Ashleigh bounces back for 2014

Bedfordview resident and professional golfer, Ashleigh Simon, recently secured her Ladies PGA (LPGA) tour card for 2014 by winning a four-way play-off for the last 20 cards on offer.

Ashleigh is a two-time winner on the Ladies European Tour and finished the 2013 season ranked 13th, after playing only 10 events.

In January 2013 she endured hip surgery, which only saw her return to competitive golf in April.

Ashleigh’s home course is the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Gold Course and she practices at Serengeti Golf and Wildlife Estate, where her coach Dougie Wood is based.

Ashleigh has been though the LPGA Qualifying school seven times since she turned pro in 2007.

“I tried every year, but I was unsuccessful until now,” she said.

Ashleigh believes that this time around she is the strongest, mentally, that she has ever been.

“Mentally, I was in a different space. I played well in 2013, despite my shortened season after coming back from surgery. I played really well in my last few tournaments and that definitely boosted my confidence going into Q-School, knowing that I could do it. The mental side was a lot stronger than it has been in the past,” she said.

According to Ashleigh, the Qualifying School is pretty much the most daunting week in any golfer’s life.

“For me, personally, the pressure is much worse at Q-school than at any Major I’ve played in. You want it so badly and you know there are only 20 spots. You know that if you don’t finish in the top 20, you don’t have a place to work for the next season,” she said.

During Qualifying School, golfers play five rounds over two courses.

“This year I approached Q-School very differently. I was calm and I was not nervous. For once I did not treat it like ‘Oh my gosh, it’s Q-School, I’ve got to do this’. I treated the week like it was any other golf tournament,” said Ashleigh.

To celebrate her qualification into the LPGA, she met up with her aunt, uncle and cousin in Orlando where they spent the day at Universal Studios.

“I am extremely happy with my season, especially how I came back after the surgery. I have to say that the surgery and the time I had to spend in rehabilitation gave me the time to think and reflect on my career and I gained a lot of perspective.

“After three months off, when I returned to practice, I really enjoyed it again. You go through stages in your career where golf becomes just something you have to do, and not something you really want to do,” said Ashleigh.