Promoting the benefits of golf to women on the Costa del Sol

Chiara Cantone discovered golf in Italy, where she says there are many associations with professionals who create golf groups to network and play together

Jennie Rhodes

Marbella

Friday, 3 November 2023, 18:24

Chiara Cantone has lived in Marbella for 18 years ever since golf brought her here from her native Biella in Piemonte; a town on the Italian side of the Swiss-Italian border.

In Italy Chiara was a professional volleyball player and studied to become a sports physiotherapist at university. She has used her studies to become a wellness consultant and now combines that with teaching golf through the Less is More Golf method, based at Magna Marbella Golf, which she cofounded with fellow teacher and professional player, Luis Martínez García.

Chiara describes her method as "a 100 per cent healthy method to teach golfers how to play easier, better and healthier".

Chiara discovered golf in Italy, where she says there are "so many associations with professionals who create golf groups to network and play together".

A friend who was involved with a club near to the family home invited Chiara to go to a golf competition, but her initial reaction, she admits, was, "No way, it's for old people" but confesses that an invitation to a "nice party and cocktails" convinced her to give it a try.

"I decided to give it a go. It was love at first sight but I didn't want to admit it," she laughs.

Near to where she lived there was a little driving range, but she says that the teacher wasn't really her "cup of tea" so "to cut a long story short" she came to Marbella "where I put together my knowledge and willingness to play golf".

Chiara found the "right teacher" who is now her colleague and cofounder Luis. "He was very open-minded with my ideas and eventually I also became a golf teacher," Chiara reveals.

Chiara admits that as one of the few women involved in professional golf, the journey to get where she is "hasn't been easy". She goes on to say, "Being young and a lady in the golf field I wasn't taken seriously by my colleagues." But she adds, "I think that things change when you change. I have personally made a change. I have made my skin thicker and if you want to be known you have to accept that there will be people that don't like your brightness"

She says that things have improved over the 18 years she has been here and that "results talk for themselves". Although she recognises that there are "still challenges" she says they "motivate" her.

Another of Chiara's projects is the Ladies' Golf Group that started on 7 October. Chiara says she believes that ladies' golf is "a lot more sociable than men's golf" and that she has been "surprised at the success".

The group gives women the opportunity to meet other like-minded ladies, practise with someone who is at a similar level as them and also socialise and network. "The ladies didn't feel comfortable coming alone and playing golf with the men, so they were wanting to practise with other women."

Awards

This year Chiara has been recognised for her achievements through a number of awards, including world wellness champion as ambassador of the world wellness weekend (www.world-wellness-weekend.org), now in its seventh year. She also won Outstanding Contribution to Women's Golf on the Costa del Sol.

Chiara is involved in the Grace of No Age international platform which shares knowledge and advice with women about the menopause. In particular she says it is a space where women from countries that are "less open about talking about the menopause" can go to share their experiences and get support.

"I think that it is a time that you have to embrace and learn to love yourself. I feel women are abandoned, they have done a lot for the family, kids and partners."

Chiara feels that this is a fundamental aspect of playing golf for women who are going through the menopause: "When you play golf you forget the world. You can play and not be serious," she points out.

As for the future, Chiara says that her goal is "to make people happy through golf, to work on physical problems and people's technique". She says that Marbella will always be her base but there are always plans to travel, both for work and pleasure.

Chiara lives with her dog Fernando who she adopted through Triple A animal shelter when he was three months. She describes her life with Fernando, now 12, as "a beautiful adventure".

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