cnn
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Like most 15-year-olds, Ratchanon “TK” Chantananuwat thinks about school, exams and college plans.
But Ratchanon isn't like most kids his age: He's already an amateur golfer making history and competing against some of the game's top pros.
In April, five weeks after his 15th birthday, he made international headlines when he became the youngest male player to win on a major Tour, claiming the $750,000 Trust Golf Asian Mixed Cup in his native Thailand.
The greatest golf prodigies
This month, he is studying for important exams in biology and economics, a stress he has had to deal with while representing his country at the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Vietnam.
It's a balancing act of daunting proportions, but an unflappable Ratchanon has something to prove.
“Sometimes it's a little difficult, but I enjoy the challenge,” he told CNN. “I love doing well at both and proving all the doubters wrong.
“Apparently, if you're an athlete, you can't do well in school. “I’m trying to change that.”
The Asian Tour victory marked a new high point in the budding career of one of the sport's brightest young stars. Ratchanon has enjoyed a sensational rise since, at just 13 years and four months, he became the youngest player to make the cut in the history of the All Thai Golf Tour in August 2020.
And incredibly, he came agonizingly close to winning an Asian Tour event even before that, finishing third in his first international professional event at the Singapore International in January.
Ratchanon's golf origin story reads like a comic book. Having started playing with sticks and plastic balls at the age of three, TK (a nickname derived from his parents' initials) finished last in his first tournament at age four.
“I saw the kid who got the trophy and I got really jealous,” Ratchanon remembers. “I didn't know why I didn't get one, so I was really upset. Then my dad had to explain to me how he won and that's how he got the trophy.”
And so, after a month of intense training under the tutelage of an equally competitive and golf-loving father, he won the trophy on the next attempt.
At their first world junior event a year later, motivational messages were inscribed on the chairs at each tee. “Winners never quit and quitters never win,” said one, a motto that exemplifies Ratchanon’s mentality and work ethic.
His father acts as caddy and third coach, working overtime with his son to take advantage of lessons from two other coaches. On non-school days, an already intensive practice regimen is taken to another level, and the youngster spends seven to nine hours on the course perfecting his craft.
Warned against burnout, Ratchanon has started taking half a day off from time to time, spending the time on private lessons, physiotherapy or fitness, but dismisses any suggestion of burnout.
“I don't see that happening. I love golf. I love practicing,” Ratchanon said.
“Yes, it's hard, it hurts and it requires a lot of discipline, but even with just two months of really hard work to get a good shot or just a good result, I think it's worth it for me.”
And who better to oversee Ratchanon's rise than compatriot Thongchai Jaidee, an Asian Tour legend with 20 professional victories to his name. The 52-year-old icon has helped the youngster in various aspects of his game since his first meeting in 2019.
When Ratchanon wanted to learn his hero's spin chip, the pair spent the next three weeks practicing the technique for six hours a day.
“He's been helping me a lot with my game. He’s a great guy,” Ratchanon said. “I think he likes to help develop Thai golfers for the future of Thai golf.”
Thongchai has also helped shape the teenager's mental side of the game, helping him implement a routine to overcome dips in performance under pressure. Now, Ratchanon has a method to use in big moments: slow down, take a sip of water and swing “without hesitation.”
When asked about the pressure of the “teenage prodigy” label and rubbing shoulders with the sport's elite, the 15-year-old simply replies: “I enjoy it.”
“I don't feel pressured… I'm not afraid to play with good people,” he said.
“No one's really put any pressure on me and I'm very lucky to have a lot of good people around me who will help support me and keep me in line.”
It's an attitude that helps Ratchanon take things one step at a time. Eager not to rush the jump to the professional game, he is focused on finishing school with a flourish.
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Ratchanon already dreams of studying physics at a U.S. university while maintaining his golf balancing act. He is keen to follow the examples of Thailand's Colin Morikawa and Patty Tavatanakit, who graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and UCLA, respectively, before tasting great glory.
“I've seen a lot of Thai players turn pro early, but now I think a lot of people know it's worth going to college,” he said.
“If we become professionals, this is our life. “We really can’t turn back.”
