“I definitely did not expect a lot of frenzy” - Rose Zhang on her life after first pro win at the Mizuho Americas Open
Rose Zhang has been the breakout star of the LPGA season so far. The 20-year-old golfer leapt into the big leagues after clinching her first pro win at the Mizuho Americas Open earlier this month.
Now, the golfer has stated that her life has changed in some ways, owing to the fanfare.
Zhang admitted her life has become busier since her victory. However, she noted that the changes haven’t been too dramatic. The American college golf star turned professional brought unprecedented attention on her with the win.
Opening up about her ‘new’ life ahead of this week’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, she said that she ‘did not expect a lot of frenzy to occur’ over her first-ever pro win. Speaking to the media at Baltusrol, Rose Zhang said:
“I definitely did not expect a lot of frenzy to occur over my last win. I expected people to know. I expected people to be just super happy about it, but I never thought that media would also be like all over it, as well.
“It was definitely a lot more than I expected, but I've been doing quite a few press interviews, press conferences.”
Zhang’s first outing as a pro on the LPGA Tour became remarkable as she beat an experienced Jennifer Kupcho to win Liberty National.
Getting ready for her second tournament as a pro! 😤
@rosezhang | @KPMGWomensPGA https://t.co/6Ir7jnaD9T
Rose Zhang says life around her is almost same despite the frenzy
After earning the win, Rose Zhang became a star name only weeks after turning professional. Zhang, who holds several Amateur records including a record of 141 consecutive weeks at the top of the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is being compared to greats like Tiger Woods by fans.
Despite the additional attention, she says she’s still okay with her life. The golfer said:
“I feel like it's crazy to say that other than all the additional press interviews and all the extra attention, my life hasn't really changed as drastically as everyone may think.
“It's just super busy, obviously, and there's a lot more happening… With the people around me, they haven't really changed, and I appreciate that because they are a sense of like normalcy when I'm around them, especially back home.
“My family, my mom, my brother and my sister-in-law, I was playing with my niece in the last three days that I was at home. Obviously, my niece is two-and-a-half. She's not going to know that I won a tournament or she doesn't even know that I play golf.
“It's more I go back home and everything is just very relaxed, and I have a good time.”
“We were all on the struggle bus together.” - rose zhang on studying for finals with her friends after winning at liberty national https://t.co/s9Ne4YM8th
Rose Zhang added that life continued normal once back at her university campus, despite her legendary win:
“Once I got back on campus, all my friends were like: ‘Yo, congrats.’ After that we spent time just talking about random things and how they have been surviving campus life.”
Rose Zhang is back this week for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. This will be the Mizuho Americas Open winner’s first major after turning pro.
However, Zhang isn’t a stranger to major championships. The golfer played several majors as an amateur, even managing a T11 finish at the 2020 Chevron Championship.
It’ll be interesting to see how the golfer fairs this weekend with the increased attention.