Lorena Ochoa dazzles Mexico, and young documentarians

In Mexico, sports fans are enthralled about soccer. So these days, with the playoffs of the Mexican soccer league getting underway, it can be odd to see what sport is getting front-page play on the sports pages.

Women’s golf.

The new No. 1 women’s player in the world, Lorena Ochoa, a Guadalajara native, deserves all the credit for that remarkable achievement, and next year, her fans will get a behind-the-scenes look at this champion, both on and off the course.

When longtime friends Christopher Vitiello and Jonathon Ochoa graduated from college, Vitiello was in what he termed “Everything is a movie mode.” Luckily for him, his pal had the perfect subject for a documentary – his cousin Lorena.

Once the project began, the two have worked odd jobs and gotten family support to make the film. Vitiello said both his family and the Ochoa family have been dazzled by the talent, personality and drive of Lorena. Vitiello spoke of when his mother met Lorena for the first time, “and she still doesn’t stop talking about her.”

More than anyone, however, the two filmmakers have been dazzled by Lorena Ochoa. While the film started as a look into the mind and spirit of a world-class athlete, it has evolved into a look at how Ochoa has taken advantage of that fame by opening a school in Guadalajara for underprivileged kids, as well as other charitable activities. The pair has also seen firsthand the interesting development of a female golfer becoming a top sports star in a nation with a reputation as having a “macho culture.”

And the two have also been blown away by Lorena’s fame in Mexico. Aside from bringing in fans by winning, Lorena Ochoa has been winning in a way that resonates with Mexican fans. An aggressive player always looking for a birdie, Lorena is not the type of player to carve out meticulous, bogey-free rounds of 68 to win. Instead, she’s much more liable to put up a score of 72, then follow that with a brilliant 63. Her success and style have already made her a legend in her home country.

“To put it into perspective, last week at the Morelia Championship, the President of Mexico showed up to giver her an award,” said Jonathon Ochoa.

The two have been following Lorena Ochoa for the last year, and will continue shooting up until Women’s British Open, where the pair hope their subject wins her first major event, and gives them the happy ending for a film that will be all about happy endings.

Click here to read my WorldGolf.com feature article on Vitiello and Ochoa’s film.

–WKW

Crossposted at Shakesville.com

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