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2011 Rookie Class: Dori Carter

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Every week, we've been introducing an LPGA rookie of 2011. This week, we learn more about Dori Carter, a Southern belle who has competitive fire.

Dori Carter tees off at the eighth hole during the Pennsylvania Classic golf tournament on Sunday, Aug. 8, 2010, in Harrisburg, Pa. (AP Photo)

Carter is no stranger to high-level tournaments. Having played in the 2005 U.S. Women's Open and three U.S. Women's Amateurs (2005, 2007, 2009), the Ole Miss all-star recorded a win and five top-10 finishes on the Futures Tour last year after just one season as a professional golfer. And the 24-year-old is hoping for an even smoother transition onto the big stage.

Golf Digest Woman: How did you become interested in golf?
Dori Carter: I grew up playing several sports, like softball and basketball, and I first started playing golf when I was 7 years old. I grew up on Valdosta Country Club, and golf became my summer sport. My dad is really the one who got me interested in it. We always say he taught me the rules, not how to swing or play the game. He's not very good! I began to focus just on golf once I got into high school.

GDW: And why did you decide to play golf for the University of Mississippi? Seems like so many up-and-coming girls are skipping that step.
DC: College just seemed like the next logical option. Playing at Ole Miss is the best thing I ever did. It's where I developed the most; I needed those years to mature and learn a lot about golf course management. I was a student-athlete and golf was my priority, but I wanted to enjoy the entire college experience. So I was in a sorority, I went to football games and I really enjoyed college life. I could've turned pro early but I was happy where I was and I loved representing Ole Miss.

GDW: And how did college golf help your game?
DC: Michele Drinkard, my college coach, changed the way I prepared for tournaments and practiced for them. Specifically, she taught me how to practice and prepare and do all the work beforehand so that when it came to tournament time, I could just have fun and play. Preparing and scheduling is a major commitment for professional golfers, so I'm really glad she made it a priority.

GDW: And before college, who really shaped your game?
DC: Gale Peterson has been my swing coach since I was 15 years old, which is when I started getting serious about golf. She works at Sea Island. Gale is very swing-specific and technical. In high school, she guided me through a major grip change, and that was huge. And for a long time, we've been working on getting a little more loaded on my right side so I can unload through impact more distance. But Gale keeps it really simple. She knows that if it gets too technical, I can lose it.

GDW: What are your swing thoughts on the course?
DC: I'm completely target-focused on the course, so I don't really have any swing thoughts. I have swing thoughts on the practice range, but on the course I can't be thinking, "You need to get loaded." I'm thinking, "There's the target."

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2011 Rookie Class: Sara Brown

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Every week, we're going to introduce an LPGA rookie of 2011. Welcome, Sara Brown.

Brown, the two-time Big Break contestant who played on the Futures Tour for three years, has finally broken through to the LPGA Tour. The 25-year-old is one of a few young golfers to graduate college, and the fully-exempt rookie spoke with us about climbing out of a slump, playing without swing thoughts and living with a man who is her boyfriend, instructor and caddie, all in one.

Golf Digest Woman: You decided to play four seasons of college golf, which is something most young female golfers opt out of. How will that experience help you this year?
Sara Brown: There's a huge misconception that college doesn't prepare golfers for being out on the road. But time management is key in college--I had to balance school with having friends and traveling to golf tournaments--and it'll be key out on tour. In that sense, college helped a lot.

GDW: And three years on the Futures Tour must have been a grind. How did you stick with it?
SB: Believe it or not, I put my clubs away after the summer of 2009. I just wanted to quit. I wasn't having fun. And I totally want to be that person who plays golf everyday, even when I'm 80. I want to be out on the course with my husband. And I just didn't see myself doing that with all the pressure of competitive golf. I called it the "sophomore slump."

GDW: So how did you climb out of the slump?
SB: I had a great support system with my family and my boyfriend, Derek Radley. They really helped me realize why I love golf so much. Especially Derek, a Class A PGA Professional who came along and helped me with my swing and helped me balance my personal life. Before meeting him, I had put a lot of pressure on myself to play good. And when I didn't win and transition to the LPGA Tour after my first year on the Futures Tour, I got down and depressed. But now, with Derek's help, I've been happy. Whether I shoot 76 or 66, I'm still happy. People can't tell the difference, because I've found the love of golf again and it makes me play better.

GDW: Tell us a little bit more about that support system. Who will be your caddie this year?
SB: Actually, Derek (27 years old) is going to be my full-time caddie. And he's also my coach. So Derek is my golf instructor, caddie and boyfriend all rolled into one.

GDW: Will it be difficult to separate your boyfriend from your caddie/instructor?
SB: We don't mix business with pleasure. He's my boyfriend first, until we step on the golf course, then he's business. We're good at separating the two. And Derek knows golf. He won three times in college, but never wanted to play on tour. Instead, he wanted to help people get on the tour. His dream was always to be inside the ropes and coach people. So now he'll get to caddie and coach at the same time.

GDW: How did you guys meet?
SB: We first met six years ago at a golf course in Michigan, but we saw each other again two winters ago in Florida. He remembered meeting me in Michigan more than I remembered meeting him. And I talked with a mutual friend of ours, who had mentioned that he had gone through a lot of drama in the past year--he had been married and divorced. So I was on the driving range when he drove up in a golf cart. I immediately said, "Hey, were you married?" He almost had a heart attack. Then I said, "Did she play golf?" He said no. I pulled a tee out of my hair, stuck it in the ground, blasted a drive down the range and said, "Maybe your next one should." So if anyone says he picked me up, they're wrong. I totally picked him up!

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2011 Rookie Class: Jennifer Song

Monday, January 31, 2011

Every week, we're going to introduce an LPGA rookie of 2011. Enter, Jennifer Song.

Last year, the 21-year-old won the first professional event she entered (the Futures Tour's Tate & Lyle Players Championship). The win wasn't surprising, considering her stellar amateur career: in 2007, she tied for low amateur at the U.S. Women's Open; she was named Freshman of the Year in 2008 at the University of Southern California; she finished low amateur at the 2009 U.S. Women's Open; she won both the 2009 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links and the 2009 U.S. Women's Amateur; and she became a two-time All-American golfer in 2009 after tying for fifth place at the NCAA Championship.

The Orlando resident will play in the first LPGA Tour event of the 2011 season (the Honda LPGA Thailand, from Feb. 17-20), and she answered our 18 questions about golf, her personal life and the things that make her happy.

Golf Digest Woman: You were born in Michigan, then moved to South Korea when you were 2 years old. You moved back to Michigan for three years, but returned to South Korea until returning to the U.S. for college. How did you become interested in golf?
Jennifer Song: I liked every sport I played, but I really followed my dad. I picked up his clubs and I really enjoyed it. I went out to play in a local tournament when I was 10, and I won. That's when I got hooked. I got serious about golf in eighth grade.

GDW: What other sports did you play? Do you think they helped your golf game, or did they get in the way?
JS: I played volleyball, basketball and soccer. Actually, in the tenth grade I played some varsity soccer. All these sports really helped my golf game. Since the golf ball doesn't move, we tend to get too analytical about everything. But since I've played a lot of fast sports, I've tried to hit golf shots more instinctively than analytically.
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