Lightning has flashed uncomfortably close at Englewood’s Broken Tee Golf Course, a sure sign that players should seek shelter. Trisha Self knows this, but as she stands over an approach shot from 95 yards out on the eighth hole, the competitor inside doesn’t send her fleeing for safety, but rather, waggles her club.
“This shot could go in,” she said in all seriousness.
A more insistent bolt crackles almost immediately, sending the multipurposed Self indoors. But when the round resumes, the 25-year-old, a Colorado State graduate who’s currently an instructor at the McGetrick Golf Academy at Broken Tee, as well as a fitness instructor, showed she still had plenty of fire left as she discussed her hopes for a professional career, dealing with a resemblance to LPGA star Natalie Gulbis, and making history in August at the Denver Open.
The round began with a simple question:
Why golf?
“Because it’s a game where the only challenge is you. You and the golf course. The better you can control yourself and the challenges of you — how well you can play, how well you can control the mental side of things — says what happens. If you have a great day, it’s because of you. If you have an awful day, it’s because of you — you control what happens.”
Staying the course
“People can practice on the driving range, but you get better out on the course. You can stand and hit perfect shots all day on the range, but it doesn’t count — there’s no greens, you don’t have to make a putt. You have to put everything together on the course.”
On the line
“I grew up playing with brothers and my dad and my uncle, and we always played for something, whether it was ice cream or fudge or whatever. But we always played for something, because when there’s something on the line, it’s more like playing in a tournament, things count out there. Plus, it just makes it more fun because you get to trash talk too.”
Sting like a bee
“My bumblebee ball marker has just joined my life. When I look at it on the green, it makes me think of something positive, and all the positive things that I do on a golf course. So when I’m looking down, I’m thinking good thoughts and thinking free. If you can think good thoughts, you’ll have a tendency to play freely. So when I see it, it tells me to play free.”
You can do it too
“I tell my students to find something, whether it’s a ball marker or a mark on their wrist, something, so that when they see it, they’ll think positive thoughts.”
Repetitive motion
“As a teacher, I see a lot of bad golf swings, but I think it’s a myth that watching bad swings can affect your game. I think the people who that happens to don’t work on their games enough. And I think everyone has good qualities in their swings, we just work on the areas that are a challenge for them.”
Finding a niche
“I’ve only been teaching since March, but I love it. The last few years I’ve been traveling around, playing in a lot of state Opens, and making a commitment to touring. But teaching and training clients is great, it’s a really good fit for me. I love seeing how people’s faces light up when the light bulb goes on, because I know I’m making an impact on their golf game and maybe on their lives.”
Welcome
“I’ve been asked to play in the Denver Open this August at Colorado National, which used to be Vista Ridge. I’ll be the first woman to do so. I’ve got my work cut out for me. I need to get my putting game going, and I’m working on power. I’m consistent, but a little bit more distance is always a good thing.”
Solitary existence
“One thing I struggled with when I was touring was the fact that golf is a very self-centered game. You’re traveling a lot and you have to be very selfish. And I struggled with that because I’m a very nice individual and very unselfish. So being a teacher is a good balance, but I still want to play in tournaments. Like when the U.S. Women’s Open comes here (to the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs in 2011), I’ll be there.”
In the zone
“When you’re out on the driving range at a professional event, you’re dealing with people from all over the world, different languages, different cultures, different ethics. But everyone out there is focusing on themselves; they couldn’t care less about you. You might know people and they might say hi and ask how you’re doing, but their whole goal is to beat you. And that has to be your goal too, and if you get off it, or you don’t think you’re the best player out there that day, you won’t be. And if you’re thinking that that girl is swinging harder than me, or that girl is making more putts than me, then you’re not focusing on what’s important and that’s you.”
Natalie
“I used to have long hair, and I’d wear it in a braided ponytail and I’d get Natalie Gulbis comments quite a bit. I was at the PGA Convention and Golf Show three years ago, and I walked by (LPGA pro) Christina Kim and she started waving and yelling, ‘Hey, hey!’ She thought I was Natalie. And when Natalie was on ‘The Apprentice’ last year, there were a couple of times when I looked and just went, ‘Whoa!’
Brains and beauty
“I get called Sunshine around here, and I think my personality has more of an impact than my looks. There have been a few times when men didn’t take me seriously because of how I look, but I think because of my background in health and exercise science, and understanding golf in terms of the biomechanics too, when I start to talk, they realize they’re dealing with an intelligent woman, not just a beautiful one.”
The future
“I’ve played on the Futures Tour, and I tried to qualify for the LPGA Tour last year. I don’t know if I will this year. I like the balance in my life, teaching and playing in a few good tournaments. But if there’s the opportunity, and a sponsor who would want to help me get there, that would help. When I was there last year, I know that I had the skills. But when you’re going into the final round and the pressure’s on, that’s when things break down. I want that to be when I get strongest. So that’s what I’m working on . . . maybe next year.”
Climbing Mount Foodji
“I work at a place called Championship Golf Fitness, but I’ll eat a Snickers bar. But only after I’ve done a good job working out. And it would be the only one for the entire week. But I’d eat one — you have to treat yourself!”
Anthony Cotton: 303-954-1292 or acotton@denverpost.com
The basics
From the tips
“When you’re going to play in a tournament or event or a big match, don’t think of it as all that; just think of it as a day, don’t make it anything special. Stay in your routine. If you drink coffee in the morning, then drink coffee in the morning. If you go for a run, go for a run that day. You want your body in its natural habitat.”
The dream team
“My father, my uncle and my brother. Family. That’s the foursome that raised me in golf, and as our lives go in different directions, when we get the opportunity to play, it’s just a lot of fun.”
One for the books
I was playing in a collegiate tournament and was on the last hole. I was at 3-under and had a long putt for birdie. I made it to get to 4-under, and I didn’t have to play any more golf that day!”
