OCALA, Florida – On Wednesday at the LPGA Drive On Championship, Jenny Coleman was hitting it “meh.” That’s how her identical twin sister Kristin described it at least. The Coleman twins share everything – clothes, car, profession. The touring pros also share swing tips as they double as each other’s swing coach.
“Just worry about (taking it) straight back, stronger wrist as opposed to cupped,” Kristin told her, “and just tempo. Get back to your tempo, get back to your groove.”
Jenny, 28, found her groove alright, finishing third at the Drive On, smashing her previous best showing of T-26 and significantly boosting her career earnings with a $100,992 payday. (Jenny’s previous career earnings totaled $19,668.)
“It helps boost my confidence and know I have the game to be out here and I deserve to be out here,” said Jenny, who drained a 54-foot birdie bomb on the 71st hole to finish 8 under for the tournament, seven shots behind winner Austin Ernst.
The week gave Kristin, who walked outside the ropes, a confidence boost too.
“She’s doing it,” said Kristin, “I can definitely do it too.”
LPGA Drive On Championship: Leaderboard
The Coleman sisters learned the game from their father, Colin, around age 4. Dad would take a lesson and bring back what he learned to the girls. They were recruited separately but followed each other to Colorado. Jenny held or shared 28 school records when she left Boulder.
The Colemans, who hail from Rolling Hills Estates outside Los Angeles, joined the Symetra Tour together in 2015. As pros, they typically get one lesson per year in the offseason. And it’s usually a different pro each time, chosen off a list of top professionals in the area or word-of-mouth recommendations. This year they went to Jamie Puterbaugh at Aviara Golf Academy.
Jenny is the more technical player and said that a lot of people think they swing fairly similar because their setup and finish looks so close.
“She has a more flattening transition,” explain Jenny, “and mine is fairly more one-planed.”
Jenny finished third on the Symetra Tour money list in 2019 to earn her LPGA card. The sisters send each other swing videos when they’re apart. Last year, Kristin, who is one minute older, caddied for Jenny on the LPGA several times when the Symetra had time off.
Kristin said they’re basically carbon copies of each other, with similar tastes and personalities. For years the only way some Symetra Tour players could tell them apart was to look at their shoes. But now both wear the same brand. Even players who’ve known them since junior golf have trouble telling them apart.
“I’m an inch taller and I part my hair on the opposite side,” said Kristin, “but wearing a hat that doesn’t quite help anybody out.”
It is, however, easy tell which ball belongs to which sister. Jenny uses the even-numbered golf balls; Kristin takes the odds.
“We could definitely take pieces of our swings and we would have a perfect swing,” said Jenny. “Or like she would drive, I would do the approaches, and then she would have the up-and-downs. And then putting 50/50. We would be killer like scramble team.”
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