Leading American coach believes

sky's the limit for 'remarkable' Carly

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.COM WEBSITE
ONE of America's leading golf coaches, Mike Malaska, forecast yesterday there was no limit on what Carly Booth, the 15-year-old Scot who will become the youngest ever player to represent Great Britain and Ireland in the Curtis Cup at St Andrews this summer, can achieve in the game.
Malaska, who was ranked 26th by his peers in Golf Digest's most recent list of America's top instructors, believes Booth is blessed with so much natural talent and innate strength that the sky is the limit in terms of turning potential into accomplishment – provided she continues to work hard and doesn't rush into becoming a tour player before she's ready.

Based at Superstition Mountain GC, near Phoenix in Arizona, Malaska has been coaching Booth over the winter months and was sufficiently impressed by the Scot that he promoted the teenager's case for inclusion in the Curtis Cup side when he spoke to GB&I officials.

He told them Carly was already a better player than when she left Scotland in the autumn."No, I wasn't surprised Carly was selected for the team even though she's only 15," said Malaska. "After watching her over the last few months, truthfully, I would have been surprised if they hadn't picked her. Her level of talent is remarkable. If they'd picked someone else, I'd liked to know what they had that she doesn't.

"If you look at Carly from a standpoint of talent as well as her strength, how far she goes in golf is all going to be a function of what she wants from the game. I've seen a lot of talented players who get to a point where they lose their passion. They think they can get by on ability when there are people around who will out-work them.

"If Carly maintains her love for the game, then it's unlimited where she's going in golf. At 15, she has everything in front of her."

Malaska spent weeks watching Carly in action before deciding how he could help her improve. The first thing which surprised him about her play, bearing in mind she's a Scot, was how high she hit her approach shots from inside 130 yards. The second aspect of her play he wanted to work on was her driving and correct a tendency to hook wild shots off the golf course.

The third element was short putting and holing out from close range.

In spite of her strength and the clubhead speed she generates, Booth lacked what Malaska calls a "go-to" shot which would reliably get her in play off the tee.

"Before, she either hit her drives perfectly, or they went left," he recalled. "As for her putting, she made more long bombs than anyone I've ever seen. But she was very streaky from six feet. She'd either make or miss everything."

Now the trajectory of Carly's short-iron play is lower. Although the Scot initially was reluctant to accept the change, she embraced the alteration after seeing the positive impact on her scoring in competition.

As for her driving, which has become more consistent, Malaska was hugely impressed by the teenager's physical strength.

"Carly's hands and arms are stronger than most men," he revealed. "She doesn't have a large body, but she can generate great clubhead speed. That's what it's all about – creating speed you can control."

The Scot has also become more clinical with short putts and Malaska insisted: "In the four-and-a-half months she's been here, Carly has made a lot of strides. She's a better player now."

While Booth will inevitably come under pressure to turn professional at a young age, Malaska doesn't want to see the Scot go down the same road as Michelle Wie and jump ahead of her age group.

He believes it will work in her favour if she dominates her peers and is given time to mature. "I've told Carly and her Dad that there's no need to rush."