Questions and answers!
avI’m trying to answer some of your questions and I translated them to English so everybody can read:) Hope it’s ok!
Q. What muscle groups do you train to help you do the very one-sided golf action?
A. I train my whole body in many different exercises. Try to become as all-around as possible. To be to golf specific tends to hurt my body as there are too many golf moves per day.
Q. Do you speak a lot to your playing partners? Who is most fun to play with?
A. If I like them, we speak quit a lot. If, not and if for some other reason I’m not in the mood to speak, I just speak to my caddie. I love playing with Alvaro Quiros…He is the funniest guy ever. A few years ago his English was really poor so it was even more fun back then. He should never have improved it.
Q. What shakes do you take after working out and how often do you take it?
A. I take protein shakes after every training session and sometimes when I feel the real need to take one. When the food is really bad or when I’ve been flying all day.
Q. Do you live in France? Do you have friends there to play with? Have you got a bunch of new sponsors after your win in Switzerland?
A. I live in Monaco. We are a few golfers there but it seems like we are never there at the same time. The weeks I take off from tournaments, the other guys play and so on. Had a few fun offers but nothing decided yet.
Q. Do you also have special training routines for practicing strategy, approach, mental strength och så vidare?
A. I’m better at structuring and planning my work outs than my golf training. I have a red line in my training and mental work but no daily plans for specific training hours and so on.
Q. How good is Bro-Hof compared to the European Tour courses you play?
A. Bro Hof is at the very top in the world. We never play a course that good on the European Tour.
Q. What do you think when you are over the ball?
A. I think of what kind of shot I want to play. The trajectory, the shape and so on. And to waht target. A little bit of how my body should move to make that happen.
Q. As a 16 handicap, should I use blade clubs to make the next level? And when is it good to change to blades?
A. I think you should always use the most forgiving clubs possible. As a pro, I don’t use blades. I think they are to tough. I use a little more cavity-back clubs to make the game a touch easier. It’s hard enough as it is.
Q. Have you been to the nightclub Jimmy’z in Monaco yet? =)
A. Yeah, was there once but very quick…rather go to outdoor places in Monaco. Being a Swede, we love the heat, speacially at night.
Q. I was looking at your stats that your putting will be the answer to reach the top players(i guess a more accurate driver if you going to win majors) With your greens regulation is world class is extremly impressive and with a hot putter, that will give rest of the players a scary feeling down the strech. If this they case what is your plan for the future on this ?
A. I plan a lot of putting work ahead with tough exercises to put a lot of pressure on the putting to make it stronger.
Q. The exercise where you hit wedges with open, square and shut club face, what’s the purpose with that?
A. I like to have control of the blad at all times. To hit with different lofts make me understand how the ball will move in the air and how to make it move. The shut face lowers the trajectory for example, but to still hit it high with a shut face you need to do certain things that can improve your swing. I want to fins ways to improve my swing. Sometimes, I need to hit with shut face to get rid of some fault, the next time with open face.
Q. Alex, I was wondering why you were hitting draws and fades with wedges? Maybe something that I should try out?
A. I think when you move up to the pro level you need to have a lot of different shots. The greens are fast and slopy and sometimes you need to hit a little fade from 70 yards to make the ball stay on the green and not spin down the slope for example. It’s also good to practice draw and fade on very small chips for control of the face and your swing.
Q. Hi, I’m just wondering what kind of program you follow at the gym? which specific parts do you believe that me as a young female golfer should focus on at the gym?
A. I do a very all-around work out. Different reps, exercises and weight all the time. I believe you should work a lot on controlling your body in stomach and back exerices, cables, push- and pull exercises for the whole body and so on. The more control and strength you have over you body the more control you will have over the club.
Q. It seems like you hit a lot of balls from range mats, doesn’t that make it tough for you to get the right feel for the shots?
A. I like hitting of mats, I have always done. We didn’t have grass turf on the range. But, I know it’s better to hit off the grass. I’m lazy, you don’t have to clean your club after each shot from a mat:) But, it’s very rare I practice of mats. Never at a tournament.
Q. Have a problem with ”early extension” where my body raises at impact and I can’t hold the correct angle of my spine. Do you have a good gym exercise that will help me improve this?
A. I have always had the same problem. The thing I used a lot was ”The Leaderboard”. There is an exercise on the CD they give you that explains it where your right foot is back and behind the left and you have to keep it there during the whole swing. Hard to explain. I think it’s worth getting ”The Leaderboard” just for that exercise. Also, push and pull exercises in the gym are really good. Cables are great I think.
Keep the questions coming!
See you and good luck out there!