Shannon Tan learns lessons on and off the course in her first four months on golf’s Ladies European Tour
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Shannon Tan's first four months on the Ladies European Tour have taught her many lessons on and off the course.
PHOTO: ARAMCO TEAM SERIES KOREA
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SEOUL – These days when Shannon Tan walks a course, her first instinct is not to check the leaderboard.
This may not have been the case last season or earlier, but the Singaporean has gained plenty of lessons in her first four months on the Ladies European Tour (LET) that she believes have helped her become a better athlete.
The 20-year-old used to always look at the leaderboard to see how she was performing as compared to others, but now tries to focus on just herself.
It was an epiphany that came to her one night as she was having dinner after one of her rounds at the Magical Kenya Ladies Open in February.
“I can play well in the last round and she plays even better, so there’s no point worrying about what your opponent does,” said Tan, who eventually won the tournament to become Singapore’s first LET champion.
“It helps my mindset when I go into an event that I should just be in control of me trying to hit fairways and greens, instead of focusing on other things like how everyone else is doing.”
Shannon Tan became the first Singaporean winner on the Ladies European Tour with her Magical Kenya Ladies Open triumph in February.
PHOTO: LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR
Her foray into professional golf has taken her to unique venues like the Vipingo Ridge in Kenya, where giraffes and zebras roamed the course freely; back to Australia, a familiar ground where she completed her high-school studies; and to South Africa, where she played against a mountainous backdrop and had “the best steak”.
It has also been a lesson in growing up for the world No. 205, who has encountered many new experiences since she turned professional in January.
The golfer, whose hands get “itchy” after two days of not playing, has learnt to pace herself amid the tour’s demanding schedule.
At the Aramco Team Series in Tampa, she came down with a cough, runny nose and sore throat that lasted a fortnight, after pushing herself too hard at previous tournaments in Morocco and Saudi Arabia.
Tan has since found a routine that works for her. If she is playing the pro-am round, she makes sure to play nine holes instead of 18 on each of the other two practice days.
“I’ve learnt not to go overboard,” said Tan on the sidelines of the May 10-12 Aramco Team Series – Korea.
“The worst thing to happen is if you’re in contention but you’re feeling really tired.”
The Republic’s top female golfer has also grown more patient, noted Tan’s caddie Robin Ellis, who has been on her bag since the LET Q-School at the end of 2023.
“She’s become a lot more accepting about dropping a shot here and there and then responding on the next hole,” said the Welshman, 30, who has caddied for other LET players like Pia Babnik, Christine Wolf and Lydia Hall.
Singapore’s Shannon Tan has learnt to be more patient on the golf course, says her Welsh caddie Robin Ellis.
PHOTO: ARAMCO TEAM SERIES – KOREA
Off the course, Tan is also embracing other tasks such as booking flights and accommodation and managing finances by herself.
It also helps that the other golfers have made Tan welcome on the tour, making it easier for her to find people to share Airbnb accommodation and transport with, as she is legally too young to rent a car in some countries.
New Zealand’s Momoka Kobori, who has known Tan since their junior golf days, said of her: “It’s easy for people to get in their own shell during tournament weeks but she’s not like that.”
This easy-going nature is something that Tan also exhibits on the course, noted fellow LET rookie Annabell Fuller.
The Englishwoman said: “I’ve no idea if she’s shot a six under or six over because she’s always the same happy person at the end of the day.”
But beneath this cool exterior is also a fearlessness that Kobori, 25, believes is one of the traits that makes Tan a good golfer.
While some may take a conservative approach at difficult holes to avoid making mistakes, she remembers how Tan was going straight for the pins at the Webex Players Series’ Murray River event in January.
With Tan making a fine start to her professional career, she has also found herself in the running for one of the 60 spots for the Paris Olympics. She currently sits 45th in the women’s Olympic Golf Rankings, with the qualification period ending on June 24.
Making it to the Games would be another significant milestone for Tan.
“You’ve got Joseph Schooling for swimming, so I hope to do the same for golf and make it more popular back home,” she said.
