Europe’s Solheim Cup Captain Carin Koch will be playing in the ISPS HANDA Ladies European Masters on July 2-5, at the headquarters of the Ladies European Tour, Buckinghamshire Golf Club, just a few miles from London.
It will be one of the most important tournaments on the 2015 calendar in the final countdown to The Solheim Cup in Germany and she will be keeping a close eye on her prospective wild cards.
Yet when not focusing on her own game, the other players’ games or giving talks in the tented village, this mum of two will make sure that she enjoys all the family activities in the kids’ zone, such as mini golf and Golfzilla, with her youngest son, Simzon, 12, who will be acting as her caddie for the week.
Carin: why does your son, Simzon, enjoy caddying for you?
I think he just enjoys coming out with me and he likes golf as he plays. He had fun doing it last year and feels a little bit important too.
Does your other son, Oliver, ever caddie?
He caddied for me in an event in Switzerland four years ago, when he was 12. He enjoyed it, but he thought there were too many early mornings and the days were pretty long. He did enjoy the time on the golf course.
How important is it to you that your kids learn and get involved in golf?
I always wanted my kids to play and they naturally started to play because they saw golf so much. I know what a great sport it is to learn when you’re young, compared with when you’re older. It’s so great to have the opportunity they had, to learn when you’re young, it’s so much easier. I’ve seen throughout the years playing in so many Pro-Ams, you can almost instantly tell if someone learned to play golf when they were young. It’s such a great sport to have with you, if it’s for business or leisure, to play with your family and friends. Now I just tell them that you have to play more, so that we can be together as a family. We do play golf together, so that’s fun.
Why do you think that golf is such a great game for everybody to enjoy, especially families?
There are not that many things where you can have such a good time together. You can go out and play and with the handicap system it doesn’t really matter how good you are: you can still play together. We usually have some matches where one of us play with one of the boys and we play each other.
What can families do during a tournament, other than watch golf?
There are usually a lot of activities around the tournament such as a kids’ zone, where kids can try to play with the bigger clubs and all kinds of activities for the whole family. It’s a nice play to come and spend time together.
Should parents bring their children to the ISPS HANDA Ladies European Masters?
Of course! They will have a great time. It’s such a pretty place with a great clubhouse, great golf course and a lot of good players that you can get close to and see the girls very close up.
Do you have to play golf before attending a tournament?
No, I don’t think so. If you are a little bit curious about what golf is, you’ll learn what it is and how much fun you can have and how competitive it can be. You can see what a great sport it is. You don’t have to be a golfer before you come but you probably will play golf after.
Buy tickets for the Ladies European Masters http://tickets.sky.com/Golf/.
More information: www.ladieseuropeanmasters.com.
