Ariane Klotz, “proud” to be the first Caledonian in the European elite

We find her on a course that she knows like the back of her hand. La Ouenghi golf course, in Boulouparis, is like a second home. “My first license was seventeen or eighteen years ago. I only left the club when I arrived in France in 2020 for the French team championships. It’s still my club from my heart and I really thank the owner for welcoming me here every year as if I were at home.”

It was here that Ariane Klotz became familiar with the little white ball, after trying tennis and the 200 meter backstroke at the Caledonian Swimmers’ Circle, and at the same time classical dance practiced until she was 15. Gifted, she held on to reach a level that no other Caledonian has known.

At the end of last year, Ariane was ranked eighth in the Ladies European Tour Access Series (Letas), the gateway to the continental elite. His feats of arms? A fourth place at the Montauban Open, two podiums at the PGA championship in Gothenburg in July then at the Destination Gotland ladies open the following month. And 17 tournaments played, for as many cuts passed. A dream season when we know that 180 players were in competition, that she finished best Frenchwoman ahead of Charlotte Liautier and Lucie Malchirand (23rd and 24th respectively).

Enough to validate his accession to the elite. “It was a year of discovery, my first as a professional. I was able to travel to countries that I had not visited before. I loved this life full of travel, both a little solitary, and which also allows you to meet a lot of people, we’re not at home often, but it was fabulous.”she rewinds, her eyes sparkling. Eighth in the general ranking, the young woman learned of her rise during the last tournament of the season. “This last week was full of emotions. I was very nervous. When I knew it was good, that I had passed the LET, it was a lot of joy.”.

From February 2024, Ariane participated in a satellite tour of Letas in South Africa, for four weeks. “A long journey into unknown, magnificent territory. It was my first experience as a professional. I wanted to take some pressure off myself compared to the circuit where I had to score points.” She played tournaments in April then in May, before playing eight more during the following term. “I drove quite a bit, without going through the house, especially to go to Sweden. The return journey was longsays this 1.85 meter tall player with a laugh.

“There is not a lot of money on this tour, so we try to limit costs each time: we share accommodation, we favor the car over the plane. It’s not glamorous,” she continues. The memories, however, remain. “Some courses and places were very beautiful, like on this remote island in Sweden, Gotland, three hours by ferry from the south of Stockholm. I took third place after fighting for the title. I didn’t make it the last tour I wanted, but it was still a good time. I shared a house with French people, Swiss people and my boyfriend who was ‘on the bag’ during the course, which always helps.”

During her training today in Boulouparis, she points out a detail, attached to the golf bag. An object which, in itself, is not much, but represents a lot. “It’s a souvenir picked up at the Nouméa market. I absolutely wanted to leave with something from ‘home’ before starting my 2024 season. I know that the photographers on the circuit like to zoom in on small, slightly colorful details I chose this key ring with a clapperboard as a Caledonian emblem. [rires]. And then, I’m still in tap shoes! There hasn’t been a shot on it yet, but I believe in it, so I’m keeping it.”For 2025, Ariane has added a bracelet to her lucky charms which will accompany her on the Ladies European Tour.

“I am the first Caledonian to play in the LET, in the first division. I am happy, proud, and I hope that I will be able to represent the country well. I am happy to tell everyone that I come from here , and not just from France. Every time I show photos, people tell me it looks so magnificent and I tell them it does.” Like other very high-level athletes, Ariane helps to promote Caillou internationally.

Given the schedule that awaits her, she will have more than ever the opportunity to do so. It will be Morocco first, at the beginning of February. Then Australia for a full month in March, before continuing with South Africa. A first part of the year in the southern hemisphere for climatic reasons, followed by a period in Europe from May to the end of September, from France to the Czech Republic, via Germany, England, and Sweden . It will all end with an Asian tour via India, Taiwan and China.

“That’s a lot of little trips that need to be planned slowly”smiles the player who aims to enter the Top 50 of the order of merit this year and to win a tournament on the LET. By achieving her goals, she would keep her card to stay at this level, and would finance her season and part of the next. “I have sponsors and help. Last year, I was supported by the government, the league, and many Caledonians helped me. I thank them warmly. It’s a real pleasure. A little bit helps always something in the season.” Two thirds of its 2025 budget have been completed.

In the longer term, the professional would like to reach the highest level in the world: the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), in the United States. It would be a return to this country discovered during the four years of his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at the University of Delaware. She was playing golf in the NCAA college division at the time. “The LPGA is where you find the best players, it’s where you can really make a living as a female golf athlete. I’m also aiming for 2028, maybe, with the Games Olympics in Los Angeles And then the Solheim Cup, the Europe – United States team confrontation, for women..

Currently, only a few French women play in the American top division. Céline Boutier, after 24 tournaments, obtained the best ranking by finishing fifteenth. Perrine Delacour (109th), Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (150th) and Agathe Laisne also participated. Ariane will be one of the seven or eight French players who will have full access to the European professional circuit this year.

To one day join the LPGA, he will have to go through different stages. “It depends either on the world ranking, or on the qualifying phases organized in the United States in August, October and December during an extended tournament where we keep the best after each round”. An additional cost, with fairly high registration fees, in an already very busy season. “It’s not in my plan this year. Unless I take advantage of the bridge that exists for those who finish in the top 10 of the LET. Then I could consider it, but not before, she explains with a laugh.

A remarkable journey closely followed by Dino Sacilotto. The founder of La Ouenghi golf course already admits to admiring the path she has traveled. “I would never have thought that a small field, a small club like ours, would produce a professional player. Even among the boys, there are none. She is the first to realize what she fact, it’s an example, and I hope it will inspire others. It’s a start to everything.”