepp said that he doesn’t plan to attend the PGA Tour’s Q-School this fall – he’s fallen short of PGA Tour qualifying in two prior attempts – and he plans to play a limited schedule on the Canadian Tour next season. He also mused about the possibility of re-applying for amateur status at some point in the future and adding to his collection of B.C. Amateur trophies.

“You meet a lot of cool people and learn a lot about who you are,” Lepp said, reflecting on his golf career to this point. “I don’t really regret anything. It’s been a learning experience, as life is, I guess.”