Drives as straight as an arrow, iron shots to the ideal spot, chips and pitches that scare the hole, plus a nerveless putting stroke on tricky Sandbelt greens would lead observers to believe coach Dom Azzopardi has the easiest job in the world.

But the swing guru of Lucas Herbert and Karis Davidson, among others, has only been working with the Kiwi for a short period. And following a chance meeting a tournaments in Asia, the pair have undergone some wholesale changes to what was once a homespun swing.

Born in Japan and growing up in New Zealand, where she bases herself out of Pegasus Golf Club near Christchurch, Kobori had never really had a “lesson” after learning the game from her father to a level good enough to play college golf at Pepperdine in America.

An almost winner at the mixed TPS Hunter Valley and twice a winner on the Ladies European Tour Access Series this year, Kobori sought out Azzopardi’s advice after getting to know one another over dinners and casual conversations.

“Momoka came to me and said ‘I know you have a pretty busy schedule with players, but would you be interested in working with me?’ which I thought was interesting at the time because I didn’t know much about her, who she had worked with, what she had done,” Azzopardi, who is doubling as caddie this week recalled.

The way Kobori swings the club and hits the ball led to Mike Clayton asking if she ever misses a shot. PHOTO: Paul Shire.

“So what I usually say to anyone is ‘Let’s sit down and have a chat’.”

That chat led to the Sunshine Coast based coach discovering Kobori’s lack of formal teaching. A revelation that excited Azzopardi having already seen evidence of her high level of play.

“I could see her grip was strong, she shut it going back and then had to stay back and hit up on it a bit more, some things I don’t like. I thought I could really help her with that,” he told Golf Australia magazine.

Adds Kobori, “It was through talking to him and realising the wealth of knowledge and experience, I felt like I could get a lot out of that to speed up that process of getting better and knowing what good is.”

That sped up process started with a trip to Queensland for an intensive week of work, where Kobori was welcomed into the Azzopardi home.

“She came up and spent nearly a week with me at Peregian Springs, which was good. My players stay with my wife and kids, we get to know them as a person a bit, which I think is really helpful, and she is a lovely girl, and we just got to work,” Azzopardi said.

“Made some big, big changes. And that was probably only eight weeks ago. She struggled a little bit through the Australian Open, just she was probably not ingrained enough.”

Cam Davis has been watching closely and suitably impressed by her game. PHOTO: Paul Shire.

That struggle still resulted in a share of 22nd across Victoria and Kingston Heath where she beat out the likes of Laura Davies, Karrie Webb and local Sandbelt rising star Jeneath Wong.

Playing two more events since, in Singapore and Taiwan, Kobori has obviously found a way to ingrain things.

The World No.212 heads into the final day of the Sandbelt Invitational, brainchild of Geoff Ogilvy and Mike Clayton, as the co-leader with PGA Tour winner Cam Davis at 12-under-par.

Baring disaster, she will wrap up the low female pro division – she leads by 14 – on Friday at Peninsula Kingswood, but it wouldn’t surprise if Kobori took the whole box and dice and stared down Davis. Even if she will do it from around a foot closer to the ground and with the smile that is seemingly permanently plastered across her face.

“She’s pretty easy to get around a golf course when she hits it as straight as she does. She’s holing putts and doing all the right things. Really proud of what she has done and more so probably excited for next year.” - Dom Azzopardi.

Yet, this week is about learning for Kobori and Azzopardi as they work towards her first year on the Ladies European Tour in 2023.

“We are both learning on the job. I am learning so much about her game and the way she thinks, the way she does things,” Azzopardi said on Wednesday.

“She’s pretty easy to get around a golf course when she hits it as straight as she does. She’s holing putts and doing all the right things. Really proud of what she has done and more so probably excited for next year.”

Given Azzopardi’s history of guiding promising young players to success, his excitement for next year suggests the player nicknamed 'Momo' is more than worth keeping an eye on as she travels the world in the future.

And even if she admits they have “still got a wee way to go” on the journey to get the major changes bedded in, the current version of her “new” game has impressed all and sundry this week, including her playing partner over the last two days and again tomorrow.

“She’s playing awesome golf, you’re expecting her to make birdies, so I am just trying to knuckle down and hit good shots and make some birdies of my own,” Davis said.