And she's more than just a golf instruc-
tor—Eathorne is also the face of Preda-
tor's "Swing Like a Girl" initiative, an
innovative program designed to lure
more women to the sport. She's a great
t—her bubbly personality creates an
atmosphere of fun for participants in
the new classes.
"It was a really positive environ-
ment," says Kim Heizmann, a Vernon
realtor who attended the Swing Like
a Girl program with Eathorne before
advancing to personal lessons. "AJ
is fabulous, always joking, but you
recognize she really knows what she is
talking about."
Swing Like a Girl (branded to
include merchandise and even an all-
pink golf cart at Predator Ridge) and
golf programs like it could be impor-
tant for the game as it struggles to nd
its gender equilibrium. According to a
2012 study by the National Allied Golf
Associations, a group of organizations
involved in the game, 30 per cent
of golfers are women. Women have
continued to follow a long-recognized
trend—joining the game in large
numbers, but not sticking it out and
ultimately abandoning the sport.
Though Eathorne has been the
face and driving force behind the
Swing Like a Girl program since it was
launched, she didn't create the pro-
gram. Ingrid Dilschneider, Predator
Ridge's director of business develop-
ment who was running the resort's
marketing program at the time, rst
imagined the concept. She was looking
for the right personality to launch the
program and found it in Eathorne,
who joined Predator Ridge as an
instructor in 2011.
The ironic tag line has certainly
PINK IS THE NEW GREEN
Branded merchandise—
such as the pink Predator
Ridge golf cart (below)
and pink golf shirts—have
been a surprising source of
revenue for the course.
p70-81-OOO_may.indd 78 2014-04-09 3:39 PM
