Natalie Gulbis profile biography trivia

Name : Natalie Gulbis
Date of birth : January 7, 1983
Place of birth : Sacramento, California
College : University of Arizona
Points of Interest : 1998 U.S. Women's Amateur medalist
Height : 5 feet 9 inches

Trivia:

• 1997 California Women's Amateur Champion
• Turned pro 2001
• Tied 3rd at 2001 LPGA Tour qualifying school
• 2nd in 2002 Rookie of the Year points
• Natalie is coached by Butch Harmon

Natalie Gulbis biography
Natalie Anne Gulbis was born on January 7, 1983, in Sacramento, California. Natalie's father John worked for the Sacramento County Probation Department, while her mother Barbara continues to act as purchasing director for a Sacramento medical laboratory. Natalie first hit the links at age 4, when her father began to teach her to play golf. She soon fell in love with the sport. At 7, she won her first tournament, and by 10, young Natalie was already breaking par.

In 1996, 13-year-old Natalie finished in second place in the California State Women's Amateur tournament. The top spot went to another future LPGA player, Dorothy Delasin. The following year, however, Natalie came back to win the tournament. That same year, she became the youngest player to ever qualify for an LPGA event, playing in the Long Drugs Challenge. Natalie would hold this record until 2002, when 12-year-old Michelle Wie made fresh claim to it.

Natalie continued developing her golf game at Granite Bay High School, where she played on the boys' team. Despite the fact that she was also committed to gymnastics and diving, Natalie still excelled academically, and graduated early, at age 16.

On the strength of her high school scores, Natalie was given a scholarship to Arizona State University in 1999. At that time, Arizona's golf team was the defending NCAA champs. In her freshman year, Natalie won three tournaments and was recognized with All-American honors. The next summer, she qualified for the US Women's Open, was ranked 34th among amateurs, and then was named MVP at the USA-Japan Collegiate Golf Championship. On the strength of these achievements, Natalie made the decision to turn pro.

Natalie went to the LPGA Qualifying Tournament (aka "Q-School") in the fall of 2000, and earned a spot on the tour on her first attempt. In 2001, Natalie moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Her reason for doing so was initially strictly for tax purposes, but she soon grew to love her new home on Lake Las Vegas, about 30 minutes from the strip. Another advantage to her new location was its proximity to the Butch Harmon School of Golf, where she could take daily instruction from the same man who tutors golf heavyweights like Tiger Woods and Adam Scott.

In 2002, Natalie tied for fifth at the ShopRite LPGA Classic and for fourth at the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic. These two performances propelled her into second place in the Rookie of the Year points standings. The following year, Natalie tied for 12th at the Chick-fil-A Charity Championship and scored a career-low 63 in the third round of the Welch's/Fry's Championship. In 2004, Natalie finished in the Top 15 in five tournaments and carded her first LPGA career hole in one in the final round of the Safeway Classic.

In 2005, Natalie released her second calendar. The first annual 2004 edition was deemed "too provocative" by the USGA, who cancelled Natalie's signings, but it still proved to be a very successful enterprise. Natalie has also played on many charity and Pro-Am events, where she has teed off against such celebrity athletes as Roy Jones Jr., Michael Jordan and Barry Bonds.

michelle wie profile trivia and complete biography

michelle wie profile:
Name : Michelle Wie
Date of Birth : October 11, 1989
Place of Birth : Honolulu, HI
Height : 6'
Nationality : American
Profession : Golf Player
Current Team : LPGA

michelle wie trivia:

• Michelle Wie was born on 10 November 1989, the daughter of BJ and Bo Wie, a professor of transport policy and a real estate agent.

• Michelle Wie at 11 years old won the Hawaii State Women's Stroke Play Championship. At 12, Wie became the youngest player to qualify for an LPGA event.

• Michelle Wie became the youngest player to take part in a US men's tournament in Hawaii at the 2004 Sony Open. She was the only woman in the field and said, "Playing in the Sony Open was the greatest experience I've ever had."

• According to an interview with the BBC sports academy website Michelle Wie's role models are Tiger Woods, Ernie Els and Annika Sorenstam.

michelle wie biography:

Michelle Wie, already over 6-feet tall, was born in Honolulu on Oct. 11, 1989. An excellent student, Michelle Wie's hobbies include reading, drawing and computers. Michelle Wie began playing golf at the age of four. According to an Associated Press profile, Wie was winning nearly every junior event she entered by the age of 11. Michelle Wie told the AP that she plays golf for about four hours a day on weekdays and seven hours a day on weekends. In tournaments, her father served as her caddie through most of 2003, but the family hired a professional caddie for the PGA Sony Open. At the age of 10, she shot a 64. Also at the age of 10, Michelle Wie became the youngest player ever to qualify for a USGA amateur championship when she made the field for the USGA Women's Amateur Public Links Championship. She advanced to the semifinals of the same event two years later (2002), the youngest semifinalist ever in a USGA amateur championship.
Michelle Wie's performance at the 2004 PGA Tour Sony Open must have convinced even the most sober analysts that she might just be capable - someday - of competing on the PGA Tour. Playing a course Michelle Wie had played many times before, and in great conditions, Wie put together rounds of 72-68 for an even-par 140 at the Sony, missing the cut by just one shot. And she did it at the age of 14. It's not the first time Wie has suprised the golf world, however. Michelle Wie made her first appearance in an LPGA major - the 2003 Kraft Nabisco Championship - at the age of 13. And she managed to play well enough to make the tournament's final pairing, playing alongside Annika Sorenstam and eventual winner Patricia Meunier-Lebouc. Later in 2003, Wie became the youngest-ever winner of the U.S. Even at 13, Michelle Wie was already one of the longest hitters to appear on the LPGA Tour, knocking her drives 20-40 yards past most other players on tour. Michelle Wie regularly knocks the ball 300-plus yards, and her average distance with the driver for the 2003 Nabisco was in the 280s (or about 20 yards more than Sorenstam's average). For the 2004 PGA Tour Sony, her average off the tee (including some 3-woods) was in the 270s, just below the field average.

At the 2002 LPGA Takefuji Classic, Michelle Wie became the youngest ever to Monday qualify for an LPGA Tour event. Her appearance in the 2003 Kraft Nabisco Championship included a round of 66, tying the record for low amateur round in an LPGA major. Wie has also attempted to qualify for the PGA Sony Open, playing in Monday qualifying rounds. In 2003, Michelle Wie finished tied for 47th in a field comprised of 97 men, and playing from the same tees as those men. Tom Lehman, who played with Wie in a pro-am, bestowed the nickname "Big Wiesy" (rhymes with "Big Easy") on her because her swing resembles that of Ernie Els.