Pauline ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD
Golfer

Pauline received a grant to finance her participation in international competitions.

What is your sporting background?
I started playing golf at a very young age, at four years old, with my parents and my brother. Sports have been a part of my life since I was a child. I did tennis, judo, skiing, boxing, and Jeet Kune Do at 14; I love fighting sports. What I like about sport is the competition. The first important golf competition I won was the French Ladies Cup, it was in Pau in 2015. Then other victories followed, until I joined the French Girls team and then the Ladies. Strong performance in 2019 allowed me to reach the first world amateur place in January 2020. I was then at the University of South Carolina, studying, playing for the team, and especially accessing exceptional training areas. I decided to turn professional in August 2021 because I felt ready.

How do you view your profession today?
The professional golfer has the most beautiful office in the world! But you must be aware that this is a demanding profession. Physical training and mental preparation are just as important as golf training. You must be hard-working, pugnacious, and surround yourself with the right people who are both efficient and caring because the competition is tough.

How do you see yourself in five years? In 10 years?
It's complicated to think of oneself in five or 10 years, because the life of a high-level athlete is above all about getting to know yourself, building, reacting and adapting on a daily basis and there never seems to be an end to the search for a better performance. I put all my energy into my career, I hope to win tournaments on the LPGA quickly, but also the Majors... In five, 10 years? I hope I will be an even better golfer than I am today.

This interview was conducted in 2021
Photography credit: Julie Glassberg