Eun-Hee Ji "can trust" her swing for Women's Open
U.S. Women's Open 2009 champion Eun-Hee Ji is back at the competition this year to defend her title. Seven former U.S. Open Champions are going to be competing against Ji, but she does not appear worried.
Despite having a rather dismal year of golf, Ji is unconcerned about the tournament. A major contributing factor to her struggle this year has been her quest to change her swing.
At the end of last season Ji began tinkering with different swings, and eventually hired a new swing coach in January, Ian Triggs. Triggs has worked with several PGA and LPGA players in the past. He is currently also working for Kerrie Webb.
Ji did not post a top-15 finish in any LPGA event this year. At the Nabisco Championship she tied for 75th place, and missed the cut at the LPGA Championship.
Ji’s swing has rounded out since working with Triggs and she is confident about going into the Open, which starts today at Oakmont Country Club.
“I change my swing a lot, so, first couple tournaments...I played really bad, but [the swing is] getting better right now," Ji said in a recent interview. “I’m playing with more confidence.”
Though she had a rough start Ji enters the tournament today on a high note. She tied for 17th place at the Jamie Farr Owes Corning Classic last weekend, as she landed rounds of 69-67. This has been her best finish this season and it looks like her new swing is paying off.
Ji can play the draw and the fade more accurately with her new swing, and she has been making better shots off the tee than she was a few months ago. She compared her old swing to Sergio Garcia’s “high and drop down” swing, but the new move is flatter to the ground.
“I have more distance and I can control a lot of shots. I can trust my swing right now.”
Trust and confidence is a good thing to have at this particular course. Oakmont is the toughest course on the LPGA schedule, and many of the contestants have commented on its difficulty level.
American Christie Kerr thinks the course: “is cool, probably the coolest golf course I’ve been on,” but knows it is also going to be “one of the most penalizing.”
Chrisitie won the U.S. Women’s Open in 2007, and the 2010 LPGA Championship last month. She is a favourite for the title this year, and hopes to live up to the expectations of her fan base.
Aside from the level of competition, the length of the course is also daunting. Ji said she will be adding some woods and hybrid clubs to her bag and will give special attention “to the second shot on every hole,” the most important shot she believes.
Before winning the US Open last year, Ji was a relatively unknown player. The 24-year-old South Korean turned professional in 2004 and has won twice on the LPGA Korea Tour. She worked her way up on the radar with a couple of close calls in larger events but gained more recognition after tying for fifth in the Women’s British Open in 2007.
Ji got her big break when she defeated Candie Kung by one stroke at the 2009 Open, her second victory at the LPGA. Ji made a 20-foot birdie on the 72nd hole, the shot that won her the tournament. This was the second time Ji won an event with a come-from-behind win.
In 2008 Ji was at the center of controversy after she won the Wegmans LPGA. Ji had a translator help her with her acceptance speech, which sparked the proposed 'English only' requirement for the LPGA. Ji felt targeted by the proposal, and promised in the future to “pay more attention to my English.” Last year however, she again relied on a translator during her acceptance speech at the Open.
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