Struggles Haunted Rose Zhang Until She Found the Perfect Answer; Recent Confession Sheds Light on Life Beyond LPGA

“Golf is a very long sport… it’s an endurance sport.” admitted a candid Rose Zhang as she doubled down on her struggles in the game recently. From practice rounds on Tuesdays and Wednesdays to playing a tournament from Thursday through Sunday, it takes a lot of time out of a professional’s life. The same is the case with the American Pro as well. Fortunately, she was able to stay firm amidst the troubles, all thanks to just one thing: her faith in Christianity!

The LPGA Tour Pro divulged the details surrounding her faith during a recent podcast, Rose Zhang: Free from Pressure and Perfectionism. She even disclosed how her faith helped her in turning professional when she herself questioned the big decision.

Rose Zhang comes out candid on her religious beliefs

“I was a little bit worried about what would happen,” confessed the LPGA Tour pro as she honestly disclosed the confusion she felt owing to her being a student as well as an athlete. Questioning herself about the future, including the heavy weight of expectations, possible injuries, and unstable income, among others, the 20-year-old was very much fearful of the same: “I didn’t know myself, I was worried about other people’s expectations on me. Because I myself couldn’t bring myself to think about any expectations.”

However, she made sure to turn to her faith when faced with such a dilemma. Consequently, she got baptized back in 2022 during her freshman year in her home church. Recounting the experience, Zhang said, “It was very, it was very life-changing. And that… I always felt like I needed a sense of belonging. But this just being a child of God, and realizing that Christ died for our sins, and knowing that he’s been through it, he’s been through thick and thin for us…  I wanted to embody that when I was out on the golf course.” 

But coming down to her college life, she was fraught with mental and physical struggles as her busy schedule burned her out. Even so, prioritizing the community gatherings related to Christianity helped her through it all despite being too tired to go forward: “Doing these Bible studies and meeting my friends, and being able to do devotionals with them, this is where I’m able to really rejuvenate myself a little bit, to keep going and place all the burdens on to when I’m in prayer when I’m in Christ and in these quiet times.”  

The Stanford University student also went ahead to disclose how uplifted and encouraged she feels while making time for her religion in the middle of balancing her college and athletic life. However, such a revelation naturally makes one wonder as to the kind of difficulties Rose Zhang faced as a result of her career choices.

Zhang’s struggles as a professional golfer and a student

After turning pro in 2023, her busy life has caused her much concern. Waking up at 6:30 AM or even 5:30 AM and going ahead to finish the day in the afternoon by around 2 PM, as per the athlete, does lead to such a hectic lifestyle. Regardless of the issues, she has held fast to her faith and belief; “That’s, for me to prevent myself from burning out,” said the professional, as she also highlighted the importance of making time for God amidst her busy schedule. “I think it’s absolutely necessary, to give myself a little bit of quiet time,” said the golfer while alluding to her religious activities.

That’s not all. Elaborating on the other struggles she faces as a golf professional-cum-college student, she said, “I’ve been an amateur my entire life before I was a professional now in college it’s obviously very, very difficult to balance everything from school, to academics, to extracurriculars, whether you’re doing something else, or you’re an athlete…” 

Well, having a total of 6 career top-10 finishes, including a victory at the 2023 Mizuhos America Open, speaks volumes of the amount of effort she put into the sport despite being a college student. Anyhow, One can’t help but admire the golfer as she managed to stick to her words: “So it’s a balance, it’s hard. It’s never going to be easy. But you’re, you always have to try to manage.”