Mother-daughter golfers improved their games at new Hyannis program
Flora A. Gaudet, 78, had always been a tennis player, but she took up golf about 20 years ago and now has about a 15 handicap, playing several times a week.
“I love everything about golf,” says Gaudet, 78, who lives in Harwich and plays at Cranberry Valley Golf Course, as well as in the competitive Cape Cod Women’s League. “You get out, you’re playing, you’re meeting wonderful people. … Compared to tennis, every shot is your own; you’re not getting any feedback from anyone else.”
Another thing she loves about golf: Playing with her daughter, Flora M. Gaudet, 53, who started playing about 10 years ago and now is on the course whenever she can escape her job as a national accounts manager with Abbott Laboratories. Flora the younger also plays at Cranberry Valley in Harwich as well as The Captains Golf Course in Brewster, and also competes in the women’s league. A former Division 1 tennis player in college, she now has about a 7 handicap and describes herself as an “addict.” Days off and vacations, including a recent one to Ireland, are all about golf.
“I love the game and I think once you actually make that connection and are able to hit the ball, it becomes a lot of fun,” she said. “I’ve played sports my whole life but I love competition and I just really got into it.”
CCHC Golf Performance Center
This mother and daughter have something else in common: They are both learning to improve their game at the Cape Cod Healthcare's Golf Performance Center in Hyannis, where Catherine Hoell, a physical therapist and Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) certified trainer, works with golfers on body mechanics and movement. The self-pay program, which works out to be about the same price as private golf lessons – is individualized to match each client’s body. Matthew DiBona, another TPI-certified physical therapist, also works with golfers at the Hyannis-based center.
Last year, the elder Gaudet started having trouble with her neck, back and arm strength, including some post-shingles neuropathy. But when she gets back to golf in the spring, she wants to still hit her pitching wedge 100 yards.
“I want to maintain where I am,” she said. “So that's what I'm trying to get out of it. Catherine tailors everything to your needs.”
Meanwhile, her daughter was concerned about swing mechanics, particularly because she’s competitive and has her eye on finishing in the top five of the state’s senior women golfers. She’s learned a lot from Hoell’s evaluation, she said.
“I'm all upper body, I don’t use my legs and most golfers use their legs,” she said. “So Catherine’s created this whole program – and it’s so fascinating – to strengthen the lower body. And I have little aches and pains, and we’re working on how to release those aches and pains and then vastly improve my game.”
She hopes that strengthening her legs will help her gain distance on shots. And be better for her body.
“I know if I use my legs, I don’t have to work extra hard on some shots, and I don’t have to be all arms. If you’re all arms, at some point in time, it will take a toll on your back or your neck. So that’s the goal: working with [Catherine] to get that flexibility and work on that strength.”
The difference in age and goals illustrates how the TPI program is tailored to individuals, the younger Flora said.
“I tell everybody about Catherine because I think it’s so important, whether you’re 53, you’re 78 or you’re 80, your body, your health, is wealth, and your body is a temple. You’ve got to protect it.”
The TPI program is open to all levels of golfers. Physical therapy experts use drills, exercise and rehabilitation strategies to alleviate problems and improve mobility. State-of-the-art equipment includes K-Vests, which clients wear to measure rotation. (The Cape Cod Women’s League donated $2,000 last year to the program.) But one thing the performance center can’t help with is the confusion over two golfers named Flora Gaudet.
“We just confuse everything,” said the elder Flora. “We just played in the state tournament together. Mass Golf has finally figured out there's two Floras because they [used to always send] back this notice: ‘You've signed up twice.’”
More information about Cape Cod Healthcare’s Golf Performance Center is available by calling 508-957-9283 or through the programs dedicated webpage.
