The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Fifteen players from the Bahamas Golf Federation’s junior development programme benefitted from a one-day clinic conducted by Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) player Kathleen Ekey.

The clinic was held at the Ocean Club Golf Course on Paradise Island Saturday and was part of the LPGA’s initiative to bring some more awareness to the second annual Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic that was moved up from May to the weekend of January 20-26 to officially start the 2014 season.

“It was great to have the kids out here. I think we had a really good turnout,” said Ekey, who was back after playing in the rain-soaked initial tournament that was watered down to a 36-hole format that saw Ilhee Lee become a Rolex First-Time winner. “I think it was good to have a chance to work with them. Hopefully they learn a little bit from what I had to teach them.”

Ekey, now on her third year on the circuit, said she remembers when she got started playing at the age of three and she had to watch as the older children were hitting the golf ball a lot further than she did. But she advised them that they just needed to concentrate on their individual game and the progress would eventually come.

As she looks ahead to coming back for her second appearance in the Pure Silk tourney, Ekey said she’s keeping her fingers crossed that the weather will be better than it was last year.

“I live right in Florida and the weather here is similar to Florida. But the weather in Florida in January is pretty nice, so hopefully we will have some nice weather and get a chance to compete in a really good tournament,” said Ekey, who was impressed with the way the golf course looked in the background.

“Last year, we made the best of what we had, playing 12 holes to finish the tournament, but hopefully moving it to January next year will make it much better,” she said. “I know my game has been getting better and that’s all you can really ask for. But I’ve been working on my short game and I can hit it. I just need to putt a lot better and if I do, I can make the cut again here.”

Ekey, who will turn 27 in a couple of weeks, got to hear the campers and their parents sing ‘happy birthday’ to her during the end of the camp as she signed individual autographs for each player after she wrapped up the clinic with a pep talk and a question and answer period.

“I think they are doing a really great job. The older kids are hitting the ball very well and they are fundamentally sound,” she said. “But as members of the LPGA Tour, we get excited when we see kids like these all performing so well. It’s so cool to see kids as excited as I was.”

For those players who wish to follow Ekey on the pro circuit, the University of Alabama graduate advised them that it will require a lot of work.

“Growing up you probably don’t have the same life as some of the other kids,” she said. “But this game has taken me to a lot of places like the Bahamas. How many people get to do this for their job. It’s a lot of work. But you have to make a commitment to make it work and put 110 per cent into your effort every time.”

Two of the participants noted that they were really impressed with what they learned from Ekey.

Tyesha Tynes, an eight-year-old third grader at St John’s College, noted: “It felt good and it was a beautiful day. I was just glad that I got this opportunity. I learn that no matter what age you are, you just have to believe in yourself.”

And Harry Kane, a 10-year-old who is home schooled, said it was an honour for him to have been selected to participate.

“I had a lot of fun because she was able to teach a lot about improving our game,” said Kane, who participated along with his brother, Health, who got some personal one-on-one instructions from Ekey.

Yvonne Shaw, who heads the youth development programme at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex, said anytime they have a professional come in, it helps their youngsters to improve their game.

“We don’t have enough of it and we don’t have enough access for the kids to play,” she said. “We have the talent, but they really need the access to the course. We have the driving range at the sports centre and so their game is not where they should be because they don’t have sufficient access to the courses to play on.”

Emily Palacioz, a member of the LPGA staff that was responsible for bringing Ekey to the Bahamas for the clinic, said the idea was to provide them with an opportunity to get some tips from one of their touring pros and at the same time set the stage for the Pure-Silk tournament.

“We definitely want to get more involved on the island and this is our way of coming here to put the Bahamas on the map as a destination for golf,” she said. “We want to encourage the top players to come to the Bahamas to train and put on more tournaments here. So we are excited to be here.”

Palacioz said the Bahamas should not only be proud of the facility on Paradise Island but the fact that there are two young players in Georgette Rolle and Racquel Riley, who were a part of the field for the Pure-Silk tournament last year.

“It’s practicing and being very consistent,” said Palacioz, as she provided some tips for local players who wish to become a part of the pro tour. “You can’t give up, you just have to keep practicing and keep going because eventually your hard work will pay off.”

Dean Bring, a member of the Pure-Silk Tour, said the clinic was important for their hosting of the tournament next year.

“We want to make sure that we have a successful tournament here, but at the same time, we want to provide an opportunity to give back to the local community,” he said. “So one of the ways we can do that is to bring in professionals from time to time to conduct clinics like these.”

And Michelle Wiltshire, senior vice president of special events and entertainment at Atlantis, said they are delighted to be able to host the top players from the LPGA in events like the Pure-Silk Tournament at Ocean Club.

“The LPGA was so impressed with the way we hosted the tournament, even in the rain, that they decided to come back to host the clinic and also open their new season here in January,” she said.

She noted that it was even special for the Bahamas in the fact that the LPGA was able to host the clinic at the Ocean Club on Saturday and they were pleased to partner with the BGF in affording the opportunity to allow the 15 youngsters to get some vaulable tips from Ekey.