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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine

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Speaker 1: from Newstalk ZEDB.

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Speaker 2: Thirteen year old Wellington golfer Elise Barber has been handed

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Speaker 2: the final invite to the Women's Amateur Asia Pacific Championship,

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Speaker 2: which tees off at her home course, Royal Wellington Golf

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Speaker 2: Club on Thursday. Now. She is in year nine. That's

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Speaker 2: the third form for those of us who remember the

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Speaker 2: old terminology at Queen Margaret College in Wellington. She plays

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Speaker 2: off a two point three handicap and fills a vacancy

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Speaker 2: left by a late withdrawal. She'll become the youngest competitor obviously,

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Speaker 2: in the field of eighty four players from twenty five

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Speaker 2: countries across the Asia Pacific region. It also means that

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Speaker 2: there will be ten Kiwi's in the field. Elise Barber's

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Speaker 2: coach is Dean Kingsbar who joins us now. Dean, thanks

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Speaker 2: for taking the time. How big a moment is this

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Speaker 2: for for thirteen year old Elise?

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Speaker 3: Oh it's huge, It's yes. I was so excited and

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Speaker 3: I can imagine how excited she was in her apparent

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Speaker 3: were to get the call up. Yeah, it's one of it.

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Speaker 3: I wass going to be a biggest event that she's played,

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Speaker 3: and so yeah, it's going to be exciting times.

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Speaker 2: For what would represent a successful tournament for her.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it's a tough one. I've been thinking about that myself,

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Speaker 3: but you know, just going out there and going through

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Speaker 3: a process and doing what we've we've talked about, and

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Speaker 3: you know, it wouldn't surprise me to see her up

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Speaker 3: the leaderboard. To be fair, you know, I don't want

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Speaker 3: any put any pressure on her, but she's definitely capable

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Speaker 3: of being up there. So yeah, make the cut will

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Speaker 3: be obviously her first goal, and then we can reassess

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Speaker 3: things after that.

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Speaker 2: What are the strengths of her game?

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Speaker 3: Yeah? Everything, everything, the whole lot. Yeah, honestly, I can't

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Speaker 3: there's not there's not a weakness. You know, we go

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Speaker 3: out and play together quite a lot, and you know,

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Speaker 3: I've got to keep my game pretty sharp to keep

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Speaker 3: up with her now. So yeah, yeah, short game is amazing.

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Speaker 3: We worked a lot on the short game when she

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Speaker 3: was younger, because obviously that just and some things were

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Speaker 3: a little bit lacking there just due to her size.

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Speaker 3: So we focused a lot on the short game. So

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Speaker 3: that's that's a big as set to her and then

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Speaker 3: you know, now she's developed and she's hitting the ball

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Speaker 3: just as far, so I don't think they added lengths

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Speaker 3: to the course will affect her. And yeah, around the

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Speaker 3: green she'll be She'll be able to get herself out

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Speaker 3: of trouble, no problem.

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Speaker 2: And speaking of the course, it's a home course at

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Speaker 2: Royal Wellington, so that must give her, if not an advantage,

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Speaker 2: certainly a boost.

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Speaker 3: Oh definitely, She's played there a lot. I think she

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Speaker 3: her ome courses Shandon. She plays for Shandon, the elite

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Speaker 3: into club level at Shandon, and you know she's a

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Speaker 3: member a lot of the other courses around, which is

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Speaker 3: as great for the juniors. The memberships are so cheap

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Speaker 3: for them and they can go and play there. So yeah,

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Speaker 3: she's played Royal a lot of times and you know

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Speaker 3: it will be a little different to what she's used to.

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Speaker 3: They'll set up a little tougher as they do for

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Speaker 3: most events greens, maybe a little faster, but you know

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Speaker 3: she'll adapt. She's she's got that professional brain on here

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Speaker 3: when it comes to golf.

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Speaker 2: Speaking of the top two inches as they call it,

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Speaker 2: how much do you have to manage such a young

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Speaker 2: player's headspace and what will be by far the biggest

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Speaker 2: tournament of her life.

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Speaker 3: It's just it's just trying to trying to stay patient.

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Speaker 3: As you hear all the time, just stay patient, and

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Speaker 3: you know we're going to have bad holes and we

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Speaker 3: just got to be patient and wait for the wait

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Speaker 3: for the good holes and get the birdies. But for her,

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Speaker 3: you know, and a lot of youngsters, it's a game.

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Speaker 3: We all know that's very frustrating and we can get frustrated.

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Speaker 3: But she's went very quickly that you know, we hit it,

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Speaker 3: we find it, and we hit it again and just

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Speaker 3: try and get the ball in the in the hole

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Speaker 3: in the least amount of shots. And she's great at that.

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Speaker 3: You know, she walks around. If you're out there watching,

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Speaker 3: you'll see her and she's just taken in here. She's loving,

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Speaker 3: loving golf. She just walks around so casual and chats

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Speaker 3: to everyone so and that'll help take the pressure off

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Speaker 3: as well. Yeah, she just has a great time.

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Speaker 2: She Elric was second in the New Zealand woman Straight

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Speaker 2: Play Championship competing against adult golfers. She helped Wellington to

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Speaker 2: third at the Women's Into Provincial is. Playing against adult

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Speaker 2: golfer is something she's got pretty used to.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, definitely, and that helps going forward as well and

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Speaker 3: against the better players and being able to see where

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Speaker 3: your game stacks up against them. So yeah, that's definitely

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Speaker 3: an advantage. And yeah, that's finishing second, and then he's

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Speaker 3: on the stroke play. You know, I think it was

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Speaker 3: by one or two shots. The she had a one.

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Speaker 3: Now I think I think she could have a star

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Speaker 3: one of those records by a particular young female golf Olidia,

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Speaker 3: So she could have broke that record, but hey, there's

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Speaker 3: more years to come as.

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Speaker 2: In there absolutely, And from a coach's point of view, Dean,

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Speaker 2: when you're coaching such a young player, where do you

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Speaker 2: place your focus.

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Speaker 3: Just on the fun and enjoyment getting out there, Like

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Speaker 3: you know, this week, you know, at least has got

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Speaker 3: nothing to lose. It's just going to be an experience.

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Speaker 3: And all these tournaments that she's playing and it's an experience,

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Speaker 3: and that's what it comes down to, playing in these events.

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Speaker 3: So when when it comes to events like this, she's

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Speaker 3: probably not as nervous and she's just used to it.

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Speaker 3: Like these guys on the p too and the girls,

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Speaker 3: they're playing these big events, these pressure events day in

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Speaker 3: and day out, so it's just like going out and

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Speaker 3: playing with your mates. So yeah, I just make sure

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Speaker 3: that she enjoys it and she's she's at that stage now.

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Speaker 3: As a coach, I like to make sure my students

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Speaker 3: can actually coach themselves, so they've got a good understanding

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Speaker 3: of what makes the ball do what it does and

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Speaker 3: how they can fix that when they're out playing. And yeah,

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Speaker 3: that's what we sort of focus on and just play

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Speaker 3: a lot of golf together and had fun. Well.

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Speaker 2: Sounds like she's in very good hands and exciting week

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Speaker 2: ahead for her and for you, Dean. Thanks for taking

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Speaker 2: the time for a chat. Can't wait to see how

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Speaker 2: it all plays out at Royal Wellington from Thursday onwards.

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Speaker 3: It'll be great. And yeah, you watch that leaderboard. I

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Speaker 3: guarantee she'll be on it and up there at some stage.

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Speaker 2: All right, we'll keep an eye on it, Dean. Thanks indeed.

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Speaker 2: Dean Kingsbear golf coach coach of Elise Barber, thirteen year

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Speaker 2: old not bad playing off at two point three at

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Speaker 2: the age of thirteen. She'll love it, won't she and

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Speaker 2: Dean Kingsbear clearly thinks she's got what it takes to

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Speaker 2: we'll certainly contend. I mean, making the cut would be

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Speaker 2: a thing, wouldn't it. Eighty four players, She makes the

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Speaker 2: cut at thirteen, who knows what she might go on

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Speaker 2: to achieve. Remember the name, as they say, Elise Barber.

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Speaker 2: The Women's Amateur Asia Pacific Golf Championship, Royal Wellington Golf Club.

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Speaker 2: From Thursday through until next Sunday. We'll make sure we

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Speaker 2: keep you right up today on zed B as to

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Speaker 2: how things are going.

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Speaker 1: For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine. Listen live

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Speaker 1: to News Talk zed B weekends from midday, or follow

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Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio