It can be brutal to finish a meagre 34.67 points away from a ticket into the final qualifiers at Q School, but Finland’s Tia Teiniketo is focused on the positives.
Teiniketo’s rookie season on LETAS was strong, the Finnish player accomplished her two main goals for the season, a top 25 (she finished 23rd) and to not miss any cuts.
Back in June at the AMUNDI Czech Ladies Challenge Teiniketo showed she was one to watch for the year after she tied for 3rd.
In no fewer than five tournaments, Teiniketo found herself just outside the top 10 often finishing an unlucky number 13 on the rankings.
With unparalleled positivity, Teiniketo summed up her season: “With it being my first season on LETAS, I was happy with how I played.
“All season I had the feeling that my game was almost there but not quite, and this was reflected in my ranking. It was all reflected in my high par statistics. That sums up my golf.”
Yet now the 26-year-old is gearing up her game for the Lalla Aicha Qualifying School in December and is excited to play in Morocco and a chance for a new stamp in the passport.
“I’m treating Q School like I don’t have anything to lose, I just have steps to gain. Worst case scenario I have a good category for LETAS next year, best case scenario I get my LET card. So, I’m just excited really.”
Tia is no stranger to LET Q schools having attended twice before and she jokes that nothing can be as bad as last year.
“Last year I had a wild pre-qualifier because I got food poisoning the day before the first round and I had to go to hospital.
“But I did go out the next day and shoot two under and was tied for fifth. My dad before the round said to go out there and just try to hit as few shots as you can, and I did exactly that.”
Teiniketo wears an infectious smile on the course, and one wonders where that energy comes from especially given, she was dealt difficult cards at just six years old.
Remarkably, it was a family tragedy that brought young Tia into the world of golf, a world she is now so happy in.
“My dad got me into the sport as it was a way for us to spend some time together after my mum passed away. She died when I was six years old, and it became a way for me to honour her memory.
“I keep her in the back of my head because she’s the one who got my dad into the sport, she was the golfer originally.”
Tia admits that occasionally on the course, especially after success she thinks of her mum.
“When I won my first college tournament which was the Southern States Athletic Conference tournament, I remember I made the winning cut and I just started bawling and all I could think about was my mum in that moment. It felt like she was there with me.”
Away from the golf, Teiniketo confesses to being a big Tottenham Hotspur fan and is in touch with her creative side with a passion for photography.
“I’ve always loved photography. My grandpa loved it, so I think that’s kind of where I got it from.
“I also love doing social media, I have a degree in marketing, and I took a lot of social media courses in college. I think that is something I’m interested in and I’m going to pursue it more.”
Teiniketo possesses the same hardworking ethos that runs in a lot of LETAS players’ veins as she balances working another retail job alongside her professional golf career.
“Working at the pro shop helps me, I know if I miss the cut, I will still earn some money by working. It gives me that sense of security.
“I know financially that I’m still going to be ok. That is a big stress for a lot of people on LETAS as a lot of us have small budgets.”
Teiniketo laughs about failing to secure another job this November in the off-season after the company she was going to work for sent her a text after the final tournament to say they were bankrupt.
“It worked out for the best; I needed the rest before Q school especially as I got sick, and I can focus on practice more.
“I just really want to look at Q school as something really positive I know some people are nervous about it or have really high expectation, but I will just try to keep my positive attitude and do the best I can.”
