First off, I want to bring everyone up to date on what's been going on lately. From the day I started this blog, I've tried to keep it mostly about golf and my journey along the way. On occasion, I might find the need to mention something about my personal life if I feel like it's something I think everyone should know. One thing I forgot to mention back in August was that Erika and I found out that she was pregnant with our first child which was due to be born in April of next year. However, Monday when I made the usual phone call to her after my round she told me that she had gone to the doctor that morning and he said she had a miscarriage. She was experiencing some of the typical symptoms related to having a miscarriage the day before and the doctor then confirmed that we had lost the baby. These last few days have been tough for the both of us, as well as our families, in dealing with this situation. Erika's been in a lot of pain lately, but hopefully she'll be back to normal soon. God works in mysterious ways and I guess this was his way of saying it just wasn't the right time. I think I'm going to leave it at that for right now in terms of what I want to put on this site. Everyone should have my email address if there is anything you'd like to know or talk about so please feel free to contact me at anytime. It's proonthegeaux@yahoo.com for those that don't have it.
On to Monday's round. The day started off much like Friday's. I was swinging well, hitting fairways and playing smart. #3 is a drivable par-4 playing downwind and I was able to find the green off the tee. From there, I was able to get a long putt to fall as I converted the 30 footer for eagle. -2 under thru 3 holes. On the 5th hole, I hit a wedge just past the pin trying to get it to spin back towards the hole but instead it skipped past about 25ft. If you can believe it, I made that one as well to go -3 under thru 6.
The 7th hole is where everything changed. It's a par-5, out-of-bounds left...water right, but reachable in two except that day is way playing into the wind. I decided that since I was playing/scoring well, I wasn't going to try and get there in two so I went ahead and hit a 2-iron off the tee just to put it in play. It wasn't the best tee shot I've ever hit, but it got the job done. From there, I laid up with a 6-iron but again not the greatest of shots. I had 150yards over water for my third shot, which was a little more than I wanted, but I was in the middle of the fairway and felt that I could at least get a putt at birdie. As I went through my pre-shot routine, I tested the wind and decided that it was blowing more across than straight into me. Believing that the wind wasn't hurting as much, I felt more comfortable hitting a hard 9-iron than choking down on an 8. Unfortunately, I should of gone with the 8. I made a good swing and had the ball heading straight toward the pin but came up well short in water. Bad mistake because now my drop area was still 100yards out and again over water. This time, I went with the longer club and from the moment I hit it all I could do was watch as my ball sailed over the green. I wasn't going to be short. Now I'm plugged in the back bunker with a shot that's downhill, downwind, down-grain and that same water is just past the pin. My only shot was to play out sideways which left me about 40ft for double-bogey. Well, three putts later I was in for a 9. The 9-iron cost me 9 strokes and I quickly went from -3 under to +1 over. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. I walked off the green in disbelief and had to dig deep to hit the tee shot off the next hole because it was a par-3 playing 220yards over water with that same wind. (Either cross or into, I'm still not sure which way it was blowing)
Thankfully, I was able to regroup and finish out the rest of the round on a positive note. I had one more 3-putt on the back nine, but came back with 2 more birdies to finish the day at +1 over (73). It was nice to play two competitive rounds in a row hitting the ball well and finding the fairway off the tee. I finally had some confidence in my driver which was key because there was either out-of-bounds or water on every hole. On top of that, I actually saw a few putts go in on Monday which was a big reason I was in contention there starting out. If it weren't for one mental mistake I might be playing in my first PGA Tour event. -5 under ended up qualifying and who knows what would of happened if I could of just made par on the 7th hole. Looking back now, I had to make sure I made my mistake long if anything on that third shot. At worst, I probably would of made bogey and still been right in it. But, to lose 4 shots to par on one hole is hard to come back from. Especially after starting out so strong and feeling like I had a legitimate shot at qualifying. That's twice now where one shot has cost me a serious chance at getting in my first PGA tournament. The 12th hole during the Zurich qualifier I hit my second shot short in the water and made double-bogey to miss by two. What are you gonna do.
I believe everything happens for a reason though. I'm not quite sure that I was ready to qualify for a PGA event. Physically maybe, but not mentally. I've still got a lot of work to do in that department, but experiences like this only help in getting me prepared for the day I actually do make it to the next level. For the next week, I'm going to continue to groove the things that were working for me this weekend in order to get ready for my final Adam's Tour event next week in Meridian, MS. I'm heading out Monday morning and should get in two practice rounds before the tournament begins on Wednesday. Erika won't be traveling with me for obvious reasons, and if things somehow get worse with her health then there's a good chance I might drop out. I ask that everyone please keep her in your thoughts and prayers that she's back to full strength real soon. Thanks again to everyone for your continued love and support.
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