Stacey McWhinnie is no golf pro, but if anyone watched closely over the past year, there is a good chance they could learn a whole lot from her about a very complex game.

McWhinnie was recently honored as the Hawaii State Women’s Golf Association’s Most Improved Golfer. Every women’s club honored its Most Improved member and McWhinnie, part of the Oahu Country Club Ladies Golf Association, came up with the best "performance factor."

The ranking formula figures in golfers’ handicap indexes from Feb. 1, 2013, to Jan. 15 of this year. McWhinnie’s index dropped from 17.1 to 11.5, which translates from a 20 handicap at OCC to 13.

It is a dramatic improvement for anyone, but particularly someone now flirting — again — with single digits.

"You can tell she has a real passion for her game," OCC head pro Andrew Feldmann says. "She’s real athletic and six or seven years ago, she was real good. Then both kids were going through high school, so she was busy and didn’t play. About a year and a half ago she came back and picked up where she left off.

"After a couple months, she got her touch back and really started improving. One of the most important things in golf is if you see some improvement. Then that golf bug is going to get you. There is more enthusiasm."

McWhinnie happily admits she is hooked, again. Husband Jim, happily hooked since he was 12, didn’t introduce her to the game until she was in her late 20s.

"Being around him meant golf would be involved," McWhinnie said. "I was really bad, would have so many whiffs in a round and became a range rat. I was more comfortable there than on the course and wouldn’t play unless I was with Jim, who would mostly tell me it was time to pick up my ball. I still wasn’t sure what I was doing out there."

They joined OCC a few years later, about when they started their family. McWhinnie’s first handicap was 40 — the max — and once she had kids she spent more time practicing than playing, putting up a net in the backyard because she couldn’t get to the range.

She got her handicap down to around 20 "for a really long time," losing some interest until her youngest child went to college. Then she made a conscious effort to improve.

That’s where McWhinnie’s quest starts to serve as a golf-by-the-numbers guide for any golfer seeking improvement in a game that is anything but by the numbers.

She noticed a tendency to pull her approach shots, so she started working on those, then moved in because "Working on the shots around the green seemed like a good idea to not make a big number."

McWhinnie also focused on keeping her head steady and tried to break the habit of going too far outside on her takeaway. On the range, or in the living room with whiffle balls, she would put a book or rolled-up yoga mat a few inches from the ball to reinforce the swing thought.

"And, of course, I decided that I needed to play more because there’s no better tool to improve your game," McWhinnie said. "I like my fairway woods, so those usually don’t give me too many problems. I also love my wedges, probably because those are the only clubs I can hit in the house with the whiffle balls, so I get a lot of practice."

When she is not "overthinking," she considers her drives the best part of her game. Feldmann likes her balance, strength and tempo, which he says make it easier to repeat her swing. Some days are more repetitive than others.

"She’ll go out and break 80 now and then," Feldmann says. "Breaking 80 on our course, for a woman, is pretty good."

McWhinnie’s short-game focus now also includes trying to keep her putter from "turning over," which causes her to pull. Again, it is an old habit that dies hard.

Feldmann agrees with her emphasis on the short game. His advice for anyone — and everyone — who is serious about getting better is to work from 100 yards on in.

"Really focus on the strokes to the green and on the green because that all relates to your score," he says. "All of us bang balls, but if we worked on that we’d all be better off — even the pros. That’s where the strokes are. When you start not giving yourself chances from 50 yards and in, and missing 5- or 6-footers, you’ve really got a problem."

HSWGA Most Improved
2013-14

Bay View Dames-Lucretia Fry;
Ft. Shafter Ladies-Edwina Siu;
Happy Hookers-Cynthia Haws;
Hawaii Kai Women’s-Lynette Lee;
Hawaii Ladies-Yindi Fowler;
Hickam Women’s-Toshiko Matsushima;
H.F.D. Women’s-Joyce Sakai;
Honolulu Japanese Women’s-Jere Masumoto;
Kaneohe Klipper-Eileen Skinner;
Kapolei Women’s-Becky Tesch. Leilehua Women’s-Gail Takahashi;
Maui Country Club Women’s-Mia Hew;
Maui AJA Women’s-Mia Hew;
Mid-Pacific Country Club-Karen Kinney;
Navy Marine Women’s-Emily Perry;
Na Wahine O Waikoloa-Patricia Kimball;
Oahu Country Club Ladies-Stacey McWhinnie;
Olomana Women’s-Adeline Show;
Pearl Country Club Ladies-Tomomi Ho;
Schofield Women’s-Lily Yao. Ted Makalena Women’s-Agnes Isa;
Wahine O Waialae-Anki Mukai;
Waiehu Women’s-Ernette Asato.