KOHLER, Wis. — Na Yeon Choi was disappointed that her parents weren’t there on Sunday to celebrate her U.S. Women’s Open victory.

But having her parents home in South Korea instead of in the gallery at Blackwolf Run might be one of the reasons why Choi has matured into a player with the poise to survive a potential meltdown on the back nine and hold on to win her first career major.

When Choi joined the LPGA Tour in 2008, her parents came along to help her adjust to life in a new country. In 2009, Choi decided she needed to be on her own to mature — so she sent them home.

“I told my parents I want to be more independent: `I want you guys to go back to Korea and go there and relax and support me from there,”’ Choi said. “And then that moment actually they were mad, and my mom was crying, because they did very hard working for me up to now. But I said I think I need to be more independent. I can learn something from independence.”

Just a few weeks after they left, she won her first LPGA tournament.

“My mom and dad called me, like, ‘I knew you could do it,’” she said. “So look mom and dad, I really learned a lot of things from independence. I know what I have to do. I still practice hard and (am) working hard.”