Pregnant? Golf's Still the Game For a Lifetime

Those of use who are passionate about the game know that without a doubt, from the littlest juniors to the oldest geriatrics, golf is the game for a lifetime. From tiny Gloria Nip’s amazingly crisp chips to Lucy Li’s precise putts to Arnie’s achingly arthritic drives, golf is the perfect sport for all of us.

But what about pregnant women. Can they still tee it up? Of course they can. Pregnancy is not an illness. Check out this shot:

Photo credit: www.ladieseuropeantour.com

Recognizing that competitive female athletes can also be mothers, the LPGA has long provided day care for its touring mommies, but is it a sport suitable for pregnant women? Certainly pregnancy hasn’t stopped the pros from teeing it up.

Catriona Matthew, who won the 2009 HSBC LPGA Brasil Cup while five months pregnant, would certainly answer in the affirmative, as would Myra Blackwelder, who competed at the 1987 Kraft Nabisco when she was nearly seven months pregnant. Nancy Lopez, Juli Inkster, Laura Diaz and Hee-Won Han have all competed in professional events while they were pregnant.

Are there any special or unique problems pregnant women need to consider when they tee it up? What’s it like to play golf when you’re six months pregnant? Linda Wessberg, three-time Ladies European Tour champion who’s expecting her first child on September 20th, the final day of the 2015 Solheim Cup, shared some of her experiences as a pregnant golfer that may answer some of your questions.

Wessberg played competitive golf through the sixth month of her pregnancy. Her final event was the ISPS Ladies European Masters. (She missed the cut.) Let her tell you about playing golf into the second trimester of pregnancy.

"It’s different. I’m standing back from the ball a bit. I’ve always been standing really upright and my clubs are two degrees upright, so I might have to change them a little bit . . . because I have to step away from the ball."

Wessberg says it’s not just her stance that needs to be adjusted. She’s found that she also needs to make some changes in club selection.

"I don’t hit the ball as far as I used to. It’s probably a club or a club and a half different because of the club speed. Other than that, it’s fine. I try to rest a little bit more than I used to but I still work out and I can do pretty much everything that I used to do."

And then, Wessberg says, there’s the matter of the distraction of a kicking, squirming baby who’s along for the ride.

"Somebody is moving in there. I just try to laugh at it. I try to see it as a good thing but sometimes it can be really distracting and I have to go to every bathroom on the course too."

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Pregnant? Golf’s Still The Game for a Lifetime (Video)

By Elizabeth Bethel | Aug 12, 2015

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