After having an interest in football at an early age, the teenager Aania decided to switch to golf following injuries in football.

“I used to play football, but as it involves injuries, I decided to switch to golf in January 2012 as this is a gentleman’s sport,” 17-year-old Aania, the daughter of the project director and former secretary of Airmen Golf Club and Recreational Park, Ahmed Farooq, said.

Pakistan’s top lady golfer, Aania took up the sport at the age of 12 and won her first Golf tournament the same year. Since then, Aania has gone on to win several national tournaments, as well as the Corporate Golf Challenge.

“I was really excited to win the first title and that was when the interest for the game developed even more,” said Aania. This was after the two months of training with her coaches Ghulam Bashir and Muhammad Ashfaq. 

She was well supported by her teachers of City School PAF Chapter who allowed her to take part in the championships and reschedule her exams.

“Bashir has helped me with improving my skills, developing my muscles for the game and making me mentally strong, while Ashfaq has helped me improve my game. I have been playing with him since 2012 and by playing with a professional I have learned a lot,” she said.

Aania, who has recently completed her college now gives around 10 hours a day to the game as she aims to turn professional by year-end. 

“I started playing at the Airmen Gold Club where my father was the secretary. He used to take me along and that was the first time I happened to visit a golf course. First, my father used to force me to go with him to the course and now he asks me to come back home early,” she said. 

 The number one lady golfer of Pakistan has bagged 40 titles after playing more than 100 tournaments.