About twins and tee shots

NICOLA Eaton Gutzeit recently laid down her clubs and stepped off the tee to tie the knot at a magical Ballito wedding in May this year.

The wedding bells soon melded into beach shells as she was whisked off on a romantic honeymoon in Zanzibar by husband Shane.

But now with the Cell C SA Women’s Open at San Lameer starting today (October 16), it’s time to change the garters for golf clubs and get back into the swing of things.

Big competitions are always an emotional roller-coaster and Nicola admits to getting both wildly nervous and terribly excited when a competition is coming up.

“We don’t have a lot of tournaments here so when they come around you want to make sure you take your chances,” she said.

Along with her twin sister Melissa, who has recently returned to South Africa from the USA, she’s utilised the beneficial location of her abode to practise at San Lameer and get to know the conditions.

Nicola cautions that the strong coastal winds are always a factor when playing down south.

“Depending on what the wind’s doing, the course can play very differently, so I’m sure everyone will be keeping an eye out not only for the tail end of the whale watching season but also for what the weather reports predict.”

The golfing genes are pretty strong. Both her mom and dad played golf at a high level and her mom was still playing professionally when the twins were born.

Nicola and Melissa were selected for the Ernie Els Foundation, which was immensely beneficial for both their golf game and education.

From there they attended Louisiana State University in the USA on full scholarships.

“The ambition to become pro was always there but it wasn’t in the forefront of my mind, it was first going to university,” said Nicola.

Her skills developed to the extent that she could play on the then Futures Tour, now called the Symetra Tour, which is second only to the LPGA.

She played for about two years before the lack of sponsorship forced her to return to SA in 2010.

Melissa lasted a few years longer, but then decided home was best.

Nicola coaches at the Hillbillion driving range, close to Shelly Beach, as well as at her home course, Port Shepstone Country Club.

She invests most of her time in teaching but still plays the local circuit when she can.

“Live life to the fullest, experience everything you can that comes into your life,” she said.

She is hard at work setting up a golf development programme for youngsters.

“To give back to the game through the kids will be very rewarding and I hope to watch them grow and see them do well,” she said.

And how about the sibling rivalry? Nicola just laughs.

“We love to compete against and support each other. It would be great if we were in the same group coming down the 18th, battling it out for the trophy!”