‘She’s not a potential major champion – she’s a major champion’
Has the time now come for Charley Hull to get the win her talent deserves? Sophie Walker thinks so
Charley Hull has been backed by former LET player turned Sky Sports analyst Sophie Walker to kick on and win her first major following an impressive first LPGA Tour victory since 2016.
The 26-year-old returned to the winners’ circle with a phenomenal performance to secure The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America, edging past several of the world’s best with a confident display in Texas.
“Her maturity was incredible,” Walker told NCG while speaking on The Slam podcast. “In recent times, you’re almost waiting for Charley not to win because she hasn’t won on the LPGA Tour for six years. But it just looked like she went, ‘No, that’s not going to happen again.’
“When you put the work in, you trust the process more, and then you let the game flow. And that’s what she did. Her iron play was unbelievable. She was flagging it every single shot. A very un-British win, because it never looked in doubt!”
Breaking her LPGA Tour drought with a first win on the circuit in six years, Walker now believes Hull has unquestionably reached her potential and will soon land that elusive first major title.
“It looks like she’s taken responsibility,” Walker explained. “It’s not effort. Charley plays a lot of golf. When people say Charley’s uninterested, it’s totally ridiculous. She loves the game of golf.
“I don’t think we need to say potential with Charley now. It’s not potential. She’s ready. She is a top 50 player in the world every single year. She just needs to get in that position more, and I now think she will get over the line.
“She’s not a potential major champion. She is a major champion. Let’s hope she goes and gets one.”
And it’s not just on the golf course where Hull impresses.
“Charley is your average 26 year old woman,” Walker continues. “She hammers Instagram, she goes shopping with her mates, she gets her nails done, she gets her hair extensions done.
“She isn’t your average golfer, and that’s so important. If you are a golfer, you go, ‘God, she’s got style.’ There is an opportunity for some style in the game. Then if you aren’t a golfer and you’re looking at the TV, you go, ‘Oh, she looks cool, she just looks like anyone else that I’ll be seeing on on a night out.’ And that is incredibly important.
“She’s 26 years old. She’s a young woman. That’s what women do. They take care of themselves. And she’s just really good at her job, which happens to be golf. So that’s important for the young girls coming through. The average woman at the golf club is over 50, that’s just the way it is.
“But Charley’s not. I just think she’s a breath of fresh air.”
You can listen to more of Sophie Walker discussing Charley Hull on the latest episode of The Slam podcast…
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George Cooper
A golf fanatic his entire life, George Cooper is NCG's man for all goings-on at the top level of the game, whether it's the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA or LIV Golf. He also looks after NCG's Twitter and Facebook accounts. George is a member of Woburn, but is not friends with Ian Poulter.
