Olivia Mehaffey admits she has rekindled her love of golf after a torrid few years mentally and hopes she can shine at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open at Carton House.
Mehaffey has been very open about her mental health struggles and issues with anxiety since losing her father to cancer in late 2021 which caused her to step away from the game.
At last year’s KPMG Women’s Irish Open she had just returned after another three-month hiatus, but one year on she believes she is her best place mentally since her amateur days as she bids to get her career back on track.
“I’ve got my love for the game that I probably haven’t had since my amateur days and it’s challenging because I have very limited status,” said Mehaffey who has played on the LET, LET Access and Ladies Sunshine Tour this year.
“I was fortunate to get an invite to Morocco at the start of the year and I was waiting for the reshuffle to get back in.
“I’m in a really good place mentally, loving my golf, enjoying it and getting stuck in. My game feels in a very good place and the mental thing was a big thing for me. I feel really good on the golf course and I feel like the golf part is easier to work through.”
‘Beware of the injured golfer’ as the saying goes and the Tandragee woman had to withdraw from last week’s Amundi German Masters to cope with a back issue which she received treatment on last weekend.
Her swing looked comfortable on the driving range on Monday afternoon at the O’Meara course before her practice round.
“I had a back injury last week and had to withdraw so I got home a lot earlier than expected so it’s nice to be back. Today is the first day I hit balls so it felt alright, I’ve had a lot of treatment over the weekend and hopefully it will hold up for the week.”
The 27-year-old has played in all of the editions of the KPMG Women’s Irish Open since it returned to the schedule and ahead of her fourth start she is brimming with enthusiasm for her favourite event of the season.
“This is my favourite week of the year and it probably always will be. It’s so good for Irish golf and we have so many players from Ireland playing this week and the crowds are fantastic. You don’t often get to play in front of friends and family so I’m really excited for it.
“It’s like majors, a lot of players say they do things differently and it;s about being consistent and really enjoying it. Coming in with injury has lowered my expectations and maybe will make me more relaxed this week.
“It’s set up so well, all the players look forward to this week, it has that major feel about it, the fans, the work that has gone into the course looks amazing so they do such a good job here. It’s one on the calendar that everyone wants to play.”
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