Practice

Yesterday started with a good workout to get back on my training schedule. I don't know why, but I've learned to enjoy working out a lot more than I used to. I guess it helps to see results as I have gained 20 pounds over the last 3 months. The entire afternoon was spent chipping and putting since the course was closed. That area of my game will see a significant amount of attention over the next two weeks. Way too many three-putts in my last two tournaments.

Yesterday, while at the gym, I was introduced to a guy who wants to start helping me in my training. He seems to know a lot about working out and nutrition so I decided to give him a chance. In exchange, I will be giving him a few golf lessons here and there. So this morning, we got together for the first time and had a great workout. I like having someone there to push me, as well as helping me do the exercises correctly. We plan on getting together again on Thursday. This afternoon I will be out on the driving range working on my swing. I've got some things I want to work on and I'm looking forward to improving every aspect of my game.

Home

Man it feels good to be home again. We left Houston this morning around 10, stopped in Lafayette to have lunch with one of Erika's friends, and finally pulled in around 5 this evening. Most of our time so far has been spent unpacking and catching up on house duties. Tomorrow will be much of the same. I plan on getting back on track with my work-out schedule and hopefully squeeze in a little practice even though everything is closed on Monday's. I've got the next two weeks to practice and prepare for my next tournament. I will be sure to keep yall updated on my progress.

Thanks to everybody for all yall's support. I'm so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends who are pulling for me and always willing to help. I couldn't do this without yall.

Tigers move to #4. Scary!

Q-School Pre-Qualifying (Round 4)

Sorry for not getting to my blog after yesterday's round. As soon as we finished playing, Erika and I decided to just go ahead and drive to Houston last night. It was a good call because we got to spend a night with my sister and brother-in-law and save money spending one less night in the hotel.

Yesterday's round went better than the previous two. I shot a 73 which included a -1 under (34) on the front, followed by a +4 over (39) on the back. Again I was able to put together a series of really good holes, but still managed to make costly mistakes coming in. There were also 2 three-putts on the card for the back nine, which absolutely drives me crazy. The guys I played with were the nicest I've been paired with all week, and I think that had a lot to do with why I was more relaxed yesterday than any other. I was finally able to settle down early in the round and just have fun. I'm hoping that this is a start to a lot of tournament rounds played this way in the future.

The north Texas journey has come to an end, and I must say, it was a fantastic experience. I got to see new parts of the country, finally spend time with the person I love the most, and do what I love doing best. No matter the outcome, it was an adventure I'll never forget. I can't wait to get back home and begin practicing my butt off. There is a drive inside me that I've never had before and I know that there are only good things to come.

The Tigers play Miss State at 11:20 so I've got to get to a t.v. for that. GEAUX TIGERS! Tonight I get to see my best friend who also lives in Houston, and then tomorrow we're heading home.

Q-School Pre-Qualifying (Round 3)

Well I got into a pretty big fight today............with the golf course..........and I lost badly. It was a good 'ole fashion butt whoopin' on behalf of the Golf Club of Dallas, and I didn't appreciate it very much at all. Right out of the gate, I was taking jabs and uppercuts (in the form of penalty strokes, buried lies, and three putts) right on the chin. I was quickly praying for the bell to ring so I could go to my corner and re-group. Unfortunately the bell never rang, and everything got out of control very quickly. I turned at +7 over (42). The good news is I managed to string 8 pars in a row starting out on the back nine before making bogey on my last hole from the middle of the fairway. Sound familiar? With a 9-iron nonetheless. Grand Total: 78

The highlight of the day was that Erika made her debut as a caddie. The golf course provides push-carts for rent that you can use to push your clubs around and that's exactly what we did. I'll be the first to say that she did a great job and will be back on the bag tomorrow.

My assessment up to this point is that my swing just not "rehearsed" enough to last over time. I seem to find myself searching for swing thoughts during my rounds, because from one hole to the next, there's no telling what shot I'm going to hit. I've managed to put together a series of very good holes, and immediately follow them up with a bunch of bad holes. Putting is another area of concern for me right now as well. If there is anything I've learned from this experience so far it's that I've got a lot of work to do to get to where I want to be as a player. The encouraging part is that I can't wait to come home and get started. I know the level I want to get to and I know what I need to work on. I can definitely say that I'm looking forward to the challenge. It's going to take a miracle to get back into the hunt tomorrow, and that's exactly what I need. Don't know my tee time yet, but I'm sure I'll be starting on the back again.

Q-School Pre-Qualifying (Round 2)

Today's score: 75.
Weather condition: Perfect
So why did I shoot 5 strokes higher today when the weather was so good? Beats the heck out of me. Just goes to show that golf is a funny game. I even started off today with a birdie on my first hole. And again, I came out playing smart, hitting fairways and greens and making pars. However, around the 6th hole, I seemed to lose complete control over my distances. Everything was coming up short. 4 of the 7 bogies I made today were from right in the middle of the fairway. And 3 of those 4 were with wedges. That is just pathetic......plain and simple. Two other bogies were on par 3's were I had hit my shot right at the flag and one time I was short and the other was way long. It was just one of those days where no matter how hard I tried, nothing was working. The good news is, all of the mistakes I've been making are relatively easy to correct. Everyday I get more and more comfortable being back on the course and under tournament conditions. I'm still learning how to adjust to different courses, different environments and weather. But I guess that's just all apart of the process. The 75 dropped me into a tie for 37th so tomorrow I'll need to have a good round. Erika asked for something in the 60's so I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen. Tee time is 8:00 of #10.....AGAIN!

p.s. We ate a Joe's Crab Shack tonight. It was a first for me, and the most crab I've ever eaten at one time. But man was it good. 'Til next time......

Q-School Pre-Qualifying (Round 1)

First off, I want to say that I am glad to have this round over with. We started off by having a 2 hour weather delay before ever getting to tee off. So that was fun. (Side note: When Erika and I were sitting inside during the delay, I noticed that one of Jack Nicklaus' sons, Gary, was sitting next to us. We had a few laughs over it, and strange enough, I'm paired with him tomorrow.) Back to golf. The round started off well. I played a lot of smart shots as I was just trying to make pars. The weather was still very overcast and windy, so pars were good. At about the 5th hole, the rain started again. For the rest of that side, it was rainy and windy the whole time. On my 9th hole, (#18 since I teed off the back) the weather was at its worst. And it just so happens that #18 is the longest par 4 on the course and its uphill. After hitting driver in the fairway, and a 2-iron into the green it took another 4 strokes to get my ball in the hole which lead to a 6; double bogey! Before I teed off on the next hole, the rain had stopped and the wind was down. That's kind of a summary of how the weather was the whole day. I managed to shoot -2 under on the back nine and ended up at even par (70) for the day. I'm very pleased with my score for today. It's been a long time since I've played a tournament round of golf under the conditions like we had today, and it took a lot of patience and deep breaths. Luckily I had Erika there with me to carry the umbrella and extra rain gear when I wasn't using it. She was such a big help to me today and easily saved me a couple of strokes. Tee time tomorrow is 8:19 off #10 again. Right now I'm tied for 7th so let's hope I move up even more tomorrow.

Dallas - Practice Round (Day 2)

Today was another practice day. This time I was able to play the back nine, and man what a difference from the front nine. The back was full of hills, hidden creeks, and blind shots. I was glad that I had bought a yardage book because the back nine was a little more tricked up. However, with that being said, the course is still overall short in terms of length and fair with the way it's all laid out. I had one bogey and one birdie and the rest pars.

After playing, I hit a few more balls to tighten up some of the things I'm working on in my swing and putted for about an hour. The greens are still very tough to read and to get a feel for the speed. I plan on taking a little more time than usual when I'm putting tomorrow to help improve that part of my game. My tee time is 8:57 off #10. Wish me luck!