A Good Swing Is Hard to Find: How Women Can Play the Power Game - Rilegato

Introduction

I  want to tell you, right off, that this is not another boring golf book.  It is not about the fifty-six reasons to eschew the interlocking grip.  Nor is it about the one true path toward a more perfect address.  What this book is about I can say in three words: full throttle golf.

So what the hell is full throttle golf, you ask?  It's about playing with power and confidence, but also humor and fun.  It's about being who you are out on the golf course, not who some staid golf manual says you should be.  It's about driving for show and driving for dough, if you and your partners are so inclined.  Finally, it's about being competitive, about unleashing the tiger that is within you.

When I think of tigers in the wild, I think about how strong they are and how self-sufficient.  Nobody else is going to take care of them, so they have to go after everything they need or want themselves.  I believe that this is also the best way to play golf, whether you're a man or a woman.  No one else can make the shot for you and you certainly can't win if you don't first believe that you can.  When you know what you want, you have to trust yourself that you have what it takes to get to the finish line.

My fiancÚ, Leo Cuellar, first used the phrase "unleash the tiger" the week after the 1994 U.S.  Open at Indianwood Golf and Country Club in Lake Orion, Michigan.  That year I became the first woman ever to shoot a 63 in an Open and the first man or woman to reach 13 under par--but I eventually lost the championship to Patty Sheehan.  It was pretty crushing at the time--winning a U.S.  Open is probably the greatest accomplishment any golfer can have and I hope someday to achieve it--but I vowed not to let the loss deter me.

The week after losing the Open, I found myself once again in a position to win at the Ping Welch's championship outside of Boston.  After making the turn on the last day of the tournament, I realized I was in a fight to the finish with two of the great players on the LPGA Tour, Juli Inkster and Hall of Famer Pat Bradley.  When I birdied the tenth hole to go into a three-way tie, I knew right then that it was make or break time.  I didn't want to do what I did at the Open and Leo must have read my mind.  He came up to me and said, "Okay honey, come on, it's time to unleash the tiger."

I birdied four out of the next seven holes for a back nine 31 and a final round score of 66, enough to win the tournament by four strokes.  I had unleashed the tiger; I had played the game the way I knew I could.  I had no fear.  I was aggressive and I went for the stick.  I hung tough.  And it worked.

I've always tried to live my life without regret, to go for what I wanted and not to leave anything in the tank.  I've had great opportunities to do this in areas outside of golf, as well.  Last year I flew with the elite Navy group the Blue Angels.  We hit 700 mph--just under the sound barrier--and did a near vertical ascent with seven G-forces squashing me back into my seat.  We also did aerial loops, dives and a simulated bombing run.  It was one of the biggest thrills of my life.  And I didn't even throw up!

A couple of years ago I also had a chance to drag-race at Daytona Raceway in Daytona Beach, Florida.  I took a class (and earned my racing license) along with five PGA Tour players, including Davis Love III and Bruce Lietzke.  And then I went out and beat all of them on the drag strip.  Take my word for it, to go from zero to 164 miles an hour in less than six seconds is absolutely otroligt!  (that's Swedish for "unbelievable!").  So, yes, I love speed, and though many of my friends are afraid to get in a car with me, I have never had an accident.  For that matter, I have never even had a speeding ticket--although back in my hometown I do know most of the policemen and policewomen by name.

It is definitely true that because I am a professional athlete, I get chances to do things most people don't, but everybody has the chance to live life to the fullest, which is what it's all about as far as I'm concerned.  This is how I play golf, too, and how I think more people, both men and women, should play the game: without excuses, with fun, with power and, above all, always at full throttle.

I wanted to convey all these things in a new kind of book about golf. And I especially wanted to address myself to women golfers.  In the past, too many books for the female golfer dwelt mainly on technique, and rarely on distance or power.  But if you've been following the LPGA Tour at all for the past few years, you should know by now that women can, and do, play with power. With better physical training and better equipment, women golfers--and not just the pros--are learning to use their drivers, their woods and their long irons, and are not apologizing for it.  So the tips that I give in this book are mainly for those who want to put a little more muscle into their swing and get a lot more out of their game.

This book, however, is not just about the new power game, but about how to enjoy being competitive at the same time.  And while you're being competitive, how to also have fun.

Because I'm what is called a "feel" player, I want to teach you how to do for yourself some of the things golfers often take for granted or simply overlook. Like visualizing your target, having a pre-shot routine, thinking your way around a golf course, judging what club to take and also how to create the shot you need, and perhaps most important, taking care of your game not only physically and technically, but mentally as well.

Maybe the most important bit of advice in this book is about how to find your own emotional comfort zone out on the golf course: recognizing what works best for you in how you approach and play the game.  I've never believed in cookie-cutter golf.  For me, golf isn't about always being serious and grinding out each of my rounds.  It isn't about being a robot out on the golf course or about always having to keep everything under wraps emotionally.  I'm not like that in life and I can't be like that in golf.

I really believe that sometimes you can be too much in control and therefore not open to being creative or to having fun.  Striving always to wear the same game face is one of those traditional beliefs in sports that I question.  That's not me and never has been.  I've had to accept who I am out on the golf course--emotional, fiery and yes, sometimes just a bit crazy.  But I've found out for me that it's better to be expressive than to try and hold everything in.

Anyone who plays the game, no matter at what level, needs to find out who they are and what they're like out on the golf course and then honor that.  Instead of feeling forced to always act and react a certain way, we each need to find out what works best for us as individuals.  It used to be that women acting aggressive or competitive in sports--especially in golf--was a no-no.  Not anymore.

So my first recommendation is: throw away those pink golf bags, ladies, and definitely those golf skirts.  (I tried wearing one once and let me tell you, I never knew that bending down to pick up a golf ball could be so complicated and so risquÚ!).  No more thinking you always have to lay up.  No more always holding back.  Be a little bit daring for a change.  Maybe even try the blue tees.  Empty the tank.  Put the pedal to the metal.  Be yourself.  And let's rock and roll.
Swing Time: Legs Are a Girl's Best Friend

Sooo, now that I've got your head in order, let's get your swing in gear, too.

There are an awful lot of things about golf that seem counterintuitive.  One of them, certainly, is the belief that the harder you swing the farther your ball will go.  We all want to hit the golf ball a mile, so we often grip the club tighter, swing higher and faster .  .  .  and top the ball about fifty yards.  When we swing harder we usually end up making two fatal mistakes: we swing up and we swing with our arms.  Nothing will kill a good round quicker than those two things.

Imagine standing perfectly still and trying to throw a javelin or a baseball with just your arm.  Neither would go very far.  Same thing with a golf club.  Swing with just your arms and the ball goes about thirty yards.  The arms are powerless without the support of the body behind them.

Women who are self-conscious about their game make this mistake frequently.  In an effort to stay in control, they don't incorporate their entire body into the swing.  By and large, women are too tentative in their ball striking, too afraid of hitting the ball into the ground, and it shows because more often than not they top the ball or hit it thin.

But when women do try to hit the ball harder, they usually use their arms too much.  And because they are trying so hard to get their arms around in the swing, and get under the ball to try and lift it up, they tend to have too much movement in their lower body. Too much movement in the body results in the club going too far back and a lot of energy is wasted in the downswing.

For women, especially, who want to hit the ball with more power, there are two essential things to always keep in mind.

1) Maintaining...

hose pink golf bags, ladies. And get rid of those tiny golf skirts. Stop thinking that women golfers have to "lay up" or hit from the red tees. In A Good Swing Is Hard to Find, LPGA professional Helen Alfredsson shows women how to play with more power and more confidence while having a blast on the golf course.

Alfredsson explains how women golfers can put more muscle, more passion, and more fun into their game. She also reveals how she herself plays the power game--by working certain elements of her swing, by eliminating anxiety and fear, by playing the percentages, and by being more competitive on the golf course--and demonstrates how any golfer can use these techniques in her own game. Loaded with war stories from Alfredsson's amazing career, A Good Swing Is Hard to Find offers women plentiful advice on how to learn from their mistakes and stay relaxed on the golf course.

With better equipment and physical training, women golfers today a