Sehaj Sapra, a 10-year-old golfer from Auckland, recently made it to the top five during the Auckland tour of US Kids Golf Championship held in December and January. She is a Year Six student at Kristin School and is the house captain for junior school. She enjoys leadership roles and aims to become a lawyer and a professional golfer when she grows up.

“My experience at US Kids was great and it is something I would like to do over and over again,” she said in a conversation with Indian Weekender, adding that she enjoys golf and would continue to play the sport.

Ms Sapra started playing golf at the age of six and is now acing the sport. In the recently concluded US Kids Golf championship, she grabbed fifth spot. She developed an interest in golf in her school and played in two school competitions before heading to the US Kids Golf championship.

“I played my first 18 holes ever on December 18, 2016 during the championship and came fifth, which was great. It was funny because on the first hole, I got stung by a bee, which was a bit painful. But now, when I think about that, I think it was worth it,” Ms Sapra said.

Apart from being interested in the game, she said that she enjoys playing golf also because she gets to spend more time with her dad, who is always there to help her with her practice, to cheer her, and sometimes also to play with her.

“I played my second game for the championship on January 22 where my dad was my caddy. I loved it, as I got to spend more time with him.”

Ms Sapra wasn’t entirely interested in golf when she started playing it but she believes that it is her family’s support and encouragement that has kept her going through hard times of practice sessions.

“I wouldn't have been able to do what I have done without my mum, dad, and sister’s support. My family supports me in all my decisions. My family were patient with me and kept encouraging me to play golf. And I started becoming more interested three years later.”

Apart from golf, Ms Sapra also enjoys swimming and playing rugby. She finds her inspiration in Lydia Ko of New Zealand—world’s number one golfer.

“Lydia Ko is such an inspiration. She became world’s number one player in professional golf at the age of 17, and I think it is a huge achievement. Not just New Zealand but [the] entire world is [also] proud of her. She is so good, and I want to be as good as her,” she said.