Martyna Mierzwa Gof Pro – Facebook Photo
Twenty-three year old Martyna Mierzwa from Poland is playing her first season on the LET Access Series and is hoping to become the first player from Poland to compete on the Ladies European Tour. Mierzwa is currently lying 66th on the LETAS Order of Merit and has played five events in total this year.
Martyna was born in Poznam, the third biggest city in Poland and turned professional in June. Her first professional event was the LETAS HLR Golf Academy Open in Finland. The Polish native speaks perfect English, with a slight American accent. That´s because she studied in North Carolina, graduating last May.
Mierzwa now practices at Toya Golf & Country Club, in a city two and a half hours away from her home, spending the week and going home at the weekend. Her favourite players are Rory McIlroy and Sergio Garcia.
Q: How and when did you start to play golf?
I started when I was 12. My dad used to play, he started pretty early for a Polish person. He took me to the golf course one day as he was playing a tournament where there was a picnic and a barbeque, etc….and made me hit a ball. And I hit it, around 30-40 meters and did not miss it…So the local pros said that I had a talent and when I heard that “I had a talent”, I automatically wanted to do it. And then the week after I brought my twin brother to play golf and he liked it too…and since then we have been playing.
Q. How is golf in Poland?
Golf in Poland is growing. There are three golf courses in Warsaw and the whole country has only twenty seven but it is growing every year. We do not have many golfers, around 3,000. In my city we do not have a 18-hole golf course. We only have a 9-hole course, par 3´s only, where I started to play.
Regarding the amateur level, for girls, I am the best women golfer in Poland. I have won the National Championship the last five years. We have right now a lot of junior boys and I was the first to graduate on a golf scholarship in the US, but after me, now there are two more already and one more is going. So, it is getting better…
Q: How do you mange to play golf in Poland during the winter?
Well, it is not that cold. Right now where I live it is 5-6 degrees and it snows in December and then January and February. You can play until the end of November and then start again in March.
For the winter this year I will try to go somewhere else, maybe the US.
Q: Tell me about your studies. Did you go to university?
I went to the US because I wanted to combine golf and education. I had a scholarship at Elon University, North Carolina and it was the best place because it was warm all the time. So I was waiting to graduate to turn professional. I graduated at the end of May this year and I earned a Bachelor of International Business.
Q: Why did you want to be a professional golfer?
I always wanted to be a professional because I can not imagine me doing anything else. I have sacrificed so much life, money and time … for golf.
Q: Your plan?
I would like to try to qualify for the Olympics. So I am giving to myself three years of being a professional until 2016 and we will see how that goes. I think it is makeable…it would be easier if I was on the LET, so I will play the LETAS next year and then, in 2015, try to play on the Ladies European Tour. So, I am just going to keep playing and try to qualify for the LET.
Q: What is the best part of your game now ? Is there any yardage that you prefer? And the weakest part?
It changes everyday. It used to be my driver, which was straight all the time. The weakest part of my game is putting.
Q: What is your driving distance and putting average?
230 metres and putting average of over 30.
Q: Your lowest round ever?
66, three years ago. As professional, it is 71.
Q: How many holes in one?
Seven, all of them as an amateur and the last one was approximately five years ago.
Q: Favourite golf course in Europe?
I love the Marbella area and my favourite would be Santa Clara.
Q: Have you many friends already on tour?
Yes, I have many friends right now.
Q: Have you any superstitions when you play golf?
I try not to be superstitious, but definitively, when I hit badly on the driving range before a tournament round, I do not worry about that, because I know I am going to be hitting good on the course. So, it worries me more when I hit it great on the driving range. Then on the putting green, I need to make putts.
Q: Tell me the people who are part of your team.
There are three people in total, all based in Poland: Matthew Tipper (coach), Filip Naglak (physical) and Bartek Bibrowicz (physio).
