Kuala Lumpur: The Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin Charity Golf Foundation (TSMCGF) has come to the assistance of one of its finest prodigies, agreeing in principle to sponsor LPGA rookie Kelly Tan Guat Chen.
Having clinched a hat-trick of victories at the prestigious TSM Golf Challenge between 2010 and 2012, the 21-year-old former national put pen to paper on a sponsorship deal worth RM600,000 (US$200,000) at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club on Tuesday.
The ceremony was witnessed by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also chairman of the TSMCGF.
TSMCGF trustee Tan Sri Megat Najmuddin Megat Khas noted that the financial assistance will allow Tan to focus her attention on continuing her promising start on the premier women’s circuit.
“We are pleased to unveil Kelly Tan as our golf ambassador. She will not only bring pride and honour to TSMCGF but also the nation. We hope Kelly will perform well in her tournaments on the LPGA and hoist the image of Malaysian golf,” he said, adding that Tan had a “real chance” of qualifying for the 2016 Olympics if she can break into the top 100 on the Rolex Rankings.
Megat Najmuddin also alluded that the foundation’s future plans for Tan include setting up a professional support team for her, including a full-time manager, swing coach, psychologist, nutritionist, personal trainer and physiotherapist.
In her immediate response, Tan expressed her appreciation for the financial support, saying it would motivate her to become a world class player.
“I’m indebted to the Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin Charity Golf Foundation for all their assistance over the years and their financial backing will surely help lift-off my burgeoning career. It is an expensive affair to play on the LPGA – I easily spend an average of US$10,000 per tournament, so this sponsorship deal is timely,” said Tan, who has earned US$8,914 from two LPGA starts.
“My first two events have been an eye-opener, given that in both tournaments, I was battling close to the halfway cut-line. You don’t want to live on the edge if you can avoid it but I’m learning quickly.
“I spoke to a lot of the players on Tour and they all said the same thing – the first few events are the toughest because you don’t know what to expect yet the people around you want you to do well, so there’s a lot of pressure to deal with! exclaimed Tan, adding that she is acclimatising well to the fast greens on Tour.
