Ellie Blum ’15, a three-year Senior from Los Altos Hills, CA., has been tearing down the competition this season for the Andover Golf team, toppling her Deerfield opponent to claim a 7&6 victory on Saturday. Blum has provided stability in the top end of Andover’s ladder, acting as an anchor with her consistent play. Due to her contributions to the Andover golf team, Blum has been named The Phillipian’s Athlete of the Week.
What in your game was clicking in the match against Deerfield?
It was 100 percent my putting on Saturday. I drained a couple long, 30 foot putts, one for birdie and one for par, earlier on. That really fired me up and really rattled my opponent. From then on, my confidence was up and his was down, and it really just was a domino effect. I ended up winning off of a 20 foot birdie putt, which was really fun.
Were there any conditions that were in your favor?
This is the third year that I’m playing Indian Ridge – the Golf team’s home course – and I’m getting pretty familiar with it. The greens were rolling a little bit faster, [which] absolutely helped. I always play better when it is sunny out, so that was also definitely working for me.
How much more comfortable are you on the team this season being a Senior?
Being a Senior is definitely a very different experience. There is a lot of familiarity now. There is really no course that we play that I haven’t played before. You start to recognize the players on the other team. Once you start to establish that confidence, you start to get into that groove a lot faster in matches. For me, I’ve noticed that that was made a big difference. I don’t get as nervous as I used to.
What do you think is the best part of your game?
I definitely work the hardest and do the best at putting. It is my favorite thing to practice, which I know for a lot of golfers isn’t the case. Over the years, it’s the skill that I like to constantly be doing. For instance, I have a short little putting green in my room. I love hearing the sound of the ball go in the hole. It’s come a long way since my Lower year and has honestly made the biggest difference in my game.
