A major technique change has proved a revolutionary act for Tala Clarke and her new-and-improved swing proved the bedrock for her victory in the Hertfordshire Women’s County Championship.
FORMAT: 36-hole stroke play qualifier / 4 rounds of matchplay
Last month the 16-year-old was struggling for distance and confidence and some research, done alongside dad/coach Matt, helped transform her game.
And the considerable overhaul helped her finish joint top of the 36-hole stroke play qualifier and then, in the matchplay stages, she overcame Mill Green’s Zainab Jeppe in an epic semi-final before seeing off Sandy Lodge’s Anna Molloy to claim the title at Moor Park.
The Knebworth player, who finished 75th in the R&A Girls U-16s at Enville in April, had not even won the Herfordshire Girls so was delighted to have gone straight to ‘the big one’.
“It’s all happened in the last couple of weeks,” said Clarke, whose father also caddied all six rounds for her.
“I have never been a long hitter but recently there were girls two or three years younger than me hitting it way past me. We thought it might have been a strength thing but the swing change has made a massive difference and I have added 50 yards to my tee shots.
“Basically I have started using my bigger muscles to hit the ball rather than flicking at it with my wrists. I have also been hitting it more straighter and consistently but I also think playing the tournament during my GCSEs helped. I went into the event in a relaxed mindset because golf is the least of my worries at the moment.”
Clarke needed all her calmness in her last four tie. She was four down after eight but got it back to all square at the 15th. Jeppe then had a great chance to seal her final spot at the last but missed with a seven-footer.
In extra time the first was parred, the par five second was birdied and then the third was also parred before Clarke struck at the next, finding the putting surface in two while her opponent struggled after missing the green. Jeppe then missed from 15 feet for her par and the match was conceded after her playing partner knocked her eagle effort to inside 12 inches.
In the final against Molloy, Clarke was the one to win the eighth and go four up holes but her challenger made a charge around the turn and crucially the soon-to-be champion sunk a 15-footer on 13 to stay one up.
Clarke also won the next with a par and the subsequent three holes were halved, handing her the title on the 17th.