By Canadian Press

Salimah Mussani makes collaboration the heart of her coaching plan for Golf Canada

May 11, 2022 | 2:02 PM

Golf may be an individual sport, but Salimah Mussani believes that collaboration will take Canada’s golfers to the next level.

Mussani was named the head coach of Golf Canada’s women’s team last Friday and the Burlington, Ont. native has already set to work conferring with players and alumni alike. It’s all part of Golf Canada’s stated goal of having a total of 30 golfers on the LPGA Tour and PGA Tour within the next decade.

“How we actually get them there is by making sure they have that support team, making sure they have access to all the things that they need,” said Mussani. “Whether it’s finances, whether it’s a technical coach, whether it’s some specialty, whatever it is, you know, physio, chiro, acupuncture.

“Whatever it is that they need, that we can help them to have to be their best selves, I think is kind of the crux of getting them there.”

Part of Mussani’s process is to acquire as much information as possible from a variety of sources. Golf, like many professional sports, is increasingly data driven with analytics able to show athletes how their play is developing over a season shot-by-shot.

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Mussani said she and assistant coach Jennifer Greggain will rely on that hard data but are also looking into anecdotal input. To that end, she has sent a survey to alumnae of Golf Canada’s programs, including Hall of Famers Lorie Kane, Gail Graham and Marlene Streit, to find out what they think could help the current generation of golfers.

“It’s just a matter of putting all these puzzle pieces together,” said Mussani. “I think that’s kind of the beauty of where I am right now.

“Everybody’s working toward the same goal and the same vision, which makes it that much more fun.”

Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee, a member of Team Canada’s young pro squad, said she appreciates Mussani’s collaborative approach. Lee believes that a healthy team-first culture will lead to strong results, even for a sport like golf which ultimately comes down to individual performances.

“(Mussani) wants to come in here and make a difference,” said Lee. “She’s not just coming here with her own ideas of what she wants to do and what she thinks it’s going to be best for the team. She’s reaching out to alum and asking what their opinions are of the program and what they felt could have been changed while they were on the team. 

“I think that’s a testament to who she is, how she’s taught us, and gives a little bit of insight of how she’s going to run this team going forward.”

Mussani is a two-time Ontario junior champion, a two-time Canadian junior champion, and a key member of an NCAA runner-up golf team at Stanford University. She also competed as a professional on the Epson and LPGA Tours, as well as the former Canadian Women’s Tour. 

She has held assistant coaching roles with Stanford University, University of British Columbia, and Team Canada.

Mussani believes that her background as a player and experience working with varsity athletes gives her valuable insight as a coach. She also said that being a woman coaching young women may be helpful to building relationships.

“I think, for a player to relate to a female coach, I think it’s a lot easier,” said Mussani, who noted she’s working primarily with young women between the ages of 17 and 25. “I think of myself when I was a 19-year-old girl. It would have been hard for me to pick up a phone and call an older guy and be vulnerable.

“I’ll have that closer path for the girls to get to know them and to forge that relationship in a little closer knit way.” 

Maddie Szeryk agrees with Mussani. The young pro squad member from London, Ont., said that she’s looking forward to building a relationship with her new head coach.

“I think that’s part of what makes her relatable, we all feel comfortable in talking with her,” said Szeryk. “She’s just really helpful and I think just very easygoing but also is a great coach and is firm with things. She’s very encouraging.

“She’s just really eager to get going and wants to know how she can help us, looking at stats and coming out to tournaments. I know she’s really excited for the role and I think we’re all really happy for her.”

LPGA TOUR — Szeryk and Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., are both in the field at this week’s Cognizant Founders Cup in Clifton, N.J. Leblanc sits 38th in the Race to CME Globe standings.

PGA TOUR — Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., finished ninth at last week’s Wells Fargo Championship to move up to 34th in the FedEx Cup standings. He’s back in the field at this week’s AT&T Byron Nelson in McKinney, Texas. He’ll be joined at TPC Craig Ranch by fellow Canadians Adam Hadwin (48) and Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C. (102) as well as Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C. (119), Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C.(170) and Michael Gligic of Burlington, Ont., (182).

PENDRITH — Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., will miss more time than expected with a fractured rib. Pendrith originally targeted a return for next week’s PGA Championship, but a statement issued on Wednesday says he is optimistic that he will be fully recovered by the RBC Canadian Open on June 6. He said the rib is healing very well and he hopes to be practising lightly over the next few weeks. Pendrith said he is carefully following the medical direction he is receiving and will be taking it one week at a time as he works through this recovery period.

KORN FERRY TOUR — Toronto’s Albin Choi is the top-ranked Canadian on the Korn Ferry Tour, sitting 79th on the second-tier tour’s standings heading into this week’s Visit Knoxville Open. Vancouver’s Stuart Macdonald (97) and David Hearn of Brantford, Ont. (108), are also in the field at Holston Hills Country Club in Knoxville, Tenn.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., are in the field at The Tradition at the Greystone Golf and Country Club in Birmingham, Ala. Ames is seventh ($396,237) in the Charles Schwab Cup money list and Weir is 41st ($119,793).  

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 10, 2022.

John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press