Teen golfer Avani Prashanth set for LET with a mindset tweak
Mumbai: Avani Prashanth, amongst India’s most promising younger golfers, sat down along with her coach after the LPGA qualifying sequence within the USA, the place issues slid drastically regardless of her coming in feeling upbeat about her sport.
“My coach stated your perspective as an entire adjustments when a giant occasion comes alongside, and never in a productive means. I want you to vary that,” Avani stated.
Change she did, and it confirmed in one other excessive stakes qualifying occasion a couple of months down the road. The 18-year-old from Bengaluru earned the Women European Tour (LET) card for the 2025 season with a tied-16 end within the Remaining Qualifier at Lalla Aicha Q-College in Marrakesh, Morocco final month.
It was a big tick on the guidelines of India’s highest ranked novice lady golfer within the final decade who turned skilled in 2024. It additionally got here as a “little bit of a aid” for Avani after the frustration on the LPGA qualifying and an under-par 2024 season following the highs of 2023.
The LPGA miss — and her coach’s phrases — compelled the teenager to have classes along with her psychologist and carry a contemporary method to Marrakesh.
“Higher late than by no means, I obtained it into my head that I can’t be treating tournaments prefer it’s the top of the world,” Avani advised HT from Bengaluru.
“I attempted to get it out of my head that it was Q-College and handled it like a traditional event. After I performed the LPGA Q-College, it did find yourself attending to me and I put an excessive amount of stress on myself. This time I used to be much more relaxed. I stored considering I simply should make my card; doesn’t matter the place I end within the prime 20 (prime 20 on the finish of the 5-round event get their card). I additionally stored telling myself that it’s a marathon, so even when a few holes didn’t go my means, I didn’t stress about it.”
That self-talk on the course is much more balanced now.
“After I would hit a nasty shot, the very first thing that may come out of my mouth is, “How unhealthy can somebody be at this sport?” Then I’d make a bogey and say, “Wow, you’re an absolute champion of a golfer”,” Avani stated. “All of that’s gone now.”
Avani believes the previous yr has made her twice the golfer she was, regardless of her 2023 deeds. That yr, the career-high Thirty ninth-ranked novice grew to become the primary Indian to win the Queen Sirikit Cup and on the second rung LET Entry Sequence (Ahlsell Remaining in Sweden). India’s youngest golfer on the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Video games, she additionally completed T-4 on the World Beginner Staff Championship. She turned professional in October.
“Coming off 2023, I believed 2024 could be nearly as good, if not higher. However it didn’t go that means. The primary factor I’ve learnt is to take care of failure so much higher, and turn into extra accepting of the truth that I could make errors.”
Turning professional made her “much more excited” about making golf her 9 to five job, and in addition pushed her in the direction of turning into “much more mature” on the course.
That her newfound maturity has come at 18 underlines the short learner in Avani, and the way a lot room there’s to construct on this mindset shift. It’s what makes Avani stay up for taking part in on the LET tour this yr much more, the place she’s going to play alongside compatriots Diksha Dagar and Pranavi Urs.
“I’m extraordinarily excited, particularly for the Majors and the large occasions. It’ll be actual good enjoyable,” Avani stated. “Taking part in a full season on LET was on my guidelines. My purpose is to win on the LET and end within the prime 10 of the Order Of Advantage. Hopefully, I begin taking part in the LPGA tour from 2026.”
