Mel Reid targets Tokyo Olympics appearance as 2021 women's golf season gets started

Mel Reid has targeted the Olympics as her main ambition of the year, as the women’s golf season begins in Florida on Friday.

Reid, 33, has qualified to play in the opening event of the LPGA Tour, the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions, courtesy of her maiden win on the US Tour at the Shoprite Classic in October.

“I’d like to get to the Olympics, if I’m honest. I’ve not kind of shied away from that,” Reid said, speaking in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. “I think of myself, playing multiple sports growing up I’ve always been a fan of the summer Olympics and Winter Olympics. To me, that would be the ultimate goal.”

Reid is part of a field lacking the top three of the world – Jin Young Ko, Sei Young Kim and Inbee Park – but including the big Americans in Lexi Thompson and sisters Nelly and Jessica Korda, world No 5 Danielle Kang and the Women’s Open champion, Sophia Popov. Georgia Hall is also teeing it up.

Reid believes her breakthrough will only lead to better things. “My win obviously changed me,” she said. “Not that I didn’t think I belonged. I hadn’t kind of put in the results that I wanted. I just felt like, yeah, look it’s hard to win on the LPGA. Really, really great golfers go through their careers not being able to cross that line. It was nice to get the monkey off my back. It just allows a little bit of freedom, a little bit of security.

“Now my head is thinking I want to win more and more because I just obviously loved that feeling. I love being in contention. I just want the feeling as much as possible. We’re looking at majors and obviously winning multiple times. We’ve got some big goals this year. I’m going to try and work my a-- off to try and achieve them.”