There are only seven days left until the 2010 LET season begins at the Pegasus New Zealand Women’s Open hosted by Christchurch on 25th February. Tania Elosegui, ranked 5th on the Henderson Money List last year, will be one to watch in the field. In 2009, Elosegui earned her first LET title at the ABN AMRO Ladies Open in the Netherlands, recorded eight additional top 10 finishes and qualified for her first European Solheim Cup Team. Here we catch up with her after her winter break at home in Spain.

1. Tell us what you have been doing since Dubai.I really needed a break after Dubai so I had three very nice weeks off. I was skiing most of the time. I spent 3-4 days in the Pyrenees, a week in the Alps and a week in Colorado after New Year. It was nice to disconnect from golf and spend some time having fun on the slopes. The time I was not skiing I was enjoying the family and friends. Nice dinners, afternoons with my nephew, lots of laughs with friends. After all that, the 10th of January I was back practicing and getting ready for the 2010 season.

2. What are you doing to prepare for 2010? I’ve been training hard at the gym. It’s cold and humid outside so it’s the perfect time to get fit for the season. I’ve been studying my putting stroke and golf swing to see what I need to improve and be more consistent this season. I am starting now to practice those changes focusing my practice on the short game.

3. What is your 2010 schedule looking like?My schedule for 2010 looks like planes, more planes and more planes so lots of planes (joking). As I have both LPGA and LET cards I’m gonna be playing in Europe and the US so I’m gonna be travelling back and forward quite a lot.

4. What changed last year to take you up so high on the rankings?Nothing really changed last year. I kept doing what I was doing the years before. What happened was that the work of those 4 past years paid off and as my game was more consistent, I was more confident and results came.

5. What do you consider your greatest strengths on the golf cours?I would say my focus is my greatest strength on the golf course.

6. What is your favourite golf course on the LET and why? I’ll say two: The Emirates in Dubai and Golf Gerre Losone in Switzerland. The Emirates because of its design and conditions; it’s always in great shape; and Golf Gerre Losone, because of its surroundings and greens. The greens are the best ones on Tour and the valley where the golf course is, it’s absolutely amazing.

7. What do you do to relax away from the golf course and how often do you get the chance to do it? When I’m at home and is winter what I most like to do is skiing. I love the snow, the silence of the mountains and the sport itself. When is summer I love to go to the beach, have a swim and then sit down on the sand and watch the surfers in the waves. In between winter and summer I like to skateboard along my city. Unfortunately, we don’t spend that much time at home and when we are at home we also have to practice so the chances to do all that are limited. During tournaments, music is the way to relax for me. I usually travel with a few TV shows so I can disconnect during the afternoons.

8. What are your goals in 2010? It’s not going to be an easy season. I’m going to be playing in Europe and the US so I think I will need an adjustment process to perform. I don’t know how long that process will be so it’s difficult to set my goals. What I would like in 2010 is to improve my world ranking.

9. You are going to the US this year, what are your career goals long-term? My career goals long-term are: to win a Solheim Cup, to win an LPGA tournament and have the chance to win a major.

10. What specifically have you been working on? I’ve been training hard in the gym since beginning of January. I’ve been practicing hard on the short game even though the weather hasn’t been helping. I am spending more time at home putting inside than outside and adjusting my golf swing to be more consistent overall.