Ines Laklalech: Late-blooming Golfer on Mission to Make Up for Lost Time

Rabat- Moroccan golfer Ines Laklalech made history last week by becoming not only the first Moroccan, but the first Arab and North African woman to win the Ladies European Tour.

The Moroccan golfer was awarded her title this past weekend at the Lacoste Ladies Open de France in Deauville, with the victory marking the culmination of her years of hard work and dedication to overcome the various challenges she faced throughout her unusual journey to elite golf.

An Early Passion For Golf

The 24-year-old Casablanca native fell in love with the sport at just 10-years-old, quickly managing to outperform the boys thanks to her passion, talent, and competitive nature.

Ines Laklalech was a natural; after only four months of playing, she was hitting the golf ball as far as the boys, which motivated her even more. That’s when she realized her talent, the Casablanca native told MWN in an interview earlier this week. “Deep down, I know that I can do great things, it’s just a matter of will and ambition,’’ she explained.

Ines studied in a French school in Morocco, where she obtained a French Baccalaureate in Economics. However, the golf enthusiast knew that she had potential in the sport and wanted to give herself a chance. This motivated her decision to travel to the US to play college golf at Wake Forest University, a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina that offers a Women’s Golf Program.

In addition to their academic responsibilities, the university program allows students to represent the school’s golf team and compete in tournaments throughout the year. “It is a very good and competitive program; I knew that was a path most of the professional players were taking before turning pro,’’ Ines said.

Missing out on Pro Golf

Ines had a busy schedule of practice sessions, tournaments, workouts, and courses while she was at Wake Forest University. As she had previously attended a French school, she also found it difficult to adjust to the educational system in the US.

Given how overwhelming it was to balance both golf and studies, Ines was faced with the dilemma of choosing between the two: excel at golf and neglect her studies, or focus on studying, meaning dedicating less time to her sport.

Letting her studies take a backseat was not an option for Ines. Instead, the young athlete traveled to England, stopped playing golf, and concentrated on her studies to earn a Bachelor of Arts (BA) management science from University College London (UCL).

Turning Pro

Ines’ path is atypical as most golfers turn pro when they are 18-years-old or go to university and play college golf in the US, and then turn pro at the end of their four years of playing college golf. By contrast, Ines had a three-year break from playing when she was studying in England. And she decided to travel back to Morocco after obtaining her BA.

However, as she watched “La Coupe Lala Mariem’’(Lalla Meryem Cup), a tournament on the Ladies European Tour in Morocco, Ines came to the painful realization that she had missed out on reaching her full potential. This realization led to an equally excruciating moment of honest soul-searching, with the Moroccan golfer coming to the overdue conclusion she had quit golf too soon without giving it her all.

She then spent the next two years honing her golfing skills in Morocco, and was subsequently invited to participate in several tournaments in Europe.

Due to the pandemic and travel limitations at the time, however, she was unable to compete in many events. This was a period filled with uncertainties and worries as Ines waited for the opportunity to turn pro and compete, with the sense of the unknown surrounding the pandemic making things increasingly difficult.

But the series of COVID-induced difficulties did not faze the young Moroccan golfer. Now determined to make up for lost time and missed opportunities, Ines decided to compete in the Ladies European Tour (LET) at Q-school in December 2021, where she earned her card and had her full status on the Ladies European Tour 2022.

This milestone meant she was the second Arab woman to play on the Ladies European Tour, following in the footsteps of her fellow Moroccan professional golfer Maha Haddioui. On September 17, 2022, Ines won the title on the Ladies European Tour at Barriere Deauville, after a playoff victory over Meghan MacLaren from England.

Golf in Morocco

According to Ines, golf is definitely developing and growing in Morocco. She told MWN that there were only two girls in the golf club when she first started playing. And practice back then was all mixed gender due to the small number of Moroccan girls competing in junior tournaments, she recalled.

Now, however, there are more tournaments and golf courses in Morocco, Iness explained, highlighting that the country’s great weather conditions and facilities may help facilitate future champions in the sport.

Hopes for the Future

With her recent triumph at Lacoste Ladies Open de France having sunk in, the Moroccan golfer aims to win at the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), the world’s largest professional golf association for women.

In addition, she is playing at Q-school this year, having already passed the first stage in August. She will play the second stage in October, and, if all goes well, will move on to the final stage in December.

A big aspiration of the promising golfer is to represent Morocco at the Olympics. “It is really special to my heart when I represent my country,” Ines said.

Asked to reflect on the significance of her recent triumph for the aspiring athletes who dream of representing Morocco on the world stage, Ines emphasized the importance of discipline and self-belief.

“Limits begin where vision ends,’’ she said. “We all have the opportunity to be the hero of our own story. We can do anything we put our minds to. Visualize success and give yourself permission to win. Anything is possible.’’