Oberägeri,20.11.2017

Golf professional Fabienne In-Arbon calls it a day

Golf professional Fabienne In-Arbon has decided to call it a day at the age of 31. Speaking with a journalist of the Zuger Zeitung, she spoke of the highs and lows during her successful sporting career.
 
When she was asked how she came to be interested in the sport, she explained that her father Bruno had inspired not only her but her mother, Anne-Marie, and brother, Yves, to take up the sport. “However, it was my brother who inspired me to carry on with it. Though, back in those days, in Holzhäusern, all I was interested in was being able to beat him,” she said.
 
When asked what she particularly liked about golf, she said it was the interaction between the technical, the physical and the mental which made the sport so interesting and varied. “You go through so many highs and lows on a round of golf,” she said, “with a good stroke not meaning you have won the game, nor a bad one meaning you have lost,” adding how she found 20-40-metre shots from bunkers particularly challenging
 
In-Arbon went on to say how much she loved the Raten area, where this photograph of her was taken. “I grew up in Oberägeri,” she explained, as she went on to say how much she loved being in nature in the mountains, whether on foot or on a bike. She particularly enjoyed it all in winter and is a member of the St Jost Skiing Club in Oberägeri and looked forward to being able to spend more time on the slopes now she is retiring.
 
As to whether anyone in particular acted as a role model for her in her golfing career, she said that, as every athlete and sportsman was different, one should not try to copy anyone else’s style, though she mentioned being inspired by golfers such as Suzann Pettersen and Luke Donald, as well as by Swiss athletes such as Roger Federer and Dominique Gisin.
 
When it came to the professional highlights of her career, she mentioned coming second and eighth in the Ladies’ European Tour (LET) in India and South Africa, as well as her victory in the LET Access tour, though it was the realisation of a childhood dream to have been able to compete in the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. “Of course, I had my lows too, often in connection with injuries such as slipped discs; and last year I had lime disease to put up with.”
 
As to what led her to resign, she said it was a long process. “I have had various setbacks in my career, but these have equally helped to make me stronger. However, contacting lime disease last year was one setback too many. You need a lot of strength and energy to play top class golf. Then, problems with LET meant I would have had to start right back at the beginning again, had I wanted to compete in the LPGA in the USA next year. All this would have meant giving it a level of energy I just do not have anymore.”
 
And what will she miss most about not competing professionally anymore?
“The people who were with me as we went from one marvellous golf course to another all over the world and all the emotions you go through when playing golf at this level, emotions it is difficult to put into words. What I won’t miss are the countless hours spent in the air and all the delays.”
 
As to what she will be left with after retiring, she mentioned how sport has given her many lessons in the school of life. “Years spent touring made me a stronger person. I would not have missed them for the world. Indeed, I am proud of what I have been able to achieve and what I have experienced. Might I add that, had it not been for my family, my friends, my team and my sponsors, I would not have been able to do all I have done. I am most grateful to them all.”
 
And what now?
“I am not sure, though what I would like to be able to do is to pass on what I have learned to up-and-coming sportsmen and women to enable them to reach the top, too,” said the graduate with a degree in sports management, as she mentioned how she planned to give speeches and organise workshops for businesses, clubs and associations.