Mhotsha gets invite to US prestigious golf tourney
Golf sensation, Ouname Mhotsha continues to make strides and her hard work has landed her an invite to the 2021 PGA Works Collegiate Championship.
The championship will take place from May 3 to 5 at the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida in the US. The tournament is the most culturally significant championship in collegiate golf. Speaking to Mmegi Sport, Mhotsha said the championship is prestigious and was created for minorities in the game of golf. “It was founded to elevate the game of golf at minority colleges.
That is colleges that mainly comprise players from backgrounds that are underrepresented in golf. The TPC Sawgrass golf course is a high-level professional tour event golf course, which means it would test the players’ ability to see how they would fair in professional golf events,” Mhotsha said.
She explained the requirements for acceptance were that an individual should show potential in academics and golf.
Mhotsha said those are the areas that she continuously works hard on.
She added that to have the tournament organisers recognise her efforts means a lot to her and it would add to her motivation to keep on going. Mhotsha said she learnt about the tournament from Adam Buie, who is head coach for the University of Arkansas in Monticello.
“The tournament is very special for me because I grew up watching Tiger Woods play at the same golf course in professional events, so to play in the same course brings a lot of inspiration,” she said.
Mhotsha said in terms of preparation, she has had a solid season of five tournaments so far with two more to go including the upcoming one.
“So, I would keep working on maximising on my strengths and learning from my mistakes as I did with the tournaments I already played. I would also watch some videos of Tiger to see if I could pick up any advice from how he played on the course,” she said.
Mhotsha said winning the tournament would be a great confidence booster and a great motivating factor for her to keep inspiring young people who are watching her journey to fight for their dreams.
“I want to introduce Botswana as a participant in the world of golf. Mainly by becoming a professional golfer, but that dream grew to include being involved in golf development not only in Botswana but everywhere I find myself in the world.
I see myself being propelled to share this game with those interested in learning from it. It has become part of my purpose,” she said.
Mhotsha is currently based at the University of Arkansas in Monticello, doing a Master of Science degree in Natural Resources Economics and also playing golf at the same time.