{"id":356443,"date":"2011-04-01T01:54:00","date_gmt":"2011-04-01T01:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/04\/01\/better-attitude-produces-better-golf-for-gal-yahoo-sports\/"},"modified":"2011-04-01T01:54:00","modified_gmt":"2011-04-01T01:54:00","slug":"better-attitude-produces-better-golf-for-gal-yahoo-sports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/04\/01\/better-attitude-produces-better-golf-for-gal-yahoo-sports\/","title":{"rendered":"Better attitude produces better golf for Gal (Yahoo! Sports)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div readability=\"115\">\n<p>RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. \u2013 A year ago, one might have surmised that Sandra Gal had stolen an identity to describe herself in her Twitter bio. Crazy girl, artist, nature lover, adventurer \u2013 that suggests one who embraces life and is capable of discovering fun even in its darkest crevasses. It suggests someone who is happy.<\/p>\n<p>It did not suggest Gal. She was miserable, wrist and back injuries generally contributing to her malaise, poor golf specifically responsible for it. \u201cA low point in my career,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Today Gal, 25, is all smiles, as anyone would be in the wake of their inaugural professional victory and the 67 that followed on Thursday in the first round of the Kraft Nabisco Championship. The quality of her golf is less responsible for her happiness, than her happiness is for the finest golf of her young career.<\/p>\n<div readability=\"9\">\n       <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/d5a48f1e1301625713.jpg.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Fresh from her victory last week at the Kia Classic, Sandra Gal fired an impressive 67 on Day 1 of the LPGA major in California.<br \/><span>(Scott Halleran\/Getty Images)<\/span>        <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cI knew I wasn\u2019t happy,\u201d she said following her round on a desert day hot enough to erase the smiles of all but the most contented. \u201cI decided to take a totally different approach and re-thought why I\u2019m doing all this. Why am I playing golf? I just decided I\u2019d better enjoy it. It\u2019s my job. It\u2019s my life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her joy was evident even before out-dueling Jiyai Shin on the last hole to win the Kia Classic in the City of Industry 90 miles north of here the Sunday before. Through the weekend and especially the final round she lit up otherwise dark and damp days with her incessant smile that has been there since her self diagnosis and prescribed attitude adjustment.<\/p>\n<p>She shared her new attitude via her website, sandragal.com, at the outset of the year. \u201cI\u2019m excited about 2011, my fourth year on tour now!\u201d she wrote. \u201cPlans are to be in contention often, enjoy it, get even fitter and see the good in everyone. Lets see how I\u2019ll fare!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>If her life came with a mission statement, this is more in line with it. She was born of Czech parents, who left Prague in 1968 as part of a mass exodus when the Soviet Union invaded and occupied Czechoslovakia. They settled in Germany, where Gal was born. Hers was a childhood of varied interests, many of them carrying over to adulthood. She played tennis, a sport she recently resumed playing. She was a violinist, an actor, a ballet dancer. She is a talented artist as well, the brushstrokes providing relaxation and an outlet for her creative side.<\/p>\n<p>Then there\u2019s her golf, from which she vowed to derive pleasure, whatever the outcome. \u201cI\u2019m just trying to enjoy the moment,\u201dshe said. \u201cI always tell myself, \u2018you can play well and not have a good round, and you can play bad and have a good round.\u2019 You can\u2019t always depend on the results. You just have to enjoy yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The results are a testament to her attitude. She tied for 10th in the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup, her first top 10 since June of 2009, then won the Kia Classic, her first victory since she was playing college golf at Florida.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGolf is a mental game,\u201dshe said. \u201cA lot of it is your attitude. So many things came together. I\u2019ve had good lessons with my coach, Andrew Park. I changed caddies in August, to Royston Clarke from Ireland. We\u2019re best friends. It makes a big difference on the course. Obviously I\u2019ve had support from my parents. I have a whole different attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/d5a48f1e1301625713.jpg-150x150.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Follow this link:<br \/>\n<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/us.rd.yahoo.com\/sports\/rss\/golf\/SIG=1301g4rjl\/*http:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/pga\/news?slug=ys-golfdigest_sandra_gal_is_happy_and_successful033111\" title=\"Better attitude produces better golf for Gal (Yahoo! Sports)\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Better attitude produces better golf for Gal (Yahoo! Sports)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p> RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-356443","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Better attitude produces better golf for Gal (Yahoo! 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