The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

As the top female golfer in the country, Georgette Rolle said she’s excited to have been afforded the opportunity to compete again with some of the best golfers in the world at the PureSilk Bahamas LPGA Classic set for next week at the Ocean Club on Paradise Island.

For the second consecutive year that the LPGA is hosting the tournament here, 28-year-old Rolle will be among the field of 108 players that will be vying for some $1.3 million in prize money. She was given one of the two exemptions, thanks to the sponsorship of the Ministry of Tourism.

Another Bahamian, Raquel Riley from Grand Bahama, will have to make it through the qualifying round.

“I was really grateful that I got the opportunity to compete last May,” said Rolle of her appearance in the initial tournament that was watered down to just one complete round instead of four because of the inclement weather. We were all hoping to play a full event, but I’m happy that I got the opportunity to come back and play in this one again.”

With the tournament showcasing players on the LPGA, who are ranked in the top 100 in the world, Rolle admitted that it’s not going to be a walk in the park. As a Bahamian, who frequents the golf course, she’s hoping that it will give her an advantage over her rivals.

“In golf, you really don’t know what to expect,” she said. “My practice is coming along really well and so I expect to make the cut through the weekend and take it from there.”

Bahamas Golf Federation president Craig Flowers said he’s putting his money on Rolle for more reasons than one.

While he welcomes all of the ladies returning to the Bahamas, including defending champion Ilhee Lee, Flowers said they are “hoping that Georgette Rolle can win the title. It’s more than Georgette and Raquel. They just happen to be here at this point in time.

“This journey has to be more about the junior golfers. What this does more than anything else is set the bar for the young kids in the junior development programme so that the junior golfers might see something and feel something. We need for them to have hopes and dreams about something that is achievable. Here, we are exposing them to the best female golfers in the world.”

Not to put any added pressure on herself, Rolle said if she can just stay “calm and confident,” she is convinced that she will make a good showing for the Bahamian public. “It’s knowing that you belong here,” she said.

“So I just have to stay confident. I was a bit nervous last year playing in front of the home crowd. But knowing how you play rests on the shoulders of everyone, so I just have to stay calm and confident out there.”

For Rolle, her return home from the United States where she was located as an LPGA Teaching and Club Professional Class B member after her graduation from Texas Southern University, has been somewhat of a blessing in disguise.

“This has given me an opportunity to get back out here on the golf course to feel it out,” said Rolle, who has been home since the beginning of the year. “Over the past few years, I might have played here about five times, so it’s a pretty good break for me to be able to get readjusted.”

After the initial tournament here last May, Rolle was in the US playing in a number of LPGA qualifiers, but she sustained an ankle injury that hampered her progress in getting an exemption or even a shot at her pro status into the main draw of the major tournaments.

So as the LPGA gets set to begin its 2014 campaign here wth the PureSilk Classic, Rolle is hoping that she will finally get her breakthrough.

“I’ve been working hard in preparation for this year,” she said. “I expect for the ladies to come here and play because these are some of the best players in the world. I just have to go out there and make the best out of my situation of playing against them here at home.

“I think the player who has the ability to get the ball in the hole will be successful. So I’ve been working on all facets of my game in an effort to improve and hopefully be able to make the cut this weekend.”

If there’s any area of her game that Rolle has been pleased with, it’s her short game.

“For me, that’s where the fun starts,” she said. “I think for a lot of golfers, the fun starts for them when they hit that first tee shot, that long ball. But for me, the fun starts right around the green. So I think that’s my greatest asset.”

On the opposite side of the coin, Rolle said she has to concentrate more on reading the green. “I’m fully prepared for that because I’ve been working on it,” Rolle said.

When she tees off next week, Rolle will have the service of Ricardo Davis, one of the rising young male players, acting as her caddie.

“He’s pretty good at reading the greens,” she said. “So where I may fall short, he will be right there to help pull me through.”

And for those who will be coming out to watch the action, Rolle said they just simply have to look for the bright coloured outfits and they will be able to see her as she struts her stuff.

The tournament is slated to get started Thursday and run through Sunday at Ocean Club.