Many people talk about grand childhood dreams that drove them to succeed in their respective careers. This is especially true of professional athletes. I am sure many girls on the LPGA Tour dreamed of becoming professional golfers when they were young. Maybe some even knew they would someday play on this wonderful tour. I wish I could say the same about my life…that sitting here at Turtle Bay Resort in Hawaii writing a rookie blog for LPGA.com fits perfectly into my master plan from childhood. This was not the case with me. Sure, I beat balls for three hours every day between the summers of my second and sixth grade years. I played my share of AJGAs through high school. But I never imagined that golf would become my profession. Even watching the numerous rising Korean LPGA stars on TV did not stir any passion or desire to play the game at that level.
I certainly was not thinking about pursuing golf seriously when I enrolled at Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, where the snow remains on the ground through April, and it seemed my lackluster golf career had ended for good when I quit the golf team at Yale University after my freshman year. That was the summer of 2003. In February 2006, I picked up the club again and this time, golf shook me awake to a new sense of direction and purpose in my life.
That was almost exactly three years ago. Since then, I have wanted nothing more than to compete on the LPGA tour. What began as almost a rebellion against the predictable life - working in the finance industry - turned into a dream. With golf, I found within myself passion, courage, peace, and bliss that I had never felt pursuing anything else before. It took me two years playing on the Duramed Futures Tour, with mostly unimpressive results and many tearful nights. But last December, I finally earned my way onto the LPGA Tour by finishing T12 at Q-School.
So here I am at my very first LPGA event. It truly feels like I am living a dream. Life has not always given me straightforward answers and simple directions. It seems I have taken a few detours to arrive here, but looking back, I would not have wanted it any other way.
The copyrighted content contained on this blog reflects the sole opinion(s) of the author. Such content does not necessarily represent the LPGA’s views, opinions, intentions, and/or strategies, and is intended for informational or amusement purposes only.
Topics: Rookie Blog, Lee, Jeehae
