JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Lizette Salas was in her happy place Thursday, and not just because she kept bogeys off her card at tough Atlanta Athletic Club and posted a 5-under 67 for a one-shot lead in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

Her game is rounding into form as the Solheim Cup approaches. That’s a big deal to her, too.

But the broad smile went well beyond golf.

The COVID-19 pandemic took its toll on the 31-year-old Californian, dulling her usual spark and creating anxiety that she initially mistook for nerves.

“I really didn’t like myself in 2020, and I think with the whole COVID and not being able to work and have golf as my outlet, that really hit hard,” Salas said.

She had never talked about it publicly until Thursday, confident that the worst is behind her. She never spoke about it to her parents or coaches or support team. A Mexican-American with a hardscrabble road to the LPGA Tour, she attributes her stubbornness to talk about such matters to her Hispanic background.