With charm, good looks and talent to spare, she's been hailed as the LPGA's Next Best Thing. The question is, will her funky swing hold up? Her coach gives us the answer On left: Sound fundamentals: Good ball position and good grip. Middle: From a poor top position to perfect impact. On right: Natalie's balance is excellent. Photography: Stephen Szurlej By Butch Harmon with Evan Rothman Golf Digest It would be wonderful to live in a world where we could clone everyone to swing exactly the same, but we don't. With the most unusual position at the top that I've ever seen, Natalie Gulbis' swing is famously unorthodox. The reason so many people know about it is she's been very successful playing that way: In 1997, at age 14, she was the youngest winner of the California Women's Amateur and the youngest to Monday-qualify for an LPGA Tour event. Now an LPGA rookie at 19, she's poised to become a star. Did you know? Natalie has represented California in two USGA team championships and was the U.S. Women's Amateur medalist in 1998. Both Natalie and Tiger Woods came to me through their fathers, who felt that they had taken their kids as far as they could on their own. There's only one Tiger, but Natalie is very athletic and very strong, and a competitor with a good disposition for golf. Smart, too: She knew she needed to alter some things about her swing in order to keep progressing. In this article, I'll highlight the key aspects of Natalie's swing and explain what we've been working on to improve it. We're not trying to make any dramatic changes -- I don't believe you should throw away what people do naturally. You just want to make it better. That's especially true with pros; they have to play through any changes and continue to play well. The Gulbis file Full name: Natalie Gulbis Born: January 7, 1983 Birthplace: Sacramento, CA Turned professional: 2001