Matilde Santilli is ‘one to watch’

ONE TO WATCH

MATILDE SANTILLI

When did you start playing golf and who was your inspiration? I started playing when I was five-years-old and I instantly fell in love with the game when I tried it. No one in my family plays golf so I was mostly inspired by the older juniors at my club as I watched them practice together at the weekend.

Do you have a favourite player and who would be in your dream fourball? Nelly Korda, I love her attitude, discipline and determination to be the best and I also love watching her play whenever I get the chance. My dream fourball would be Collin Morikawa, Tiger Woods and Seve Ballesteros.

What have been your career highlights so far? When I was 13, I won Foxhills Club Championships which was great because I shot 3 under-par for the second time that season. Winning Junior County week and being part of the winning team at Women’s County Finals this year were also amazing experiences). How often do you play/practice? In the summer I play pretty much everyday due to competitions and when I’m not playing I love to do skill drills to put pressure on my practice sessions. In the winter, I normally practice nearly everyday, mostly working on my swing and I usually play on the course on weekends.

Is finding time to play whilst managing school/work etc. difficult? At the moment, I’m not finding it too difficult but I’m guessing it will be more challenging as I get closer to my GCSEs and A-levels.

Are there specific areas of your game that you work on and how do you monitor your results to try and identify any concerns you have? My putting is generally pretty strong but the area I currently need to work on is attacking the green, especially shots from 100-160 yards. I log all the statistics for my rounds on GolfDatalab which I use with my regional squad and Mygameforge which I use with my coach Pedro Lemos.

PLAYER PROFILE

Name: Matilde Santilli

Age: 14

Club: Foxhills

Handicap: +1

Competition wins/ titles/ placements:

c U15 Girls County Champion 2021 c 1st place in U16 category at the

Tyrrel Hatton Junior Masters 2021 c 3rd U14 at the R&A Girls U16

Amateur Championship 2021 c 4th U14 at England Girls U14/U16

Strokeplay Championship 2021 c Player with the most wins on 2019

Rookie Tour

What are your goals for 2022 and beyond? During the winter I want to get stronger and work on my swing speed to gain more distance and accuracy for next season. I want to work hard on my game as well as the mental side so that in the future I will be able to win a national competition. My ultimate goal is to play college golf and later on turn professional to play on the LPGA tour, but that will take time and lots of hard work. What advice would you give to young players just starting on their journey in golf? My advice would firstly be to have fun and not take the game too seriously, as well as that I would say: to accept if something goes wrong on the course or at the range since it is part of the learning process. Finally, what are your other interests when you are not playing golf? When I’m not playing golf, I like to go out, especially going shopping with my mum. I also like to play football or other sports with my friends when I have time.

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