Days of Junior Golf

I look back now at the ripe age of 36 and reminisce about my days as a young junior golfer….I was 10 years old with red glasses (which, ironically, I still wear red glasses) and long pigtails (my hair is still long, just no pigtails). I was adamant that I do and play whatever my brothers played…so that’s how I got into golf. Trip and Hank played, so naturally, I followed suit. It was as simple as that.

I can’t help but laugh as I replay our junior golf days in my head. I remember it like it was yesterday.

A normal day for the Kuehne kids was the three of us lined up on the Driving Range. Trip was always in front, Hank was in the middle, and I brought up the rear in the pecking order. My Momma was usually sprawled out on the back of the driving range, reading a book and working on her tan in the Texas sun. My Dad was always right there in the thick of things: watching, coaching, and giving us his input, whether we wanted it or not. Just the replay of this scene in my head brings a warmth to my heart and a smile to my face.

That is how I grew up playing the game. I had two partners in crime, Trip and Hank…and I wouldn’t have it any other way. This started when I was 10 years old…and it carried me through until I retired from competitive golf 23 years later.

I am incredibly grateful for the memories and the time that I got to spend with my family through the game of golf. It was never about the wins, or the trophies, or anything else. I genuinely loved being outdoors and hanging with my two big brothers. The winning was really fun, don’t get me wrong, but I enjoyed sharing the daily grind with Trip and Hank above anything else.

The three of us have a bond that is unbreakable. I attribute that bond to sharing our triumphs and struggles on the links. We now all live in three different states, we each have our own families and lives to manage, but when we all got together this Christmas to reminisce, there was laughter and stories that traced back to our junior golf days…there always is.

“Play College Golf”

Kelli Kuehne
College Golf Camps of America
Director of Events

So Pumped to have another National Championship Coach at our CGC Dallas event.

thank you coach Jay Seawell!!

See Coach Jeanne Sutherland’s recent blog post.

Today’s blog is simply some sharing of great coaching. Check out this video and article for a sense of what great coaching is all about. You see video at http://12monthsofgolfinvail.blogspot.com/

One thing I liked was what the very best in the world do and how most junior’s and college player’s expectations are out of line with what a good shot is from 150 yards. A favorite line I hear from parents when a kid 3 putts is, “She needs to learn to hit it closer.” They value the skill of ball striking more than putting. That valuation puts more pressure on the ball striking and alleviates the need for performance on the putting green. The best juniors and collegiate players are usually great putters and good enough ball strikers. I watched Nicole Morales paired with Casey Danielson at the Thunderbird last year. It was a fun group to watch. Nicole didn’t hit the ball as well as Casey, but she didn’t make mistakes. However, she made a lot of yardage of putts. She won!

Another funny thing that Foley had to say was his main goal is to not hurt them (great players). That was the advice that Dick Harmon gave me often. Foley said it can happen in three weeks. Imagine if a coach works the wrong direction for four years. Proceed with caution and know your stuff is what I take away.

The second article is about Cameron McCormick’s journey with Jordan Spieth. Here is an excerpt about the same concept.

Golf Magazine: Were you excited to uncover this talent or nervous about whether you were ready to teach such a talent?
Cameron McCormick: “That’s an insightful question. I was excited and had a little trepidation—what if I go about changing his style and he doesn’t hit it as well? I could destroy this ultra-talent. I went to Jerry Smith, the Brook Hollow head pro and my mentor, and explained the situation. His advice was, “Whatever you do, do it confidently and see it through in such a confident manner that you have no doubt that the athlete and the parent will have no doubt.” With a very special player, it’s a challenge. I needed the reassurance. After the lesson, I sent his dad an email and said I’d love to help him. I suggested we get together after his summer schedule and sent him some changes we’d go through to turn Jordan into a better ball-striker and a better putter. He was a poor putter back then, quite frankly.
Fast-forward to when Jordan was 16 and playing in the Byron Nelson. Even then he had the skills-the ball control, the putting and short game skills to win a PGA Tour event. The validation of that was how well he played, finishing 16th. He wasn’t ready, psychologically or emotionally, to win, but he certainly was of the mindset that he could compete.”

I also like that Cameron has helped Jordan be a self-sufficient player instead of a dependent player. Allowing a player to have ownership is the mark of a good coach.

Golf Magazine: What kind of maintenance does he need?
Cameron McCormick: “I’m proud of the fact that he’s developed into a very self-sufficient player. A player who has self-awareness—what’s my body feel like, what does the club feel like and what does the contact feel like-can create a change that allows him to play. Sometimes, he’ll have his caddie shoot video on the range. Sometimes, he’ll email me a video. I went to PGA Championship. He prepared great, took the week before off, but he didn’t play well. He missed the cut and said, “I’m going to play Wyndham next week. Can I get some time?” I said, “Sure, but we’re not going to the range, we’re going to play.” I said, “What I saw out there translated to performing on the course.” We played 18 on Sunday of the PGA Championship and he shot 64 or 65 at Brook Hollow, had great ball control with only a small alignment tweak. The course is closed Monday, but I have the luxury of taking a few people out there. He shoots 29 on the front. I said, “Jordan, this is affirmation for you that things were in place and you didn’t need much more than validation to set your mind free to play golf.” And then he went to Wyndham and lost in a playoff to Patrick Reed.
I’ll go to four or five PGA Tour events next year, and I see Jordan every week he comes home, but he doesn’t require much of an overhaul.”

Read more: http://www.golf.com/tour-and-news/interview-cameron-mccormick-swing-coach-jordan-spieth#ixzz2nrO6SYFy

Posted 21 hours ago by Jeanne Sutherland

Location: Dallas, TX, USA

Winning the US Am’s…

What can I say about winning two US Amateur’s? I remember both wins vividly…I didn’t realize it at the time…but in hindsight…that was the best golf of my career during that 2-3 year span.

Let me set the stage…I won the US Junior Girls in 1994. I beat Molly Cooper in the final match at Meadow Lark Country Club in Great Falls, Montana. That win inspired me to want to achieve bigger and better things in golf.

1995…The Country Club in Brookline, MA. That was the site of the US Amateur. I remember registering for the event and catching a glimpse of the trophy…it is still to this day the most incredible and beautiful trophy I have ever seen. Then my Mom told me she had the perfect table for that trophy to go on in our house…that was all the motivation I needed.

I remember my first match. It was against Caroline Peek. She was a bomber and could take advantage of the Par 5’. Here’s the thing: her power didn’t faze me a bit. Match play is such a mental thing. You have to keep the momentum steady and never get too high or too low…the second you loose focus is when you start getting beat. It is imperative to stay in the moment and focus on the shot at hand. I hit Driver, 5 wood into the 1^st hole. Caroline hit Driver, mid iron. I made par and was 1up after the 1^st. I kept chipping away at my matches…one match at a time…and I kept winning.

I remember my match against Kellee Booth. She was one of my biggest competitor’s during my Junior Career. She was a very talented and well rounded player. That match went to the 18^th. I won it 1up. That’s when I knew I was going to win my first US Amateur.

I played Se Ri Park (now known as Se Ri Pak) in the semi finals. I beat her 5&4. She paved the way for so many of the Korean players and was inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame in 2007 at 30 year’s old.

I remember my warm up for the final match. I always start my warm up with wedges. Here I am on the biggest stage of my career and my first 3 shots were hosel rockets. My palms started sweating, my heart started racing and I thought, “holy crap…here I am and I have the shanks.” I did the only thing I knew to do…I stood further away from the ball and my “Spanish Fades” disappeared. My final match was against an Australian player name Anne Marie Knight…I won that match 4&3.

Let’s go to 1996…Firethorn Country Club in Lincoln, Nebraska. I was the defending Champion. I took one look at “my trophy” and knew I had to bring it home to go on my Momma’s table. So I did just that. I beat Marisa Baena in the finals and won 3&2.

Here’s what I remember most about my wins…consistency and the will to never quit. Let’s face it…everyone is talented when you get to that level of competition…but the person who wins is the one who stays the most even keeled and doesn’t get ahead of themselves. The one shot at a time mentality is a must.

My advice to any young aspiring golfer: work hard, but most importantly…have fun. Commit yourself to small goals each day and when you achieve your daily goal…leave for the day and do something away from the course. Expect that there will be highs and lows…don’t give the lows too much merit. Focus on the highs and keep building on them…that will do nothing but help develop and build confidence. Confidence is a tricky thing…but it is a vital component to successful golf. And like I mentioned earlier…have fun and enjoy the walk…golf is an incredible game…don’t ever lose sight that it is in fact just a game.

Keep Calm and Play College Golf!!

Kelli Kuehne, Director of Events
College Golf Camps of America