Irish sophomore Kelli Oride thought she had to be perfect.
After she realized she didn't have to be, she totaled her best score to date at Notre Dame with a six-over par 222 at the Mary Fossum Invitational last weekend.
"Kelli is a very capable golfer," Irish coach Susan Holt said. "She struggled with thinking that playing well is playing perfect. I don't think there is such a thing as a perfect round. Last year I had recurring conversations with Kelli, where I told her to quit trying to be perfect and be more patient; let things happen instead of trying to make things happen. It was great to see her not play perfect golf and still shoot good scores. I think she saw that she can go a out and have a great round without it being perfect."
Oride along with teammate freshman Lindsey Weaver, had the lowest round for the Irish, with a 70. Oride's performance earned her a tie for ninth overall out of 87 competitors.
"She was a prime example of balance and consistency this weekend and that's what we need," Holt said. "We need week-in and week-out, day-to-day consistency within our tournament rounds."
Oride said she was happy to start strongly and put last season behind her.
"I was really excited about it," Oride said. "I struggled a lot last year and having a good start to this season was great."
Oride acknowledged her obsession with perfection but has worked on it and said she has a better mentality now.
"I knew last year I was capable of putting up good scores, but when I wasn't producing I felt like I was letting the whole team down." Oride said. "I took a step away from competitive golf this summer, only competing in a few tournaments. This got my mind off of golf and my confidence up. I came back and hoped I could make a difference."
A native Hawaiian, Oride is a long way from home, and both she and Holt said this gap had an effect on her game last year.
"It was a lot of change for [Kelli] last year," Holt said. "I think she knew what to expect when she got back here. She was more comfortable with her surroundings and her uncertainty was gone. It was just an evolution of her experience here. She worked hard over the summer and it carried over. Her maturation both as a player and a person have contributed to her early success."
With a new philosophy and a top-10 finish in hand, Oride has left her struggles in the past.
"I think not only being from home but the transition to college was hard for me," Oride said. "I have realized my mistakes and put my focus in the right place. I have a better mindset in all aspects this year."
Oride will next compete with the Irish at the Windy City Collegiate Classic in Glenview, Ill., on Oct. 1.
Contact Isaac Lorton at ilorton@nd.edu
