ARIZONA NEWS
GIRL’S GOLF
Positive approach empowers LPGA-USGA Girls Golf of Phoenix
n BY CORI MATHESON A
re you tired of hearing that golf is dying? Here is a fact: IT IS NOT!
The LPGA-USGA Girls Golf
of Phoenix can see firsthand that golf is on the upswing, and girls golf is especially doing well. Our local chapter is the largest and most active in the country. As I tell my girls every day, together we will get to witness the growth of golf today and in the years to come. According to the 2015 LPGA
with our Robotic Swing Trainer
Cori Matheson (far right) and some of the girls who she works with as the director of the LPGA-USGA Girls Club of Phoenix. Matheson can be reached through
girlsggolfofphoenix.org as well as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Foundation Girls Golf Annual Report, there has been a 900 percent growth in national participation of girls ages 6 to 17 in our national program. Girls are finding a safe place to grow and nurture their games. The Phoenix chapter has over 220 active girls with an average age of 10. These are girls growing up with golf. Most will golf for a lifetime! World Golf Foundation CEO Steve
Mona recently stated that about 2.2 million new golfers took up the game last year in the United States alone. How can critics not say that golf’s popularity is on the upswing? So how do you choose to
view the game and its growth? Payne Stewart said, “A bad attitude is worse than a bad swing.” Ask yourself what your present attitude is toward the game as well as its future. If we want to continue this growth, our goal must be to shift thoughts away from the inaccurate statement that “golf is dying” and toward the truth that golf, in fact, has a very bright future. At our club(s) it is growing and evolving with diversity in gender, nationality, fashion, branding and so much more! When I was a little girl, I took a golf
lesson from Scott Watkins, a well-known instructor here in Phoenix who taught me
www.azgolf.org
a valuable lesson. (My dad probably paid a lot of money for this lesson, so listen up!) Watkins shared with me that your brain does not hear negative words (e.g. “no,” “don’t,” “can’t,” “won’t”) and focuses on the other words you say. So, while playing golf, if you say to yourself, “I won’t go in the water,” your brain hears, “Go in the water,” and focuses only on that. Instead you should say, “I will go in the fairway!” This same theory applies to life and
how you choose to approach it. If we can change the way you think, we can change the outcome. With that being said, my challenge for you is this: Let’s focus on the positive while
looking at the bright future ahead for this growing sport. Together we can build that future and take a shared sense of ownership in its success. With positive, encouraging and empowering support of the future generation of the game, it will grow; it IS growing! Take it from me: We can all (regardless of our age) play a vital role in this growth. We’re changing the face of the game
at LPGA-USGA Girls Golf of Phoenix. Join the movement and help us inspire even more girls and newcomers through golf! n
ANNUAL 2016 | AZ GOLF Insider | 31
Feel & Repeat Your On-Plane Golf Swing
FREE 30 Minute Demo Session
Schedule One Today
Call
480.361.4339
www.boccierigolf.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46