First Round Score: 78
The first round was a whole lot of the same thing I've been experiencing lately. I hit the ball pretty well throughout the round. My driver was working well for me off the tee, my irons weren't really helping or hurting, but my short game was horrific. Because I was hitting the ball well off the tee, I set myself up for a lot of wedges into the greens. Unfortunately, it was one of the worst displays of a wedge game you've ever seen. I repeatedly missed the green from 60, 70, 80 yards out. It's not that I wasn't hitting them solid, it was just my distance control. I felt like I was back in high-school when I couldn't hit the green with a wedge to save my life. It was extremely frustrating to say the least and consequently the reason why I scored so poorly. Instead of taking advantage of the short yardage situations by giving myself good chances for birdies, I was actually making bogies.......from 70 yards out!!! Then on top of that, my chipping and pitching as well as my putting were just as bad. You put all that together and a 78 is about what I deserved.
Second Round Score: 73
Today was so aggravating, I'm surprised I haven't thrown my putter in the lake by now. I hit the ball better again, my wedge game was more under control than the day before, but I continued to miss putt after putt after putt. If it wasn't a tap in, it wasn't going in. I was even par with two holes to play and I finished with a 3-putt bogey on #17 and a missed par putt from 4ft on #18. I bet everybody that reads this blog (all 5 of you) probably thinks by now that I enjoy putting bad. I mean, it's been a year and a half now and nothings changed. Trust me when I tell you, I practice my putting all the time and actually putt decently when I'm at home. But once I tee it up in a tournament, the ball just doesn't go in the hole. Period.
If there is anything positive that I can take away from this event, it's that I drove the ball well for both rounds. I put myself in scoring position many times, but my short game really let me down. I'm not surprised that my putting was as bad as it was, I'm just fed up with the fact that all the practice that I'm doing isn't paying off. It's all lead to a point in my career where it's time to start thinking about a plan B. Sometimes, things just aren't meant to be.
I've ordered a new set of clubs to help correct the problems I'm having with my old ones. I think I made a post about how far off my clubs are now for my swing so hopefully these new ones will give me a better chance at hitting the ball with the center of the club face. I plan on working with them for the rest of the month, as well as trying any and every last thing I can think of to improve my putting, before playing in what could be my last tournament for......I don't know how long. There's another Adam's Tour event in Monroe, LA at the beginning of July that I will prepare for and if I'm still writing posts like this one after that tournaments over, it might be the last post overall. Erika and I will be heading back to New Orleans tomorrow, so I'll have some updates throughout the rest of the month and let yall know how things are going. Thanks to everyone who's kept up with me through this site for all this time now. I know I sound like a broken record, but I really do hope this is the last blog with bad news and nothing but positive news from here on out.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Adam's Tour - Beaumont Open - Preview
This week I'm back in Texas again for another Adam's Tour event. This time I'm in Beaumont playing the Beaumont Country Club. I played in this tournament last year, so I'm pretty familiar with the course. We drove back over from Baton Rouge on Monday and I was able to get in 9 holes of a practice round. There was a really bad storm which came through about mid-afternoon that basically wiped out the rest of the day. Today, I was back out there finishing up my practice round by playing the back nine.
After two days and a year under my belt, I feel like I've got a good idea about how to play this golf course. I've changed my game plan from last year a little bit by hitting driver on a few holes where I hit 3-wood before and deciding to lay up on one of the par-5's I would of attacked in the past. This is one of those old style golf courses where the holes run parallel to each other, so there are many instances where it's better to take driver and get it as close to the green as possible. I'd say every hole has it's trouble spots, but it's usually just on one side of the hole. If I can make my mistakes on the right sides where there's room to miss, then I should be able to set myself up for a lot of wedges.
The rough is up in spots (like last week) which will make it tougher to control distances on approach shots and spin the ball around the greens. Let's just say I'm going to try and avoid those areas as much as possible. Overall, I feel better than I did at this time last week the night before the first round, so I'm hoping with a little fortune I'll be able to put together a solid performance. Then again, putting is always a major factor in how I score, so hopefully we'll see some improvement this week.
My tee time tomorrow is 9:10 off #10.
After two days and a year under my belt, I feel like I've got a good idea about how to play this golf course. I've changed my game plan from last year a little bit by hitting driver on a few holes where I hit 3-wood before and deciding to lay up on one of the par-5's I would of attacked in the past. This is one of those old style golf courses where the holes run parallel to each other, so there are many instances where it's better to take driver and get it as close to the green as possible. I'd say every hole has it's trouble spots, but it's usually just on one side of the hole. If I can make my mistakes on the right sides where there's room to miss, then I should be able to set myself up for a lot of wedges.
The rough is up in spots (like last week) which will make it tougher to control distances on approach shots and spin the ball around the greens. Let's just say I'm going to try and avoid those areas as much as possible. Overall, I feel better than I did at this time last week the night before the first round, so I'm hoping with a little fortune I'll be able to put together a solid performance. Then again, putting is always a major factor in how I score, so hopefully we'll see some improvement this week.
My tee time tomorrow is 9:10 off #10.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Adam's Tour - Bay Oaks Championship - Rounds 1 & 2
Scores: 82-78
The first round began like a nightmare. I had gone through a good warm-up session before the round started, and proceeded to hit my first tee shot off #1 in the woods. It was basically like hitting it out-of-bounds because we never found that ball and eventually lead to a triple-bogey (7). I don't care who you are, you can not start rounds with triple bogey's and play well. It seems like some of these last few rounds I've played, I've started out just shooting myself in both feet on the first hole. It makes it nearly impossible to get anything going after that happens. I followed that up with a double-bogey on the second hole and a bogey on the third, so I was +6 over par through 3 holes.
There were some solid shots periodically throughout the rest of the day, but I never felt like I had control of the round. On days like that, it seems like nothing ever goes your way. Even when I felt like I hit a good shot, it didn't end up that way. I finished with a double-bogey on #18, after hitting a good second into the green, which pretty much summed up how the day went.
During round two, I had one goal in mind. I wanted to execute every shot with as little thought as possible. Meaning, after I had calculated my yardage and planned my shot, I was going to just walk up to the ball and hit it. And that was exactly what I did on every shot from tee to green...even my putts. On the front nine, I actually played pretty well. I had one 3-putt that lead to a bogey and one poor iron shot that lead to a triple-bogey. I know that's still unacceptable, but overall I felt better than I did during round one.
The second nine holes were much of the same. I executed a lot of shots like I wanted, gave myself multiple good looks at birdie, but nothing seemed to be falling. I did make a couple good putts to save par, but I missed three putts inside of 3ft. So, I don't really know what to think about my new strategy on the greens. I can't afford to miss any putts that close, let alone three in one round. Again, on my final hole of the day, it was another bad break that lead to a double-bogey. Just wasn't meant to be.
Erika and I came back to Baton Rouge last night to save some money on hotels and give me a place to practice over the weekend. I've got another Adam's Tour event next week in Beaumont, TX so we'll probably head over that way on Monday to get ready. Hopefully, I'll have a little better luck on this next one.
The first round began like a nightmare. I had gone through a good warm-up session before the round started, and proceeded to hit my first tee shot off #1 in the woods. It was basically like hitting it out-of-bounds because we never found that ball and eventually lead to a triple-bogey (7). I don't care who you are, you can not start rounds with triple bogey's and play well. It seems like some of these last few rounds I've played, I've started out just shooting myself in both feet on the first hole. It makes it nearly impossible to get anything going after that happens. I followed that up with a double-bogey on the second hole and a bogey on the third, so I was +6 over par through 3 holes.
There were some solid shots periodically throughout the rest of the day, but I never felt like I had control of the round. On days like that, it seems like nothing ever goes your way. Even when I felt like I hit a good shot, it didn't end up that way. I finished with a double-bogey on #18, after hitting a good second into the green, which pretty much summed up how the day went.
During round two, I had one goal in mind. I wanted to execute every shot with as little thought as possible. Meaning, after I had calculated my yardage and planned my shot, I was going to just walk up to the ball and hit it. And that was exactly what I did on every shot from tee to green...even my putts. On the front nine, I actually played pretty well. I had one 3-putt that lead to a bogey and one poor iron shot that lead to a triple-bogey. I know that's still unacceptable, but overall I felt better than I did during round one.
The second nine holes were much of the same. I executed a lot of shots like I wanted, gave myself multiple good looks at birdie, but nothing seemed to be falling. I did make a couple good putts to save par, but I missed three putts inside of 3ft. So, I don't really know what to think about my new strategy on the greens. I can't afford to miss any putts that close, let alone three in one round. Again, on my final hole of the day, it was another bad break that lead to a double-bogey. Just wasn't meant to be.
Erika and I came back to Baton Rouge last night to save some money on hotels and give me a place to practice over the weekend. I've got another Adam's Tour event next week in Beaumont, TX so we'll probably head over that way on Monday to get ready. Hopefully, I'll have a little better luck on this next one.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Adam's Tour - Bay Oaks Championship - Preview
Well, we made it back from Vegas safe and sound, and now Erika and I are in Clear Lake, Texas. This week, I'm playing in an Adam's Tour event here just outside of Houston at Bay Oaks Country Club. We arrived in town yesterday afternoon which gave me enough time to play 9 holes and get a feel for the course. Today, I was able to play the back nine and then get in some work on the driving range and putting green.
After 18 holes, I have to say that this is a very fair golf course. It's not long by any means, but has just enough character to make you pay attention on every shot. The golf course doesn't have anything really "special", but instead, it's got 18 solid golf holes. Every hole is playable, and with a well-placed tee shot, there are birdies to be made. I liked how every par-5 was reachable in two, and the par-3's were at good yardages to attack if necessary. There are some out-of-bounds and water throughout the course, but it's not nearly as tight as some others I've played in the past. I'd say this courses' toughest defense is the rough. They've grown it up around the greens which will make for some tough up-and-downs. The good news is the greens are in good shape so I'm hoping the putts will start fall.
Tomorrow's tee time is 9:10 off #1. This would be the perfect round to start this summer off right.
After 18 holes, I have to say that this is a very fair golf course. It's not long by any means, but has just enough character to make you pay attention on every shot. The golf course doesn't have anything really "special", but instead, it's got 18 solid golf holes. Every hole is playable, and with a well-placed tee shot, there are birdies to be made. I liked how every par-5 was reachable in two, and the par-3's were at good yardages to attack if necessary. There are some out-of-bounds and water throughout the course, but it's not nearly as tight as some others I've played in the past. I'd say this courses' toughest defense is the rough. They've grown it up around the greens which will make for some tough up-and-downs. The good news is the greens are in good shape so I'm hoping the putts will start fall.
Tomorrow's tee time is 9:10 off #1. This would be the perfect round to start this summer off right.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
U.S. Open Qualifier
Score: 78
Not the round I was hoping that's for sure. I started out missing a 3 footer for par on #1, missing a 10 footer for birdie on #2, and 3-putting for par on #3 after hitting the par-5 in two. So, instead of being -1 or -2 under after three holes, I was +1 over. It was a familiar scenario to the way I've started a lot of rounds in the past. From a ball striking stand point, I hit the ball pretty well all day. There was definitely a noticeable difference with my irons after making the changes on Sunday. I was also very pleased with the way I hit my driver throughout the whole day.
The main story of the day was the 36 putts I had. It was easily the worst putting round I've had since getting my new putter a couple months ago. The greens were in excellent condition and lightning fast, but usually those are the kind that I like. At the end of the round, I had been shut out from making any birdies...never a good sign.
There were two instances in the last few holes where I was left with plugged lies in the bunker, and because of that, I made two doubles to finish the round. So, even though the score was bad it was merely an issue of putting and a couple bad breaks that caused all the trouble. After seeing that -1 under made it through, I really wish I could of made one of those first few putts starting out because I feel like it would of set a totally different tone for the rest of the day. But, they didn't and so it's back to work again.
This week I'll be practicing and playing as usual before leaving town this Sunday. My in-laws have set up a family trip to Las Vegas so I'll be there for most of next week. It's my first time to Vegas so I'm really looking forward to the trip. Rounds at Shadow Creek and Cascata are on the agenda so, for me, that's what I'm excited about the most. This trip couldn't come at a better time, because when we get back, I've got 4 tournaments in the next 5 weeks. June will be a busy month to say the least.
Not the round I was hoping that's for sure. I started out missing a 3 footer for par on #1, missing a 10 footer for birdie on #2, and 3-putting for par on #3 after hitting the par-5 in two. So, instead of being -1 or -2 under after three holes, I was +1 over. It was a familiar scenario to the way I've started a lot of rounds in the past. From a ball striking stand point, I hit the ball pretty well all day. There was definitely a noticeable difference with my irons after making the changes on Sunday. I was also very pleased with the way I hit my driver throughout the whole day.
The main story of the day was the 36 putts I had. It was easily the worst putting round I've had since getting my new putter a couple months ago. The greens were in excellent condition and lightning fast, but usually those are the kind that I like. At the end of the round, I had been shut out from making any birdies...never a good sign.
There were two instances in the last few holes where I was left with plugged lies in the bunker, and because of that, I made two doubles to finish the round. So, even though the score was bad it was merely an issue of putting and a couple bad breaks that caused all the trouble. After seeing that -1 under made it through, I really wish I could of made one of those first few putts starting out because I feel like it would of set a totally different tone for the rest of the day. But, they didn't and so it's back to work again.
This week I'll be practicing and playing as usual before leaving town this Sunday. My in-laws have set up a family trip to Las Vegas so I'll be there for most of next week. It's my first time to Vegas so I'm really looking forward to the trip. Rounds at Shadow Creek and Cascata are on the agenda so, for me, that's what I'm excited about the most. This trip couldn't come at a better time, because when we get back, I've got 4 tournaments in the next 5 weeks. June will be a busy month to say the least.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
U.S. Open Qualifier - Preview
Tomorrow I'll be playing in the U.S. Open Qualifier at Money Hill Golf & Country Club. On Friday, I went over and played my practice round which went pretty well. This was the first time I've played out there since I winning the Louisiana State Amateur there in 2005. It brought back great memories, and I began to remember how much I liked that golf course. Each hole is different and the little elevation there is designed into the course makes it even more interesting. I'm really looking forward to playing tomorrow.
Today, I made a another big change in my game by adjusting the lie angle of all my irons by 3* degree's. Yesterday, while working with Brian on the range, we finally discovered what had been causing me so much trouble over the last year almost. My clubs are too flat and that has contributed significantly to the fact that I struggle with missing shots to the right. So, today I drove over to Slidell, LA to see James Leitz. He's the top club-fitter in Louisiana so he confirmed what Brian and I saw on film yesterday. Even though he moved all my irons 3* degree's more upright, it's still not what they need to be. To move them that much would risk breaking the clubs. But, I worked with them this afternoon and definitely noticed a difference. I think it will only help until I'm able to order a new set and customize them exactly how they need to be.
My tee time tomorrow is 8:00am off #1. I got the very first tee time so Erika and I have any early morning ahead of us. It takes about 1 hr and 20 minutes to get there so we'll be on the road at about 5:30. I'm feeling a good round coming....
Today, I made a another big change in my game by adjusting the lie angle of all my irons by 3* degree's. Yesterday, while working with Brian on the range, we finally discovered what had been causing me so much trouble over the last year almost. My clubs are too flat and that has contributed significantly to the fact that I struggle with missing shots to the right. So, today I drove over to Slidell, LA to see James Leitz. He's the top club-fitter in Louisiana so he confirmed what Brian and I saw on film yesterday. Even though he moved all my irons 3* degree's more upright, it's still not what they need to be. To move them that much would risk breaking the clubs. But, I worked with them this afternoon and definitely noticed a difference. I think it will only help until I'm able to order a new set and customize them exactly how they need to be.
My tee time tomorrow is 8:00am off #1. I got the very first tee time so Erika and I have any early morning ahead of us. It takes about 1 hr and 20 minutes to get there so we'll be on the road at about 5:30. I'm feeling a good round coming....
Friday, May 6, 2011
May Update
Wow. I didn't realize how long it has been since my last post. Time has just really passed me by. Here's a recap on what's been going on since I got back from Georgia.
After playing in the Hooter's Tour event in Georgia, I came back to New Orleans and began preparing for the PGA Tour Zurich Qualifier. For me, it was a two-step process having to go through the pre-qualifer on the Friday before the actual tournament and then the qualifier the following Monday. In the pre-qualifier, I shot 71 which was good enough to get me through to Monday. It was a pretty solid round under windy conditions. Hopefully, one of these days when I make 6 birdies in a round I'll be able to shoot better than -1 under, but I was pleased to shoot under par and get through the first round. On Monday, it was a fight against the golfing god's from the very beginning.
[Before going any further, I want to rewind to the week leading up to the pre-qualifier. During this time, I decided to make a pretty significant change. After almost two years of playing the Bridgestone golf ball, I went back to the Titleist Pro-V1. It's the kind of ball I played before switching to Bridgestone so I didn't think it would be that big of a change. Well, making the switch has brought back some critical distance off the tee that I was losing with the other golf ball. I've hit more drives over 340 yards in the last two weeks than I've ever hit in my entire life. It's changed my game for the better and I look forward to continuing to work with it and getting used to new found distance]
So, back to Monday's round. On the very first hole, I hit driver (which is the same club I've hit off that tee the other 30 times I've played this golf course) except this time it went 30 yards further than normal. It ended up going through the fairway stopping a foot short of going into the water. The next shot I hit was with one shoeless foot in the lake and proceeded to make a triple bogey (7). Now, in a one-day qualifier with 70 guys competing for 4 spots, there just isn't any room to be making triple bogies....let alone on the first hole of the day.
Needless to say, I didn't qualify for the Zurich which was more than disappointing. That's probably the one tournament every year that I prepare the most for so Monday's round was very upsetting. Hopefully, I'll have another chance again next year.
I was able to spend a few days at the actual Zurich Classic here in New Orleans and it was good to watch some of the guys on tour play. I feel like I learned a lot and found some things that I need to work on. At the same time, however, it's refreshing to see them go through some of the same struggles that I go through. It let's me know that there's still hope.
This week, I played in an Adam's Tour event in Baton Rouge, LA at Santa Maria Golf Course. I wish I was writing about how my third round went right now, but unfortunately I didn't make the cut this week. I shot 75-78 which was not nearly good enough. I went overboard with some of the things that I had been working on in my swing and it was just plain bad. Luckily, I was able to figure out the problem the day before the tournament started but it was too late. I hit some good shots during both rounds, but if I had a shot that I wasn't comfortable hitting, I wasn't able to to trust what I knew I needed to do. One of the many vicious cycles to this crazy game. How to work on things to improve your game without overdoing it?
Now, I'm back home in New Orleans going through my usual practice routines. I've got the first stage of U.S. Open qualifying coming up next Monday at Money Hill Country Club. Hopefully this will be the start of getting things back on track. Hope everyone is doing well and I'll have more on the qualifier as the time gets near.
After playing in the Hooter's Tour event in Georgia, I came back to New Orleans and began preparing for the PGA Tour Zurich Qualifier. For me, it was a two-step process having to go through the pre-qualifer on the Friday before the actual tournament and then the qualifier the following Monday. In the pre-qualifier, I shot 71 which was good enough to get me through to Monday. It was a pretty solid round under windy conditions. Hopefully, one of these days when I make 6 birdies in a round I'll be able to shoot better than -1 under, but I was pleased to shoot under par and get through the first round. On Monday, it was a fight against the golfing god's from the very beginning.
[Before going any further, I want to rewind to the week leading up to the pre-qualifier. During this time, I decided to make a pretty significant change. After almost two years of playing the Bridgestone golf ball, I went back to the Titleist Pro-V1. It's the kind of ball I played before switching to Bridgestone so I didn't think it would be that big of a change. Well, making the switch has brought back some critical distance off the tee that I was losing with the other golf ball. I've hit more drives over 340 yards in the last two weeks than I've ever hit in my entire life. It's changed my game for the better and I look forward to continuing to work with it and getting used to new found distance]
So, back to Monday's round. On the very first hole, I hit driver (which is the same club I've hit off that tee the other 30 times I've played this golf course) except this time it went 30 yards further than normal. It ended up going through the fairway stopping a foot short of going into the water. The next shot I hit was with one shoeless foot in the lake and proceeded to make a triple bogey (7). Now, in a one-day qualifier with 70 guys competing for 4 spots, there just isn't any room to be making triple bogies....let alone on the first hole of the day.
Needless to say, I didn't qualify for the Zurich which was more than disappointing. That's probably the one tournament every year that I prepare the most for so Monday's round was very upsetting. Hopefully, I'll have another chance again next year.
I was able to spend a few days at the actual Zurich Classic here in New Orleans and it was good to watch some of the guys on tour play. I feel like I learned a lot and found some things that I need to work on. At the same time, however, it's refreshing to see them go through some of the same struggles that I go through. It let's me know that there's still hope.
This week, I played in an Adam's Tour event in Baton Rouge, LA at Santa Maria Golf Course. I wish I was writing about how my third round went right now, but unfortunately I didn't make the cut this week. I shot 75-78 which was not nearly good enough. I went overboard with some of the things that I had been working on in my swing and it was just plain bad. Luckily, I was able to figure out the problem the day before the tournament started but it was too late. I hit some good shots during both rounds, but if I had a shot that I wasn't comfortable hitting, I wasn't able to to trust what I knew I needed to do. One of the many vicious cycles to this crazy game. How to work on things to improve your game without overdoing it?
Now, I'm back home in New Orleans going through my usual practice routines. I've got the first stage of U.S. Open qualifying coming up next Monday at Money Hill Country Club. Hopefully this will be the start of getting things back on track. Hope everyone is doing well and I'll have more on the qualifier as the time gets near.
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