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 ladiesontour.com caught up with Zuzana Kamasova of Slovakia at the end of last season and posed a few questions to her about her golf and life on tour. You can follow Zuzana's progress on the Telia Tour throughout the golfing season and ofcourse keep an eye out in case she is lucky enough to get a start in any of the LET events.
Q: As the only lady professional golfer in Slovakia what sort of media attention have you had since you turned professional? Are people supportive or have you experienced criticism?
Most of the media in Slovakia has been very positive and interested overall. Since golf is a very new sport in Slovakia, the media likes to follow up with things that are new and interesting. The truth is that some of the people that never come in contact with golf think more negative rather than positive about the sport and the same goes for people in Slovakia. But me personally, I have never come in contact with negative reactions from people, they are rather curious than negative.
Q: Do you feel any extra pressure to perform well for your country?
Sometimes, I feel extra pressure, but most of the time it is a boost rather than pressure for me. There are places where I played a golf tournament and the organizers asked me to bring a Slovakian flag with me, since they had hard time finding one. It is an honour for me to represent Slovakia. We are a very small country and being the only and the first one is special. I feel that my job is more like job of an ambassador that needs to put its country on the map.
 Zuzana in action
The golf course Gray Bear opened in 2001 as the first 18 hole golf course in the country done by USGA specification with high quality for all levels play. The course is located almost in the centre of the country in the mountain area called Tale in a national park. It was designed by two American designers Bob Walton and Skip Malek, who is also my coach since I have started to play golf. The front nine is more of a links layout and the back nine is set in the woods with slightly tighter fairways. To me it is a very special place, since I spend most of the time here either playing golf in summer or snowboarding in winter.Golf in Slovakia is still a very new sport, but it is expanding rapidly. We are still lacking more opportunities to play since there are only 4 golf courses in the country with almost 4000 registered golfers and with the number increasing quickly. The overall opinion about the sport is rather negative than positive, because it is portrayed by the media more of a sport for the rich rather than a sport for everyone. I think, with increasing number of courses and players, the overall opinion will shift as well, as it did in most of the countries where the sport adapted after a while.
Q:: You have access to the Czech Republic Golf Tour? Tell us about your involvement with them Czech Republic is the fastest golf growing nation in Europe according to R&A in St. Andrews. Therefore, there are more opportunities to play for amateur and pros as well. They have about 10 pro tournaments per season, but most of the pro players playing in those tournaments are teaching pros and almost all of them are guys. This coming season, two of my friends from CZE turned pro, so I will not be alone woman in the field next season. I like to play golf in Czech Republic, since we use to be one country, so it feels like playing at home.
Q: You turned professional in 2004, and you play on the LET and the Telia Tour in Sweden. Can you summarise your 2006 year to date?
It was a busy season that started after 6 month forced break due to a wrist injury. I started the season in US practicing with my coach Skip Malek. I played my first 4 tournaments in South Africa with decent results. Unfortunately, right after returning back to the European circuit, my problems with a bad tennis elbow started and lasted throughout the whole season. I had some good finishes on Telia Tour with two 5th places, one 6th place and a course record of 65 on a par 71. But playing on LET was a struggle for me, since my goal of making the cut every time became more of a block rather than motivation. At the Ladies English Open, the last tournament of the season for me, I finally made the cut. I knew it would come, so it felt really good when it did.
Q: And your ambitions for next season? Well, since I was not successful of gaining a card for LET for 2007 at La Cala, I will be playing full time on Telia Tour. My first task is to get healthy and stay healthy. I am working hard in this off season to get strong and prepared for the next season. I obviously want to play some tournaments on LET as well, so I will try to request some sponsor invitations for LET tournaments. I will also play some tournaments in Czech Republic and at home. The goal is to get back on LET full time for 2008.
Q: How often do you practice and what routine do you have?
I practice almost daily at home and at tournaments. I usually like to spend an hour on full swing, an hour putting and an hour on the chipping green. I rather practice while I play, therefore I like to play 9 holes as a part of practice and try out different shots on the course.I also do swimming, running and pilates as part of my conditional training.
Q:: How do you spend your leisure time, when practice or your tournament round has finished.
I usually like to relax, read a book or watch a good movie. It is also fun to go see the city that we are visiting. As everyone else, I also get online to keep in contact with my family, boyfriend and my friends.
 Preparing for her round
I have a very relaxed and friendly relationship with everyone that I work with in my team. I have a great coach Skip Malek, who I work with for 9 years since I picked up the game of golf. We work together on both continents when I go visit to the US twice a year and he also comes to Slovakia usually in summer. He used to be the director of golf instruction at the International Junior Golf Academy, where he now still teaches and also designs golf courses.
Pavol Purdek is my physiotherapist that I work with for the second year. He managed to help me out with my injured wrists and tennis elbow with his alternative medicine. Ada Miseje is my conditional trainer and pilates instructor that puts together my conditional program for the season and off season. And there is also my boyfriend Miso and my parents, who caddy for me from time to time and are always very supportive.
Q: Would you welcome an official 'feeder tour' in Europe that wasn't Scandinavian based?
Well, I would welcome any feeder tour that is closer to home. Telia tour which is based in Sweden is an excellent tour that is well run. The tournaments are well organized, have good competition and good prize money, I just wish Sweden would be little closer. On the other hand, Scandinavia is known for higher standards meaning that the expenses are also higher. But I enjoy playing up there, because I think that it is the best that any feeder tour has to offer in Europe for someone wanting to play on the Ladies European Tour.
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