The Home Stretch

Hello everyone!

Wow, it's been a long time since I last wrote a blog! We have been in a little bit of a break with the tour recently, but we have hit the home stretch. There is only one more event left on the schedule, which will take place this coming week. The event is at a course called Panther Trails, at the Woodlands Canongate Resort, and I am very familiar with it. It will be great to play an event on a course that I have played many times before.

Today I finished my seventh event of the winter, and again I have seen some positives in my play. While I shot 77-73, I am focusing on what was very positive over the course of the two days. This event was only a two day tournament, so instead of a cut after two days, only the top 30% of the field were paid. I finished four shots out of the money, but this was my first event where I was in contention to make some money. After struggling with getting a good score out of a mediocre day, I went into today with confidence that I could turn it around, shoot a good number, and finish in the prize money. I began the day extremely solidly, and was two under par through eight holes, and three over par for the tournament. It was expected that two over par would be in the prize money, so I knew I was close, providing I could keep my good play up.

It is a different feeling to play golf when you begin to allow a target score creep into your mind. I really felt good with my game, and my decision making was solid, but I let my mind wander to thoughts of holes ahead, or making birdies, and I let a good chance to shoot a good score slip away. I made three bogies over the last ten holes, and finished with a one over par 73, and six over par for the tournament. I take a lot of positives out of this though, as you need to put yourself into these types of situations, and into positions to make cuts and compete, to gain the experience to continue progressing. I was very happy with a number of things I saw in my game today, and I am hoping that these experiences and the feelings I felt today, will allow my to perform at the level I know I can, over the coming months.

After next week, I will be doing a little bit of travelling, and ultimately will make my way to San Diego, California, for Canadian Tour Qualifying School. The Canadian Tour has really grown into a wonderful tour, and I am really looking forward to the opportunity to playing out there this summer!

Take care everyone!
Stew