|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Making some changes
Leta Lindley, 28, is in her sixth season on the LPGA Tour. She had her best year in 1999 with a tie for second, as well as four other top 10 finishes. In 1997, she finished second at the LPGA Championship, losing to Chris Johnson on the second hold of a sudden-death playoff. She was a four-time All-American at the University of Arizona and set an NCAA record for lowest 54-hole score (nine under par). Check out Lindley's diary each Wednesday on CNNSI.com. September 26, 2000
It's raining and freezing here. There's a big green blob over Ohio on the Weather Channel. We just came back from a camping store to stock up on earmuffs and gloves and fleece jackets. We'll play, regardless of the weather. They only stop events due to lightning or if the course is unplayable due to water. So I'm going to be prepared. Last week I hit the ball really well. On Friday, the first round, the conditions were really windy. I shot an 8 over (80). But I was in good company. There were a lot of good people shooting high scores. I really shouldn't have shot what I did. I turned at one under. I just lost my focus and patience. I really needed someone to pull me back and say, "Look, it's a really tough day, just hang in there and finish strong." It was just a tough day, but. I have no one to blame but myself. It's harder to stay focused at the end of the year, but obviously, I was really disappointed because I hit the ball better than I had in a long time. I three-putted from eight feet on 11, I made two doubles in a row -- at the worst they should have been bogeys. Stuff like that. You get frustrated and you can't focus. I just wanted to get the day over with. On Saturday, I finished double bogey, bogey. I had the cut, but lost it. I ended up missing the cut by one stroke. I shot a 72. But you know what? It happens. I'm not going to beat myself up over it. I hit my driver so much better. I was so excited. It just felt really good. I was beginning to think my driver was broken. Surely, it must have been broken all those weeks! I hadn't hit the sweet spot in so long. And I hit it this week, and it feels so good. I've always said that as long as I see improvement or light at the end of the tunnel I won't be discouraged. If I improve, I can go away feeling good or at least better. And that's how I feel about last week. On a sadder note, my caddie Tommy and I parted ways on Sunday. I just felt like I needed something different. It's been building up. I think he's great and we developed a really nice friendship. We worked hard this year and I really had wanted to take him to the Tour Championship. But if I felt like I needed something else from my caddie, then I needed to make a change. This has to be the hardest thing I've ever had to do. You try to stress that it's not personal, it's a business and you don't want it to affect your friendship. It's just hard. It does happen all the time, but that doesn't really make it any easier. Players often talk about caddies in the sense of musical chairs. But you always hope it won't happen to you. It's a part of the job, but I haven't had to worry about it before. So I've got a new caddie this week, Thad. He was Michele Redman's caddie and she's not playing here this week. I'm looking forward to it. I need to find someone for Korea and Japan next month. Another change is that Matt has decided to come back out next year and caddy. He has really enjoyed working for someone else these past few weeks (he's been caddying for Laura Philo). It's nice to have him here, and we're excited to see each other at the end of the day. Matt really likes that. This week I'm hoping the sun will shine. I'm focused on being in the top 30 and I've got two events left (I'm currently 29th on the money list). I'm excited. It took me a whole day to get here, but it's going to be a good week. I'm going to have to gut it out. Sometimes when you get someone new on the bag, it's new and fresh. I think I need that. Thad will bring new things to the table. And my swing is better, so that's always good. -Leta
| ||||||||||||||||||||
