Bon aims to make it in Europe

It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind and after a promising start to her professional career Caroline Bon has decided take a stab at establishing herself on the Ladies European Tour (LET) during the New Zealand winter.
The $3000 price tag of joining the tour on a restricted playing card had seen her opt for the cheaper Australian PGA Tour instead but encouraged by her performances among experienced professionals and further buoyed by her winnings, she changed her mind and joined the LET and is now back in Whangarei planning her season.
"I joined just before the Australian Open because I made enough money [in Australia] to pay for membership from my winnings over there, so my prize money would go into the exemption category for the season," she said.
The 23-year-old qualified for limited access to the tour in Murcia, Spain, in December and now aims to earn enough money and points to earn a full playing card for the following year.
"I'll be starting to apply for sponsor [invitations] to every single LET event so I'm still trying to get enough money to be exempt from that list [and get my full card] so I don't have to go Q-School [in Murcia] again."
Given the quality of golfers on the tour Bon will be happy to win exemption into the first stage of qualifying and going directly into the second stage - no mean feat in itself - and one that will rely on some good finishes in LET tournaments.
"It's really dependent on how I compare with the other girls in the category, if they get a top 10 place I'll have to get a top five, so there are a lot of variables [to think about] ... but the ultimate goal is to play good golf and then everything else should fall into place," she reasons.
More consistent play in Australia saw her finish in the money in a number of smaller PGA tournaments, earning her entry into the Australian Open and the Australian Masters, but she failed to make the cut in either of the lucrative tournaments so will have to find other ways of financing her European tour.
Bon needs sponsorship if she wants to avoid waiting tables in Europe and be able to concentrate on her golf.
"My year is obviously going to cost a lot of money to plan, so during the next month I'll be trying to find sponsorship to fund what I want to do, which is playing lots of events in Europe," she said.
She spent a day in Auckland last week with officials from New Zealand Golf, who are helping her apply for sponsorship.
"New Zealand Golf has given me lots of positive feedback, which is really cool. It's been an awesome start, I mean I've only been a pro for eight weeks and I've already got some good results behind me, a 15th in the New Zealand Open means I can put forward some good credentials (to sponsors) now that I'm going to go to Europe," she said.
Bon received a fraction under $5000 in prize money from the open payout but while that will get her to Europe, she will need more. She is aware that she has already become one of the top Kiwi professionals and she hopes to one day carry the New Zealand flag internationally.
"That's definitely what I want to do, obviously I know it might not happen in year one but that's definitely my three-year goal," she said.
"There's not too many girls touring at the moment, there's Lynnette Brooky, still out there and she did really well in Australia this summer but I don't think she played the New Zealand Open, which is a bit strange."
Wellington-born Brooky has played on the LET since 1997, earning more than $1.6 million but the last two years has seen her ranking - and earnings - drop considerably, leaving her 89th on the money list last year.
Right now, that's a position for Bon to aspire to and the plan is to take small steps.