Webb: I’m a shot away

Tournament favourite Karrie Webb is hoping that a strong showing at this week&aposs Australian Open at Metropolitan Golf Club in Melbourne will spark an improved season on the US LPGA Tour. Webb has slipped to No.9 overall in the world rankings following two winless seasons in the States when she finished 18th and 22nd on the moneylist. The 34-year-old concedes she probably failed to capitalise on the momentum generated from last year&aposs Australian Open victory at Kingston Heath and wants to use her campaign for a fifth Open title as a springboard for success. Speaking following Wednesday&aposs pro-am, Webb said she believes she&aposs only a shot away from rediscovering her best. “I didn&apost realise how fine a line it was between playing really, really well and playing pretty well, and I&aposve been on the wrong side of the fine line for the last couple of years,” she said. “Most of my game is fairly sound, it&aposs just scoring which is very different from putting in all the work on the range and the chipping green and putting green.” “It&aposs about executing all of that when you go out and play.” “It&aposs not from lack of work or wanting it – it&aposs probably wanting it too much, that&aposs probably the problem.” “Hopefully I can change that this year and have a little bit of success early on.” Asked for her thoughts on the development of many of her younger compatriots on tour and the debate about how long she expects to retain the mantle as Australia&aposs No.1, Webb said: “I don t class being the best player in Australia as a competition”. “When I tee it up at the start of a (tournament), that&aposs not one of my goals.” “I&aposm just trying to be the best I can be and I know I&aposve got a number of good, hopefully great, years of golf left.” Webb rates herself a &aposvery good chance&apos at &aposMetro&apos this week but was reluctant to nominate a winning score which she said would depend on the wind. She said a bit of local knowledge around the par-73 sandbelt layout, however, would go a long way, especially on and around the greens. “They look like they break a lot more than they do,” Webb said. “It&aposs hard to convince yourself when you see these slopes that you think it&aposs going to break two or three feet and it only breaks six inches.” “That&aposs probably the part that I found trickiest out there.” Webb shook her head in disbelief when told that two local 12-year-olds – Su-hyun Oh and Youngmin Chi – had qualified to play in the Open. “I had been playing professional golf for three years before they were born – that&aposs pretty amazing,” she laughed. “I didn&apost even have a handicap when I was 12.”