Simpson looking to screen presence to help father’s powers of recovery

For the first time in 10 years this week she contests the Ricoh Women’s British Open, at Carnoustie, without her father Geoff cheering her on from the other side of the ropes.

Geoff Simpson underwent surgery earlier this month and was only scheduled to be released from hospital yesterday, meaning he will not be able to get up to the East coast of Scotland in time to see his daughter compete in the most prestigious event in women’s golf.

“We’re hoping he might be able to watch it on telly,” says Simpson, who tees off at 10.32am this morning, in the group ahead of Leeds’s Kiran Matharu.

“I saw one of the girl’s parents out here and it hit home how sad it is that I won’t have mine watching me for the first time in 10 years.

“I’ll be thinking about him, and hopefully I can do well and get on the telly (BBC2 from today) a few times so my dad can at least see me.”

To help her bid to dominate the screen, and more pertinently, women’s golf, Simpson has turned to scientific analysis to enhance her prospects.

The Gomersal resident and San Jose State University graduate has still to win on the Ladies European Tour despite 17 top-10 finishes, and has found it increasingly difficult to compete with the new wave of American and Asian golfers dominating the women’s game.

So just as Rory McIlroy has turned to sports scientist Dr Steve McGregor at Rudding Park, Harrogate, to quantify his swing, Simpson has looked to biomechanics to help close the gap on the big-hitting twentysomethings.

Biomechanics applies the laws of mechanics and physics to human performance with the aid of a 12-camera motion capture system, high-speed video cameras, force plates and muscle activation analysis.

And for 35-year-old Simpson, it has revolutionised her game.

“With so many young players, great players joining the game, you have got to be on your toes,” she explains.

“Women’s golf in my 10 years on tour has improved dramatically. The skill level gets better every year. So you’ve got to constantly improve to maintain your standing in the game, and that’s getting harder and harder each year.

“The last three years in particular have seen a big influx of young girls coming on the tour but that’s good, there’s a fresh feel about the tour.

“But that then sets the challenge for you to keep on improving.

“To help me do that, I’ve been doing a lot of work at Sheffield Hallam University at their biomechanics lab.

“There’s a physiotherapist there, a biomechanic and a sports nutritionalist that have all helped me. Access to a physio, in particular, has been crucial.

“All kids nowadays, from an early age, are taught how best to utilise their power, how to move their body to play golf better.

“In my day we were just handed a seven iron and told to go out and play.

“Now after 10 years on tour I feel as though I’m starting again.

“I’m learning how to transfer power through my body, how to apply power. To have power, you have to understand movement. To do that you have to look at everything again and strip down your swing.

“I’ve learned so much with regards my posture, which had become a bit stuck as I was not rotating through.

“So I’ve hit the gym and I’ve been working on basic muscles to aid that process. It has really helped my golf.”

The results have not been instant, though Simpson arrived at Carnoustie last Saturday having finished 11th in Helsinki and sixth in Portugal earlier in the summer.

Her record at the Women’s British Open is not great, but with her father to cheer up back home and the evolution of biomechanics to promote, Simpson has plenty of incentives.

“I don’t think I’ve ever really been good enough to have a crack at the Open,” she admits. “But I’m improving every year.

“This is our only links golf of the year so it’s hard to prepare for it.

“I’ve been at Carnoustie since Saturday and it was alien to me when I first played it, but now, a few days later, I’ve got to grips with the course. Links golf is about preparation and getting used to the course.”

In a nod to the growing influence from Asia, Taiwan’s Yani Tseng is the defending champion.