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Going Somewhere
There’s nothing unusual about a toddler picking up some plastic golf clubs and knocking a ball around the garden. However, a six year old girl becoming the youngest member of Newmarket’s Links Golf Club is far more impressive. For her to be playing competitively by the age of eight is downright extraordinary. But then again, that’s just setting the tone for Sarah Smith’s journey in golf.
Sarah attended all of John Starkey’s Saturday morning lessons (even if winning a chocolate bar was the key incentive) and the hard work paid off in her teenage years. Sarah told us that one of her ‘proudest moments’ at Newmarket was being made Junior Captain in 2008. I’ll be honest here and tell you that I was surprised (pleasantly, of course) when she told me that it was ‘kind of normal back then’ for her, as a lady, to be named as captain of a mixed junior team. Sarah recalls weeks off school (an added bonus) playing Cambs & Hunts County golf with particular fondness. Speaking of the ‘pride’ she felt representing her county, Sarah told us how much the ‘team spirit’ had meant to her; citing team events as the thing she misses most about playing amateur golf. In her own words, playing for county was ‘the first time I really felt like I could go somewhere with my golf’. And go somewhere she did!
The McIlroy Effect
One memory that stands out for Sarah is a Q&A with Rory McIlroy when she was 15; somebody she believes to be a great role model and advocate for women’s golf. He was outspoken in his criticism of Muirfield’s ‘obscene’ and ‘horrendous’ men-only policy, and was not entirely forgiving in March last year when only 80% voted to overturn the policy. This sort of intervention from global superstars in the men’s game is critical, Sarah believes (and we couldn’t agree more!).
What's Happening Now?
Since making a last-minute U-turn away from university in favour of a PGA Qualification in 2012, Sarah has been working closely with local primary schools as part of the Tri Golf programme as well as working with Golf Foundation at events like the BMW Championship to coach junior golfers. The word team is a particular favourite of Sarah’s, so it clearly means a lot to her that her current club- Saffron Walden Golf Club- ‘work as a team’ to promote participation for the women’s & junior game.
Despite her success in WPGA events, Sarah tells us that her favourite thing about golf is coaching and seeing the people she coaches improve and fall in love with the game. Sarah says that she often sees girls dropping out of the game between the ages of 14 and 17; an issue she is keen to address through her coaching role at Saffron Walden.
What Needs to Happen Next?
One particular obstacle did leap out at Sarah when I asked her what is stopping newcomers to the game we love: time. People are busy and golf is time-consuming. Slow play has been under heavy criticism and Sarah says ‘pace of play needs to change’, but believes the way forward is an increase in 9-hole courses for newcomers and recreational golfers; giving them the chance to ease into the game because, let’s face it, golf is tough. After 18 holes and 14 broken clubs, you could excuse a newbie deciding it’s not for them. But a leisurely 9 holes could be the answer, Sarah believes.
Sarah is extremely supportive of initiatives and campaigns like England Golf’s Women & Girls Golf Week, telling us that it can simply be a matter of awareness for the women’s game and England Golf are playing a critical role in this. With social media rife, there really is no excuse for a lack of awareness in this day & age.
Written by Joe Carabini
