Volume 1, Number 1 March 12, 2003
 

Season Preview 2003

 Pages 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Grace's Issues
Like Mi Hyun Kim, Grace has signed a new club contract over the off-season. In fact, she signed an everything contract, all with the Swoosh, Nike. It's her first sponsorship, and it was big. But it introduces new challenges, too. Grace has never played the Nike ball or the Nike clubs before, and now she has only a few weeks to get used to them before the season starts. In other ways, she has been preparing for the season well. She has worked as hard as ever, and has focused on conditioning and strengthening. The clubs will be an X-Factor, but she benefits from the fact that the first two events of the year are in her home state of Arizona. And having all that financial security from her big contract has got to take a lot off her mind, but then again, she now has the pressure of living up to someone's expectations that she has never faced before.

If Mi Hyun's achilles heel is her nerve, Grace's has been her tendency to get upset. If things don't go her way, she gets that narrow eyed grimace on her face; she starts walking more slowly, shoulders hunched. If they continue to go wrong, she start hitting things, sometimes with her clubs. One bad shot can quickly multiply into several. It's an easy thing to get into, as anyone who plays golf knows. But as a professional, Grace needs to learn how to control her anger, and channel it into focus and desire to do better on the next shot. Se Ri is great at this. If Grace ever picks up this skill, watch out, because she has all the tools to be a superstar: length, drive, mind, short game, desire.

Stated Goals: five wins. Obviously she is really hoping to bring her game to a new level, as she has never won more than once in a season.

Bottom Line: You gotta like Grace, but can she win five times? Well, certainly she'll need to cut down on the rotten rounds. But if she can accomplish that, multiple wins are certainly doable. Five is still a reach, but looking back to 2002, I can think of at least three other events where Grace had a legitimate chance to win. So I'd say three wins are quite doable, and if she really reaches deep, she could make her goal.

It's not long now! Enjoy the 2003 LPGA season, and GO SEOUL SISTERS!!
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