A TALENTED teenager’s dedication paid off when he landed thousands of pounds in winnings from a computer game competition.

Harley King travelled to San Diego in California to compete in the gaming event at TwitchCon, an annual convention for users of the video game streaming site Twitch.TV.

The 15-year-old from Hove, who goes to Cardinal Newman School, had only agreed to take part the week before.

But he ended up walking away with a share of 88,500 dollars after his team climbed to fifth in the international tournament.

Harley said: “My friend knew two people who were looking for someone to join their team so he told them I could play as I was going to the event anyway.”

He flew out to California on September 26 and within 24 hours he was entrenched in fierce competition.

After progressing through a number of rounds and putting in several hours of hard graft, Harley and his team of three had netted a total of 88,500 dollars.

Harley said: “It was crazy, everyone was messaging me to say congrats, I couldn’t believe it.”

Harley said in the future he wants to play video games as his full-time job.

He will be saving most of his winnings from this competition and hopes to put it towards a house later down the line. He will also be paying his mother Caroline back for the cost of the trip to America which made it all possible.

Harley won the prize by competing against fellow players of the cult video game Fortnite.

In it, players skydive into a virtual battleground in which they must use skill and cunning to survive while tackling their foes with weapons hidden around the field, until one person or team remains.

Harley said he got into gaming because it allowed him to “express himself”.

He said: “Back in Year 8 I didn’t have too many friends that I would hang out with.

“I was really antisocial and so began to spend a lot of my time playing games.

“I felt I could really express myself and was more comfortable talking to people online. I can just have fun and not worry about other things.”

He said many people often misunderstand gaming as a pastime saying people had made fun of his passion before.

Harley said: “Now people have seen that I have won this money a lot of them have said congratulations.

“I feel a lot of people get into gaming because they are self-conscious. Gaming is an escape, but a lot of people don’t see that. They think these people are spending too much time on the computer, but that is what makes them happiest, it’s the highlight of their day.”

He also said he was lucky to have a mother who helped him every step of the way.

Harley said: “She is so proud. She is really supportive of everything and always gives the best advice.

“To have her support me as much as she does is just amazing.”

Caroline, an accountant, said: “He put a lot of effort into it.

“He told me we had to go to San Diego and this was his chance so we went.

“But I didn’t see this coming at all, for him to be able to achieve this is really something.

“It has really given him an element of empowerment.

“People over there would recognise him and stop him because they wanted photos with him.

“It’s just surreal for a 15-year-old boy from Hove.”