Eddie Pepperell Exclusive

Shared from TrendyGolf Magazine

Before turning pro in 2011, Eddie Pepperell enjoyed a hugely successful amateur career and has long been considered one of golf’s future stars. A brand ambassador for Wolsey, this intelligent young golfer is often grabbing attention, not only on the course but also off it with his interesting views and thoughtful character.

We have often heard people refer to Pepperell as one of golf’s most interesting players so, naturally, we jumped at the chance to catch up with him during Wolsey’s recent SS16 campaign shoot. We spoke to him about everything: from his thought provoking blog and struggles on tour to his thoughts on fashion, style and the lure of Wolsey.

You have a blog which you have been keeping since 2012, what made you start writing it and what do you hope to achieve from it?

I was reading a lot of books at the time and had lots of thoughts so I thought I would put them down in writing. One day I might look back at it and learn something and other people might also pick up on things and learn from it which would be good.

Some blog posts that I’ve written about periods in my career are very reflective and I find that it’s a good way for me to clarify all of that. I don’t feel like I’m writing it for a purpose or about anything in particular, it’s more about my experiences and my feelings at the time. They’re quite personal and, well, they’re individual.

You talk about the realities of life on tour, what have you found to be the biggest struggle?

I think the hardest thing is the challenge to get better, trying to improve your game so that you can win on tour and make that constant progression forward. Once you overcome obstacles and hurdles at the beginning of a career – like the tedious nature of travel – and find a way to deal with it, you can concentrate on improving your game which, to me, is a bigger challenge in itself. I find that working on feelings that I’m dealing with is a lot less intrinsic – I can always look inwardly and say right, I can improve on that, I can work on that. Your game, on the other hand, is so much harder to improve because there are so many contributing factors. I’d say that’s definitely the biggest challenge I’ve faced and there’s no question that having the right attitude certainly makes that job easier.

You’re always looking sharp on course, how would you describe your style?

I’ve always preferred the smart, traditional look as opposed to the bright colours and modern ways of dressing, which I think Wolsey fits in quite nicely with.

As you know, Wolsey has more than 250 years of heritage. You’re only 24, what do you think it is about Wolsey that makes it appeal to the younger generations?

Younger people want to wear clothes which fit well, they want to have patterns on their shirts which differentiate them and look a bit cool – I think there’s lots of ideas like that coming out from Wolsey which will certainly attract the younger generations. I’ve only been with Wolsey a year but already I’ve seen how much progress they are making – they are coming out with some great ideas and really moving forward.  I think that the more people that see the brand on TV, the more people are going to realise that it’s a cool brand. Young people are into their clothes and it is something they like to spend a lot of money on.

Wolsey has an extensive fashion collection which is sold throughout the world. Do you think that this fashion element is reflected in their golf range?

Yes! And I would be keen to wear a fashion item on the course: I love their mainline polos which could look really cool un-tucked on the golf course, it’s a bit different and I’m all for that. I would like to see more of a crossover between golf and fashion and I think that needs to happen – golf needs to become attractive and fashionable to younger people – I think clothing is a great way of doing that.

As a pro golfer, you have a better idea than most about what works on the course and what doesn’t. Are you involved in the design process at all or would you like to be?

No, not really, Wolsey are experts in doing that type of thing and I’m more than happy to wear what they say. I think what I also quite like about the brand is that they’re in a similar stage to me in terms of golf. We’re both at the beginning. They’re at the beginning, I’m at the beginning and hopefully we can move forward together and that’s an idea that I’ve always quite liked.

Is this what first drew you to the brand?

Yes, I also had a friend who wore it last year, Tom Lewis, and I was always saying to him ‘that’s a nice jumper’ or ‘that’s a nice shirt’, so when the offer came about I was keen to have a look. I’m more than happy with things and I know that moving forward that things will be getting even better.

In the early years, Wolsey was selected by some of the most daring explorers of the time including Sir Ernest Shackleton. Do you have an adventurous streak?

I haven’t had any adventures, although I really want to, it’s just over-coming that fear. My girlfriend is quite adventurous, she’s travelled the world and is really into that type of thing. I don’t think it would do me any harm to take some of that from her as I get older. Whilst not going to the North Pole, I would certainly be interested in doing some treks or some mountain climbs  because I enjoy being in nature and I think it’s so good for seeing the world. It’s a challenge which combines lots of different aspects; however, it’s not something that I would include in my golf, it’s something that I would do separately – take some time away from the game for a little while and go to see the world.