Malaysia’s top woman golfer, Kelly Tan, has endured a torrid season on the LPGA Tour, missing eight cuts from nine starts.
And she has pinpointed her problem to a common ailment among local athletes – poor mental strength.
Tan, who had no tournaments for the past three weeks, spent that time working on her game, but admitted she has yet to find a mental coach.
“I have been talking to a few people. It (having a mental coach) can make my game stronger,” said Tan, who hails from Batu Pahat, Johor.
“I have a great team around me. I want to bring in the right people.
“This year has been tough. I am just fighting with myself, mainly. I am my own worst enemy.”
Over the course of her 10-year professional career, Tan has set numerous benchmarks for Malaysian golf, including best performance in a Major, across both genders, with her T13 finish at the 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
She has 24 starts in Major events, a Malaysian record, and in 2020, finished a career-high 37th on the LPGA Tour’s season-long Race to the CME Globe standings.
Tan is glad her husband, Dustin Lattery, is back on the bag for her at this week’s Dana Open, and the next event, the two-player team-format Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.
The couple tied the knot last December, but due to business commitments, Lattery has not been able to accompany Tan as much as he would have liked to.
Tan, 29, has fond memories of the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, where she teamed up with Finnish player Matilda Castren to finish second last year.
“Dusty will be in the bag for the next couple of weeks. I had my best individual performance of T4 at the 2014 Dana Open, and Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational is where I had my best LPGA Tour finish with Matilda – so I am looking forward to both,” said Tan.
Tan hopes positive results in these two tournaments will set her up for a good outing when the LPGA returns to Malaysia in October.
The Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club will host the US$3 million Maybank Championship, from Oct 26-29.
