Kim Kouwabunpat - Thoughts of an LAGT rookie far from home

Kim Kouwabunpat is an Asian-American girl in pursuit of a dream. Adjusting to the realities of pursuing a career for a livelihood, she finds herself making bigger steps and expanding her boundaries to new countries, cultures, and experiences through her first season on the Ladies Asian Golf Tour (LAGT).

She shared her thoughts with the LAGT media as she prepared to participate in her third tournament of the season.

"As my name is announced to the first tee, my heart skips a tiny beat as I'm 5,000 miles and an entire ocean away from my home in California and I'm about to tee off in my third Ladies Asian Golf Tour event, the Thailand Ladies Open presented by Tourism Authority of Thailand in Bangkok. There is a subtle breeze, the grass is freshly mowed, the official sponsors' advertisement board decorating the course, the photographers in position, and the TV cameras are already rolling.

Three different cultures, languages and nationalities are represented by the three of us - Seiko Miyata of Japan, Korea's Shin Ji-yai and I - in my flight. As I tee off, I'm simultaneously embarking on a new journey of my career, yet in the pursuit of the same dream I've had since I was a young girl. How did I become fortunate enough to be standing on this tee box as a professional golfer and become a participant in this glorious golf tournament?

A similar dynamic representation also can be found in my family lineage as the last three generations of my family were raised in three different traditions - Chinese, Thai, and American. My great grandfathers and grandmothers emigrated from China to Thailand, where both my parents were born and raised. Then a little over 30 years ago, my parents immigrated to the United States in order to seek opportunity and experience the American Dream.

My two older brothers, Pat and Dan, were born in Chattanooga, Tennessee before my parents decided to settle in Southern California. In a small suburb of Los Angeles, I was born on October 11, 1981 in a town called Chino, CA where I was raised.

All my life, I've enjoyed the excitement of sports. Growing up with two athletic older brothers in sunny California made it easy and enjoyable to take up many sports. I can't count the numerous times I spent on the sidelines of my brothers' soccer and baseball games or in the bleachers of their swim meets. I eventually ended up playing soccer, softball, tennis, and golf. Southern California was an amazing area to be raised in, and I see why my parents decided to settle here and raise our family. I truly felt that I've experienced a healthy exposure to different influences in such a society, growing up as an Asian-American girl in Southern California. I found my passion in golf, just as my Dad found his passion in medicine.

Golf has been an integral part of my life since I was nine years old when my Dad introduced me to the game. I was an avid athlete, but golf was the sport that seemed to transform into something more serious than a mere hobby. I would attend school in the mornings until early afternoons and would practice and play golf almost everyday after school. I played golf on the Upland High School golf team and would play against the boys since girls' golf was not as popular at the time. I would compete in more than 30 tournaments per summer as part of a Southern California junior golf program. At age 11, I earned Player of the Year in my age group as I won a record breaking 28 tournaments that summer. As I improved, I was able to then compete at the national level and travel all around America to these tournaments. It was an incredible experience to see the different parts of the country and meet friends all over the United States, as I pursued a dream in the midst of its creation.

I began to play in multiple junior national tournaments all around the country and performed well enough to establish a junior national ranking as high as No.13 in the US. Some of the top collegiate Division 1 golf programs such as Stanford, Arizona, Northwestern, UCLA, USC, Florida, and Texas had strongly recruited me when I was looking for colleges to attend. For me, college was a time to explore life and grow as a golfer, as a student, as a person, and as a woman. The social environment and academia challenged and expanded my mind to perspectives on the world, on history, on societies, and much more. I somehow knew that Stanford would be the right match for me. It was the best of both worlds with an outstanding academic and athletic program for golf and it nurtured a dynamic learning environment.

One September night in 1999, I remember receiving a phone call. I picked up the phone to the voice of Caroline O'Connor, the women's head golf coach at Stanford who congratulated me for being accepted to attend Stanford University. It was one of the happiest moments in my life. I was to attend Stanford with a full scholarship for the next four years of my life and it turned out to be everything I wanted and more!

The Stanford Women's Golf Team has built a strong tradition of champions over the years. We've played beautiful courses such as Pebble Beach, Spyglass, and Cypress Point. But our coach also would take us to compete in places like Hawaii and Scotland! Before my last season on the team, Coach O'Connor brought us on a 10-day golf tour of Scotland. We experienced the tradition in places like St. Andrews, Carnoustie, Turnberry and King's Barns. It was truly a trip of a lifetime.

After graduating with a degree in Psychology in June 2004, I turned professional for golf. I spent the first year transitioning into the real world after college along with adjusting to the realities of pursuing a career for a livelihood. In 2005, I competed on the Duramed Futures Golf Tour around the US and in 2006 I toured on the CN Canadian Women's Tour circuit.

Through golf I've made friends from all over the world, people who I would have never met otherwise. One of my most memorable days on the golf course was in a foursome with famous musician Kenny G, Yahoo! Founder Jerry Yang, and one of my good friends from Stanford. I also remember being in the US Girls' Championship semi-finals against Grace Park when I was 15 years old. I've never been followed by such a large crowd of fans as I was the obvious underdog in the match. I experienced the same sensations just last year when I was in a 5-person playoff at my first CN Canadian Women's tour event. Many people surrounded the 18th green as they watched my deciding birdie putt to determine the result of tournament. As all eyes were on me, every pore on my skin secreted sweat, my heart pumped faster by the second, and yet I still had to compose every muscle in my body to execute my next shot. This is the essence of competitive spirit, one of many amazing experiences I love to thrive on.

After pursuing the LPGA for a couple of years, I've reflected a lot on the meaning of my life and my philosophical purpose here on earth. While I still played a busy schedule of professional golf tournaments last year, I've dedicated a lot of my time to support and fundraise at numerous charity golf tournaments for various causes. Golf is indeed a large part of my life, but I've realized that it is not the only thing in my life. I've recently embarked on a project and am currently writing and co-authoring a golf book for children. It is a book in which I hope to pass on valuable life lessons to young dreamers, lessons that I've learned through the game of golf that have prepared me for the rest of my life.

As the 2007 season takes me on the Ladies Asian Golf Tour, I find myself making bigger steps and expanding my boundaries to new countries, cultures, and experiences. Although I'm an American-born girl, I still feel a sense of connection and peace through my family lineage, my blood, and my spirit. In these next couple of months, I only hope to learn and understand my roots a little bit better each day and soak in the experience of an Asian-American girl in pursuit of a dream. "

March 7, 2007

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