Growing up in the city of Chonburi, Thailand, was an adventure. Located on the southeastern coast of the Bay of Bangkok, Mind was 11 years old when her father introduced her to the game of golf, and her life would never be the same. Golf would take her all over the world, competing against amazing young talent.
The first country she ever traveled to outside of Thailand to compete was Singapore. “I played really well,” she remembered. The course they played was a LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) course. “It was a challenging course but very fun,” Mind said. Her favorite golfing destination so far has been Australia. “Golf wasn’t my first sport,” Mind said. “I first tried to play tennis, but I just wasn’t any good at it. But golf made sense to me. I liked it and realized that I was good at it, and my dad wanted me to stick with it.”
Mind eventually received a scholarship offer to play golf at Wingate University in North Carolina. “I won at least one tournament every year that I was there, but I still have one more year of eligibility that I can use,” Mind said. In my junior year, I finished 19th in the nation and was 2nd team All-America and set the women’s scoring record at Wingate with a 73. My lowest score ever was a 68 and I finished 2nd in that tournament. “I have had a lot of success, but I didn’t get here on my own. People helped me along the way, and I am very thankful for all the help.”
Mind’s dream is to play on the LPGA tour. “I want to be a pro,” she said. But she also loves coaching young talent and helping them to develop. When summer comes along, and the students leave, she competes in tournaments to improve her game and continue to work toward the professional tours. “It is hard to make money consistently on the tour unless you win or place high regularly,” Mind says. She hopes to get to that level.
Because she was able to regularly make cuts during summer play, she became a worldwide ranked amateur at 650. Being ranked meant a lot to Mind because it was evidence that all her time and hard work was paying off. Competing at such a high level, experiencing what it is like to compete at the regionals at the collegiate level is such an exciting time. “I want to help this team get to the regionals so they can feel what it is like, the competition and excitement. It is like nothing else,” Mind said. Currently, Mind is enrolled in King University’s MBA program. “I like business too, and I like the challenge of the program,” she said.
As for her future, she hopes the road will eventually lead to the LPGA Tour and then maybe into business. She will let God show her the way.
To learn more about King University’s Women’s Golf program, please click here http://kingtornado.com/sports/womens-golf
To learn more about King University’s MBA program, please click here https://www.king.edu/programs/business/mba/