“Glad to leave it behind” - Danielle Kang excited for comeback after overcoming spinal tumor

The sporting world is full of great stories, some tragic, some heroic. For Danielle Kang, last year was a bit of both. And now, in 2023, she can come up with a comeback story of her own.

The 30-year-old American won her sixth LPGA Tour title last year at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, which also happened to be the first event of the calendar year.

A few days later, she was runner-up at the at the Gainbridge LPGA, finishing just one stroke behind rival and good friend Lydia Ko .

However, by the time the season entered the month of April, hampered by continuous back pain, Danielle Kang had withdrawn from multiple tournaments. She then dropped the bomb at the US Women’s Open in June, revealing that she had been playing the tournament with a tumor in her spine and would be taking a break from the sport.

"I've gone through a lot of procedures so far, and with the process of elimination we are narrowing it down," Kang had said to a group of reporters. "It's going to take time."

She had added,

"Right now, it's not as simple as blaming the tumor to be the problem. It's not just that I have an issue with my back, there is more to it.

"The scary part is that, I understand, and I didn't want to publicize it, but I know it got out. There's more to it. I just don't want to really discuss the details of what's going on in my back."

She had also revealed that it was a diagnosis she had known about since withdrawing from the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii earlier in April.

However, Danielle Kang made a comeback in August, finishing with a commendable T17 at the CP Women’s Open in Canada. Following this, she has taken part in a further eight events, impressing in all of them, while also having three top-10 finishes.

---

What's next for Danielle Kang?

Very much back in the mix for more trophies, Danielle Kang is looking to leave the sorrows of 2022 behind and look forward to a good season ahead.

"That was kind of the last year of the twenties and I’m really, really glad to leave it behind,” Kang told CNN. “I feel that I’m going to learn new things and discover myself again in the thirties.

“Last year was a big momentum switch for me and I’m actually kind of glad everything that’s happened happened – the way I won at the beginning of the year, the way I finished out the year, the way I contended, coming back stronger than I thought I would.

“It was a very interesting year, very up and down, but I kind of want a bit more consistency this year and I think that’s what I’m striving for. I’m feeling great.”

Now ranked 17 in the world, Kang wants to focus on adding to the one major she has won so far in her career. That was a one-stroke victory over Brooke Henderson in Illinois in 2017, when Kang was just 24. It was also her first professional win after 144 starts. She has had four top-six finishes since then, but a trophy continues to elude her, something she will want to change this season.

Kang is also aiming to get on the roster of the team that would represent USA at the Solheim Cup, the women's equivalent of the Ryder Cup. She was part of the team that lost to the Europeans last time out when the tournament was played in Ohio. This time around, she will look to exact revenge and will do her best to make it to the roster of US captain Stacy Lewis.

“I always say good golf takes care of everything, and for right now I think I’m pretty safe,” Kang told CNN. “So with that said, I can’t wait to play for Captain Lewis and I’m excited. I’ve never been to Spain, so that’ll be cool.”