The world of women's professional golf is blessed with great golfing talent, as the recent Solheim Cup match between the USA and Europe has shown, but also with many players whose looks are every bit the equal of their games.
The glamour of the ladies' game is an obvious and powerful attraction which some say overshadows the golf itself. But LPGA Tour Commissioner Ty Votaw makes no secret of his belief that glamour will help promote the Ladies Tour, and thereby benefit the players themselves in the form of more prize money and bigger sponsorships.
We can only agree with him and make our small contribution by bringing you a regular feature on the loveliest ladies of the links. This month's featured player is:
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Natalie Gulbis
- Born: January 7th, 1983
- Nationality: American
- Height: 5 feet 9 inches
- Education: University of Arizona
- Lives: Sacramento, California
- 1997 California Women's Amateur Champion
- Turned pro 2001
- Tied 3rd at 2001 LPGA Tour qualifying school
- 2nd in 2002 Rookie of the Year points
- Natalie is coached by Butch Harmon
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 Natalie started striding the fairways in Sacramento with her father John at the tender age of 4.
"I didn't want to be at home playing with dolls. I liked the surroundings. Loving golf came later.", she says. "She would be mad if I didn't take her," confirms John.
Success came quickly. Natalie won her first tournament by the age of 7 and was breaking par by 10. A year later, she won the California Junior Girls while also competing at a high level in gymnastics and diving. |
At 14, in 1997, Natalie set two records, albeit since broken. She was the youngest ever winner of the California Women's Amateur Championship and also the youngest to get through Monday qualifying and gain entry to an LPGA event, the Longs Drugs Challenge.
While still studying in high school, Natalie worked at her golf and played tournaments, covering 130.000 miles in the family pick-up truck with her father and often sleeping in a tent.
Graduating at 16, she went to the University of Arizona where she won four college events and earned first team All-America honours.
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 After earning a spot in the 2001 US Women's Open as an amateur, Natalie finished 34th and took the big decision.
"I felt if I could play with these girls, I'd turn pro.", she says. "Now that I'm out here, I can't imagine doing anything else. I have a lot of work to catch up to these girls, but I wanted to test my game. I wanted to beat the best and I needed to be out here to do that."
Her peers clearly feel Natalie is a postive addition to the Ladies' tour. "She presents a young, fresh, healthy image," says 24-year-old LPGA 'veteran' Cristie Kerr (subject of a future 'My Fairway Ladies' profile). "She has a great smile and really lights people up." Plus she is coached by Butch Harmon, and has shared the practice tee with Tiger Woods. |
Inevitably, Natalie's talent and glamour lead to her being described as the Kournikova of women's golf. At just 20 Natalie, the LPGA's only fully exempt American rookie in 2002, and Kournikova, 21, are attractive athletes whose looks translate to serious endorsement dollars.
But we believe the similarities end there. While Kournikova hasn't won a singles title in seven years, Natalie is made of stronger stuff. "To be compared to her, I'm flattered," she says, despite already having lucrative contracts with Adidas, Taylor Made and Maxfli (whose promotional photos we have gratefully included in this feature). There is also talk of an Adidas fashion commercial with Natalie and Anna Kournikova teaching each other their respective sports. We can't wait...
In the meantime, however, Natalie finished second in the 2002 Rookie of the Year points standings, behind Beth Bauer, and shot a career-low 65 in the final round of the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic. She also has her own official website at www.nataliegulbis.com, with lots of beautiful pictures (although you'll need to be patient while the very flashy pages load), and several unofficial fan sites, the most devoted of which has to be the aptly named www.online-shrine.com/gulbis/index.php. You will not be surprised to learn that this site's creators also run a site worshipping..... Anna Kournikova. No matter. We still think Natalie has more talent.
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We end this feature with some beautiful pictures from Natalie's Adidas promotional gallery. Click on a photo to see it full size, then click 'Back' to return to this page.
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Look out for next month's Fairway Lady: Grace Park
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