Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/934374
C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 1 8 105 T he 2017 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was played under gloomy skies but there was one ray of sunshine: tournament rookie Kelly Rohrbach, the "Baywatch" babe who played intermittently spec- tacular golf and looked quite fetching while doing so. In an ama- teur field that skews heavily toward out-of-shape old dudes, Rohrbach, 28, offered some desperately needed diversity. But she was hardly token eye candy. "Kelly can play," said her pro partner Gary Woodland. "She obviously came in here pretty rusty, but her swing looks good and you could see the touch coming back." Indeed, the first thing you notice about Rohrbach—well, maybe not the *first* thing—is that she looks like a player : text- book setup; sound grip; rhythmic, athletic swing; full release of the club head. A statuesque 5'9", she has a long swing arc that gen- erates plenty of power. Rohrbach grew up playing competitive golf in American Junior Golf Association events and for the Greenwich (Conn.) Academy. As a high school senior, she led her squad to the conference championship and took medalist hon- ors. She was good enough to make the team at Georgetown, though she rarely cracked the tournament lineup, and Rohrbach left school after her sophomore year to concentrate on model- ing and acting. In 2015, she graced the pages of the Sports Illustrated "Swimsuit Issue," which brought her to Hollywood's attention. Rohrbach had a meaty role in last year's "Baywatch" reboot and recently wrapped shooting for an upcoming Woody Allen film, among other projects. The invitation to play at Pebble Beach last year came out of the blue and Rohrbach was so busy professionally she had pre- cious little time to prepare; she didn't play a full round of golf in the three months leading up to the tournament. It didn't help that her indoctrination to Bing Crosby's event came in cold, wet, windy conditions. Still, she had a terrific attitude throughout. "What a great expe- rience!" she said following the first round. "I've never played in conditions like this in my life! I'm a blue-sky, 85-degree, nine- holes-in-a-cart, lunch-on-the-terrace kind of girl. But it was fun in a weird way."