Spring Creek Classic

Hello followers!

Last week I played The Spring Creek Classic, just outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. Lovely part of the state. Beautiful golf course with past bent-grass greens (my cup of tea). The weather was fine for the first 2 days and then just like England for the final day (steady rain all day)!

I shot 71, 70, 75. I played pretty well for the week, still slightly struggling to find my A-game off the tee but overall encouraged by my showing, especially short game and wedges.

Some highlights of the week;

• 1st round, 2nd hole of the tournament, 563 yard par 5 - holed out a sand wedge from 95 yards for eagle!
• 1st round, 5th hole of the tournament, holed out from greenside bunker!
• 2nd round, 18th hole (9th of the day) 561 yard par 5 - holed out a sand wedge from 83 yards for another eagle!

I couldn't miss with my wedges! 3 hole-outs very enjoyable indeed..

The week didn't end the way I wanted to, 2 errant tee shots cost me double-bogeys, so +4 on the back 9 dropped me all the way back to level par for the championship and a tie for 30th position. Disappointing end but an encouraging week and another cheque made. I will have to improve my long game slightly if I want to have a chance at competing to win one of these events. The short game is right there.

Stats for the week:

Fairways: 62%
Greens in regulation: 65%
Up and down: 65%
Putts per round: 29.3

Next event will be the Wyndham Championship Pre-Qualifier this Thursday. If I make it through that I will play again on Monday for a chance to get in to the tournament. Exciting week.

Thanks for following, below is a pic from the golf course in Virginia. Spring Creek

Cabarrus Classic

Hi all, I completed my final round at the Cabarrus Classic yesterday so I thought it would be time for an update.

I finished t29th after rounds of 72, 69, 70. (-5) for the week including 12 birdies.

The 69 was a good round, -5 through 12 I really had it going. I let it slip a little over the closing holes but used good course management to limit the damage to ensure making the cut.

To summarise, I had a decent week but nothing special. I wasn't quite sharp enough on the greens, averaging 30.6 putts for the rounds which is a couple higher than in recent weeks. I had some difficulty adjusting to the Bermuda greens, which I found tricky to read consistently.

Nonetheless my confidence is growing, I am definitely more comfortable on the golf course. I hit the ball better, hitting 80% of the greens in regulation - a big improvement from last week, especially with a sore neck in round 3 (dodgy pillows!). I know I keep mentioning a breakthrough, but with the way I'm feeling, I have to believe it will be sooner rather than later.

So again, an encouraging week overall. I am moving in the right direction for qualification into the Million Dollar Championship Series (A 4 event series totalling $1M in prize money). How many events I will be able to play is yet to be determined, but probably the first and the last of the 4. First place in the final event is $50,000. That would be nice, but ultimately the goal is to stay in the process of what is controllable by me and let other things work themselves out.

My next event will be the Spring Creek Classic, Virginia. 30 July- 1 August.

Thanks for following.

Irish Creek

Just finished my second round at Irish Creek in Kannapolis, NC. Thought I would update the blog while it's still fresh in the mind.

Overall a slight feeling of flatness but at the same time optimism coming off a 73 (+2) & 71 (E) this week for the Southern Open. I played well in parts but 3 double-bogeys over the course of the 2 rounds halted my progress.

Again, conditions were pretty favourable, apart from some rain in the second round. Soft greens and little wind made for relatively good scoring.

Teeing off the 10th, I started round 1 with a couple of nice swings and 3 pars on the first 3 holes. I made a mistake on the par 5 13th hitting my 3 wood 2nd shot into the trees left, punched out from there but couldn't save par. I bounced back well with a birdie at the next (30 yard bunker shot to 5ft). But then, my first double of the day came at the par 3 - 15th. After finding the bunker from the tee, I caught too much ball (yes a bit thin!) and found myself in a tricky position putting severely downhill. I left the first short, and missed the next one to walk off with an ugly 5.

I started to fight back on the back 9. I birdied the first after a nice wedge shot, and same again on 4. But then the round came unravelled for the second time at the nearly-driveable par 4 - 5th. I didn't hit the best of tee shots, a little left (blind from the tee) but I thought, along with the members of my group it would be fine. We got down there and unfortunately never found it. I had to go back to the tee and play another and ended up with another damn double! Anyway, I finished with 4 pars and posted a 73. Just a couple of errant shots and costly mistakes at the wrong time. I sat a long way down the leaderboard so I knew I needed something low in round 2 to make the cut.

I was first off at 7:30am this morning which was nice, no wind and fresh greens. I started pretty solid. I birdied the 2nd and the 5th (got revenge!), but bogeyed the par 3 4th. I added a birdie at 7 after a good approach shot and putt to move to -2. Unfortunately this round was to lose momentum on the 9th tee. My tee shot was slightly pulled down the left, actually heading for the left edge of the fairway but caught a tree that overhangs and kicked left down into the water hazard! To be quite honest, not sure how that happened but I had to accept it and move on. Which I did pretty well, but couldn't prevent the double that ensued. After that, I birdied the 10th which I think is a sign of good character and then a string of pars followed for the rest of the back 9, including one bogey at the dreaded 15th!

So all in all this week was a bit of a disappointment but I'm still not far away. +2 for the week with 3 doubles isn't disastrous. I have some more work to do on the long game and if I can keep my putting up to the level it has been, I will get ever closer to that breakthrough that we are all anticipating.

Cheers for reading

Lee

The breakthrough is coming..

Hi all...

Since my last post, I have played in the pre-Qualifier for the Greenbrier Classic (PGA Tour event) and the Monday qualifier (2nd stage if you will) in West Virginia. Course: Resort at Glade Springs - Robert Cobb design, par 71. All bent grass, with a mix of po annua grass on the greens.

The first 18 I played well. I birdied my first hole, after a good wedge to 5 feet. I then birdied the par 5 5th hole, chipping it close on my third shot. A little run of alternating bogeys and birdies left me at -2 through 13 holes. Wedges were the key to my scoring in the pre qualifier, setting myself up with pretty short birdie opportunities all day. I saved a great par at 14 after I pulled my 3 wood in to the trees off the tee. A great wedge to 2 feet at the next hole set up a birdie to move to -3, and then a 15 foot putt at 16 dropped to put me at -4. I made 2 solid pars at the last 2 holes to finish off a 67 (-4). I finished t4th out of 105 competitors and was happy with my days work. So, onto Monday (the final qualifier).

I had a great feeling going into the Monday qualifier. There were only 75 players, and 4 spots available for a place in the Greenbrier Classic. Although a strong field, with a mix of a US Open champion, and several former PGA tour players I fancied my chances given my latest form.

I got off to a slow start, not hitting my best shots. I bogeyed the second after finding trouble right off the tee. But, soon found my rhythm and birdied 4, 5 and 6 to get my round on track. I then hit a great 9 iron to 4 feet at the 9th and was -3 at the turn. In Monday qualifier, you have to remain aggressive. I knew that there were going to be some low scores but I did a good job of staying in the present and not thinking too much about the end result - something everybody has a tendency to do.

I hit a really poor tee shot on 10, but got lucky....could have gone out of bounds but instead I was able to hit a hooked-round-the-trees recovery to the green and made a par. I made another par saver to remain at -3 at the 11th after my wedge went a little too far. Over the last 7 holes, my putter eluded me. I missed great opportunities at 12 & 14 and failed to save par at 15 which put me back to -2. The last 3 holes, I was trying to birdie all of them and post as low as possible but couldn't quite do it. I 3 putted the last for par after hitting the green in 2 on the uphill 550 yard par 5 which put a bit of a dampener on the round.

I finished in a tie for 11th place, 3 shots off the qualifying number at -5. Not the finish I wanted but nonetheless a really good effort and I am happy the way I went about my business. I have now shot 6 consecutive rounds in the 60's in tournament play so I am definitely on the right track.

My next event is next week, back on the egolf tour for the Southern Open. Top 60 on the money list at the end of the season will qualify for the 'Million Dollar Championship Series' I currently sit in 56th position and will look to improve upon that next week.

Thanks for following.

Lee

moving in the right direction..

Since my last post, I have played in 2 tournaments. Both had really low scoring. This is going to be a lengthy post, hope it won't be a boring read!

In between my last event and these current 2, I was invited to play in a charity pro am. 15 professionals were asked to play in the pro am benefitting the 'Green Beret' US Special Forces. There are several organisations which allow veterans of the Special Forces to get together for events like the pro am, share stories and meet people. It was a really great couple of days, I got to hear some interesting things! I shot -1 individually, my team came 10th out of 25 teams, so not too bad. All good fun.

This time of year the 'Bent Grass' greens are struggling because of the heat. Most head green keepers have to keep them kind of slow and soft. If they didn't treat them with air and water, they would lose the greens. Augusta National stays closed throughout the summer to maintain their Bent greens. Bermuda greens, which are more common here in the southern states (and more economical), thrive in the more humid conditions but lately we haven't played any tournaments on those.

Anyway, that agronomy lesson was a long way of saying - the greens are soft, the conditions are benign, combine that with a strong group of professionals and you can guarantee low scoring.

In the first tournament at Forest Oaks, I played ok but not good enough. I didn't take advantage of my birdie opportunities when I had them and a couple of loose swings cost me badly. I shot +1 for the first round and +2 for the second. I actually played better in the second round but scored worse, that's golf! I did some hard work on my swing and had a phone conversation with my psychology coach before I headed to the next event. I am using my mental capacity better and better, a definite improvement and although I haven't had my best tee-to-green....I have been able to put some good rounds together.

My second event since my last blog entry, was this week at Mimosa Hills - another early 20th Century Donald Ross design (same designer as Pinehurst no#2 for those who didn't know...as well as many others in the Carolinas).

Round 1, I got off to a bit of a shaky start with a couple of errant tee shots. However, I got fortunate and was able to hit some good recovery shots. I birdied a couple of the easy-ish holes, so -2 for 9 steady golf. Then I bogeyed 11&12 to fall back to level. I bounced back well after those 2 bogeys and birdies 13&14, which was important for my round. I bogeyed the par 3 17th after finding a bad lie in the bunker and ended up -1 only 4 off the lead at that point.

Round 2 was better...I started on the 10th and didn't do much wrong on my front 9...I was plodding along, getting up and down when I had to save par and rolled in a couple of birdie putts to again make the turn in -2 (by which time the clouds were getting dark) I birdied the first, after a nice wedge shot, shortly before the horn sounded for suspension of play due to lightning in the area. At that point, knowing the time, I found a TV in the clubhouse and watched the England vs Uruguay nightmare. After 3 hours of watching that and waiting, we got called back on to the course to finish up. I was a little anxious to get my round finished off strong but stuck to my routine and took one shot at a time. I was able to make a birdie on the par 3 6th and finished with a slightly disappointing bogey at the last, but again bad lie in the bunker so couldn't complain. I was -4 for the 2 round and made the cut.

Round 3 was the tale of two different 9's. Teeing off on the 10th I made 2 poor bogeys on 11&13 and a triple on that bloody par 3 17th! That happened without me hitting too bad of a shot. I messed around in the bunker after getting ANOTHER terrible lie, and ended up tapping in for 6! Anyway, I didn't let it rattle me too much and kept telling myself to take each shot at a time.

The front 9 (my back 9) is where the fun started. I hit a wedge to 4 feet at the 1st, led to a birdie. A wedge to 3 feet at the 2nd, birdie. A wedge to 2 feet at the 4th, birdie. A wedge to 7 feet at the 5th, birdie. An up and down on the par 5 7th, birdie. A 6 iron to 5 feet at the par 3 9th, birdie!! So after all that, +5 after 9....I ended up shooting 29 (-6) on the back 9 and -1 for the day - a rollercoaster ride!

Round 4, I was hoping to build on the second 9 from round 3 and unfortunately couldn't quite do it. I was only -1 on my front 9 and to be honest....could have been worse if it wasn't for the short game. I made 3 more birdies on my back 9 but coupled with 2 bogeys I shot 68 (-2). A decent finish.

So this week was a couple of firsts for me; First time I've ever broken 30 for 9 holes in a tournament. First time I've ever shot 4 rounds in the 60's. Although I was a fair way off the lead in the end, I was proud of myself for that and feel this is going to be the springboard for the rest of the year. I ended up t26th on the week and made another pay cheque.

I still have a lot of work to do, mainly in the long game. I am not content with my play tee to green, it has to be better, especially on more demanding courses. I am up to the task.

My next event is a pre qualifier for the Greenbrier Classic (PGA Tour event) in West Virginia, this Thursday.

My girlfriend who has been here for the last 3 weeks sadly leaves today to go back to New Zealand for the rest of the summer. It's been great having her here and an advantage being on the bag at the last 3 events. For those wondering, I will be fine!!!

Sorry it's been such a long post. I had a lot to write.

All best,

Lee

end of may

Hi all

I had a decent week this week in Greensboro. I was finally able to put a couple of solid rounds back-to-back in order to make the cut.

I shot 3 straight rounds of 70 (E) on a tricky Pete Dye (same designer as Sawgrass) designed course. I ended up t24th so definitely making progress.

Overall, I kept the ball in play...minimised my errors and relied on my short game when I missed the greens. I didn't have my ball striking A game but my wedge and putter kept my score going. I was pleased with the way I remained in the present moment without thinking too far ahead.

Some highlights of the week:

Birdies on the par 3 2nd in both round 1&2
Holing a flop shot for birdie on 15 in final round
Driving on the front edge of the par 4 3rd (300 yards)
6/7 up and downs in the first round and 70% total for the week is pretty handy

Although this week was a step in the right direction, and I must take positives from every week. My goals are still as lofty as ever. Scraping around the cut line doesn't qualify as meeting my targets. I will continue to improve and use this as a launching pad for the summer but I am by no means satisfied or complacent.

I have a week off this week and then I will be playing back in Greensboro, NC at Forest Oaks Country Club the following week for which my girlfriend will be on the bag!

I have added a couple of pictures from this past week, to brighten up the blog a little bit.

Will update soon..

Cheers

update

Hi all,

I thought I'd better update the blog. Its been a couple of weeks so here we go;

In summary, my game has not been great of late. My short game has been decent and I have shown signs of positive play but overall my ball striking has been way off the mark in the last 3 weeks.

1. I made an error with the course selection for my US Open local qualifier. I didn't play my best golf, but I just couldn't get the greens, after a while the bumpy but quick surfaces got the better of my putting stroke which filtered into my long game. I started well and was dealing with it alright.... -2 through 8 holes.... but faded and played some poor stuff on the back 9. I didn't qualify unfortunately.

2. Next was the Web.com Monday qualifier in Rocky Mount, NC - a Donald Ross designed golf course. I was starting on the 10th hole, hit my tee shot to the right, chipped out to the fairway and then pulled a 4 iron, onto the cart path next to the green and out of bounds... A re-load after that, ended up with a triple bogey on my first hole. With these qualifiers requiring such a low score to qualify, I was already snookered. I hit my second shot over the back of the next and all of a sudden +4 through 2 holes :/ I actually played pretty good golf after that, level par for the remaining 16 but constantly fighting my swing..6/9 up and down saves helped but I wasn't going to qualify putting for par all day after that start.

3. Third update to report: Willow Creek Open. Nice course, got some good notes from my pal Tommy Everest who has played the course several times in his time in High Point, NC. If my swing would have accompanied me, I could well have challenged for the title. Unfortunately, a serious case of the lefts replaced my normal swing. I have been working on thinking less about the swing and more externally but was struggling with that. I bogeyed my last 2 holes in round 1 to shoot +5. In the second round I was just trying to find something on the range before hand and go with it. Luckily I did find something, I birdied all the par 5's and ground out a 70 (-2) to remind myself that I can still play this game. I holed some putts which was nice including a 40-foot par saver on the 5th.

I am going to take a day off from golf  tomorrow and possibly on Saturday. I have played nearly 300 holes this month so far and feel a break would help. I am going to speak with my swing coach soon and see if we can iron out a few of these swing issues.

I have an E-golf tournament in Greensboro next week. I am planning a more positive blog post after that! I will get to spend some time with my girlfriend starting next week...maybe she'll give me the kick up the arse I need!!! It'll come soon.

Cheers for following.

Lee