Olivia Mehaffey made a welcome return to competitive golf after almost three months away and she hopes her beaming smile that carried her around the O’Meara course at Carton House Fairmont can become a permanent fixture on the fairways as she looks to rekindle her love for the game.
Mehaffey carded a one-under 71 to start her KPMG Women’s Irish Open campaign as she played her last ten holes in two-under to sit four shots off the early lead.
Mehaffey has been very open about her mental health struggles and issues with anxiety since her father passed away in late 2021 but she seems rejuvenated after her latest period away and was smiling from ear to ear as she made her way back to the clubhouse.
“It was good, it was nice, really enjoyable, which is the main thing for me at the minute. I said to my caddie, ‘I haven’t had as much fun on the golf course in a long time’, so it was really enjoyable,” said the 25-year-old who rose to 5th in the world as an amateur and was a star with Arizona State.
“I was trying not to think about it, like, just don’t think that you haven’t competed in two and a half months. I didn’t even think about that, just go and play golf. I’ve been trying to do a lot of that in my time off. I’ve just being playing rounds and I’ve never played as much golf and not on the range as much and just trying to like fall in love with the game and enjoy just playing and competing and scoring and not worrying about making perfect swings or hitting perfect shots.
“I’ve really enjoyed being back and seeing everybody. It’s been a busy week and it’s weird having a scorecard in your hand again, you know, it’s fine when you’re going out with your mates and you’re playing for a tenner and you think that’s a big thing but that obviously is a different factor but it’s nice to feel that again.”
During her time away to work on herself mentally, Mehaffey has seen some good signs on the golf course in practice rounds and while she faces a very uphill battle to retain her LET card for next season at 142nd in the rankings, this game that was once a results business is all about falling back in love.
“I was just struggling so much off the course and I think I’m a really outgoing person so when I’m not feeling like chatty or social I’m like ‘okay, this is little bit weird’. That’s not me so I’m like you’re never going to play good golf when you’re not enjoying it, you’re not enjoying being on the road; you’re scared to go and compete.
“So I think taking that time to myself was really important and if there’s anything I’ve learnt in the last two years it’s ‘you’re the priority, you’re not just the athlete’. I think that was a nice learning for me.
“I feel like I’ve been playing nicely the last couple of weeks, it’s been trending nicely but you never know until you’re in the competitive environment. That’s what I saw this year, where I feel like I’ve been playing well in practice and hitting it good on the range and then struggling mentally and with anxiety on the golf course.
“It was like a different Olivia shows up in competition so it was nice to feel like my fiery, competitive, enjoying it out there and smiling self again out there.”