At the end of 2023, Paula Reto set about rebuilding her game to a level that will keep her on the LPGA Tour “for as long as I can”. This year, the work she put in, combined with the experience she has built up, came together in a powerful expression of that goal.

With an LPGA Tour career that stretches back to 2014, the 34-year-old Reto is already one of South Africa’s most experienced women professionals at the highest level of the game.

She has one victory on the LPGA Tour – the 2022 Canadian Women’s Open – and 11 top-10s in total. Her 10-stroke victory at the 2022 SuperSport Ladies Challenge means she has also won on the Sunshine Ladies Tour. She has twice represented South Africa at the Olympics and has had seven top-30s at the Majors.

But the decision to return to a few basics in her game at the end of 2023 has brought the kind of consistency that saw her achieve a career-first this year, with Reto making the cut at every single Major she played at. That included tie-12th at The Evian Championship and tie-20th at the AIG Women’s British Open.

“This has been a better year for me with my swing and mindset. Last year was pretty tough. After my win in 2022, I was trying to change too many things, and that ran into my 2023 schedule. You actually just need to stick with what works. I had a good off-season at the end of 2023 and went back to the basics. I got my confidence back.

“You don’t have to be great at every aspect of your game, but if you’re good throughout, you’ll do well on Tour. I felt like it was more important for me to regain my foundation and rebuild, and I think that’s what I’ve done this year,” says Reto.

If any week on Tour is going to truly represent the work put into the game and the comfort level of a professional, it’s the Majors. And that’s why 2024 has been such a defining one for Reto.

“I feel like my game has improved a lot in the past few years, which sets up well for being able to play the Major championship courses better. My understanding of my game has improved a great deal, so playing more challenging golf courses like you get at the Majors is a lot more fun for me. It’s a different mindset for me now.

“Going into any Major you’re more focused on the small details. You have to be more precise in your thinking, and I feel like that’s what I do well.”

It’s exactly this greater understanding of her game and her environment that Reto feels has been the biggest growth area for her.

“My course management, and just knowing all the golf courses on Tour, has improved. That’s a game-changer because you don’t have to even think about those things any more. You can just show up and you already know what you need to do and how you need to prepare.

“As a rookie, it’s really hard because you try to do so much in that one week, but as you learn and get more experienced you realise what your body can and can’t do. One of the important lessons for me has been to not do too much on the days before the tournament. Just being able to manage myself has been one of the biggest game-changers for me. Longevity out here is important, and I definitely want to be out here for as long as I can.”

IMAGES: Mark Runnacles/LET/Chris Condon/Ben Jared/Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR/IGF/Heinrich Helmbold/Sunshine Tour/Photo by Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto/Shutterstock/Backpagepix