With just two regular-season tournaments remaining last season, Danielle Kang, a 6x LPGA champ, was looking at what would soon turn into a spiraling hole. Then, the best she could bring was a T-20 finish in February’s Honda LPGA event, which has a limited field with no cuts. As the 2024 season came to a close, she broke her streak of at least one top-10 finish every season since she joined the tour in 2012. Unfortunately, this year did not go well for her either. Still, with Kang keeping a positive attitude, she has found support in her fans as well as her golfing peers.

The 13-year veteran broke her silence, posting her swings on the golf course on Instagram. She captioned the post: “I officially see why people keep playing the game of golf simply sucking at it. Pure love of the game. That’s where I’m now proudly at for the first time 🙂 To all those that continue to root for me; my team and everyone else, know that you guys got me to come back to the golf course. That itself is a win. Thank you.” For a six-time LPGA champion, it was not about the scorecard or trophies anymore, but about rediscovering why she plays at all.

Big names and familiar allies showed their support. The CBS broadcaster Amanda Balionis, who has built her career amplifying the game’s quieter, human stories and understands life’s ups and downs, did not stay back. Although she only liked the support, the mere feeling that she understood Kang’s words should mean a lot.

Lydia Ko, whom Kang has known since 2011 and has a sister-like bond with, liked the post to let her know that she is not alone. Ko’s career has swung between world number one heights and rebuilding stretches, too. Then, Jessica Korda, a rival and friend on tour, also came to show her support. Each like was a small act, but together, they formed a chorus: competitors, colleagues, and storytellers who know the grind and wanted Kang to feel less alone in it.

The 2025 season has been among the hardest of her career. She started her season with the Founders Cup but could not make the cut. Still, she returned to the HSBC Women’s World Championship in February to finish tied for 62. Her luck worked again in her next event, the Blue Bay LPGA, where she finished with a T68. In her first five starts this season, Kang made three cuts. But she lost her shine soon. In 15 appearances, she could only make four cuts.

In June’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, her scores ballooned into the eighties as she fell well outside the weekend field. By August, the ledger showed ten missed cuts, one withdrawal, and just over $10,000 in earnings, a contrast to her past seasons of consistency and titles.

In no way is Kang an unproven player trying to find her footing; she is one of the LPGA’s most established names. Since turning professional in 2011, she has captured six LPGA titles, including the 2017 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, a victory that placed her firmly among the game’s elite. She has also recorded more than 50 career top-ten finishes and earned over $9 million in prize money. When those credentials are set against her 2025 season: a handful of made cuts, and earnings that barely register compared to her peak, the contrast is jarring.

For the fans, the message landed just as sharply. Kang’s words were echoed by weekend players who admitted they, too, “sucked at it” but kept playing because of that same irrational joy. And in a season where the results have not reflected her talent, that shared recognition may be the truest win she has secured.

Fans show support for Danielle Kang

While the visible support from her peers carried weight, it was the flood of fan responses that gave Danielle Kang’s words their truest echo. Many of those fans have followed Kang’s journey well beyond scorecards: from her battle with a spinal tumor diagnosed in 2022 to her ongoing fight to stay competitive despite lingering health setbacks. That history gave her Instagram post extra resonance, and messages poured in from golfers of every level thanking her for voicing what they themselves had felt: that golf can be humbling, frustrating, even cruel, yet still worth playing for the sheer love of it.

The comments under her post captured that sentiment in raw, unfiltered ways. “Once a champion always a champion. When the going gets tough the tough get going. Keep working. You’ll get there,” wrote one fan, a reminder that her legacy cannot be erased by a handful of unsuccessful seasons.

Another added, “Huge respect for you! You’re a fighter and I know you’re gonna come back all the way!!” Fans know Kang’s story goes well beyond golf: she faced a spinal tumor three years ago. She recovered from it in early 2023, but left her struggling as she needed to regain her neurological function. Her return to the tour after surgery showed that her battle isn’t just with the scorecard, it’s with fate. To fans, calling her a “fighter” is both literal and heartfelt.

One fan pushed back against her own self-deprecating humor about “sucking” at golf. “You look fantastic. There is no way you suck at golf!!!! Believe!!!!!! You are a star!!!!!” That kind of applause from fans isn’t just empty sentiment—it reflects Kang’s real pedigree. A two-time U.S. Girls’ Junior champion, she proved early on that she had the talent to go far. Those who followed her junior career understand that even if 2025 hasn’t gone her way, calling her a star is less hyperbole than recognition.

Another reassured her with optimism for the future: “You will be back winning on the LPGA soon girl. 😍😍” And perhaps the most heartfelt came from those who reminded Kang that her presence mattered as much as her performance: “We love you… 👏👏👏 … we believe … sending birdies!” With fans filling her comments with belief and best wishes, peers like Lydia Ko and Jessica Korda lending their support, and voices like Amanda Balionis amplifying her story, Kang’s message became bigger than golf.