Greater Richmond Classic: Round 1

I played with Dawn Shockley, first of all. If you don't recognize the name, she played junior golf in CO with me and we've known each other forever. The last time we played together was in high school at her home course. Crazy! Needless to say, it was fun to catch up with her and see how she has developed as a golfer since high school. We teed off in the morning so it was good to get out there early. It was a tough day though. Up and down and had a chance of rain all day so we thought we were just gonna get poured on. Well, on our 17th hole, IT POURED! We weren't pulled off the course so we had to play those last two tough finishing holes in a downpour. I had a 6' for par on #17 and I could hear the rain coming down the cart path. Rain in the south is cool like that, it comes at you in a sheet but you can see the defined line. Anyway, we both struggled with pouring in the birdies and shot the same thing, 74.

We'll be playing again tomorrow!!

Pennsylvania

The week has gone by fast. I have [obviously] forgotten to blog but I'm sure it wasn't missed that much. I shot a ho-hum 72-73 to make the cut then didn't putt well the last day en route to a 77. I had a fantastic host family this past week, filled with bonding, great dinners, and unexpected gifts [shamwow] but that's the usual out here. So many great people to meet and parts of the country to get to know. I took a trip to Gettysburg which was AWESOME.

I was pretty happy that I could work that into my week. I just wouldn't feel right if I didn't, being so close and all. I could have spent a week there but settled for about an hour and a half.

The course was good, kinda hilly on the side of a "mountain" which was cool. We played lift, clean and place because the fairways were pretty patchy.

This next week will be my last out here, I will miss the Albany tournament in three weeks. I am looking forward to a good, solid push before my break. What a grind.

Harrisburg, PA

We got here after a treacherous 4 hour drive this morning. It felt like 20. Went to the golf course and hit/putted/chipped. Then I was off to chocolate world at Hershey Park! WOOT WOOT! My friend Carol is a PA native and felt it was appropriate. We had dinner in Hershey, a cute little town and had a great time catching up.

Harrisburg, PA

Population: 47,148

Elevation: 330ft.

State capital, birthplace of Newt Gingrich.

Alliance Bank Golf Classic: Round 1

Today didn't go as planned. I am hitting the ball so great, and all aspects of my game are so good right now, but it's been a challenge to fit them together efficiently. My putting hasn't been something I can rely on and in professional golf it needs to be. I have a great stroke, a great putter and I am a great putter but my attitude and confidence in putting need to be better. My practice for putting this week hasn't been on the green, it has been in my bed visualizing the ball going in from all lengths on the green.

I had a chat with my coach, Eli Haskell tonight and I am excited to get out there tomorrow. I better be, I'm the first tee time off, 7:50a. Should be able to whip around.

ING New England Golf Classic: Round 2

I have had my fair share of experiences out on tour this summer. One week your putting is great and the next it's not. Meanwhile, your ball striking is crap then you start hitting it great. Well, that kind of stuff happens, but it's how your mistakes impact your mental game that will determine if the next week, both come together.

Today, I hit the ball well but late in the round on the back nine I had three three-putts for no apparent reason but missing the 3'. My playing partner took an extremely long time to putt her 6' before each of my 3' and I'm not sure if that weighed in on my error but all of a sudden I didn't feel comfortable over that putt.

This is why golf can be so tough. You have everything going well, then one little thing can tweak your mental state and everything else is effected. Being out here on tour, I'm trying to learn some kickers that will offset those errors that turn into ruined rounds. I feel that I'm well on my way because I am making the mistakes. When you make mistakes, you grow. There isn't any other explanation than that. That is exactly what this tour is designed to do, and it is delivering. When you make those mistakes, you think about it for a day or two then work to fix it.

You can't take a missed cut personally. You have to focus on what happened during the round to create some uncomfortable feelings or errors in judgment and combat those feelings or address them for the next week. There is always another week to play well.

It's a lot like life. If you make a mistake, try and fix it for next time. If it doesn't work, then try something else. The way to drive yourself insane and out here, become so far in a rut that your confidence couldn't pull you out if you begged for it to, is to keep doing the same thing and expect a different result.

City of Hammond Classic: Round 2

Teed off in the afternoon. Loved being able to sleep in and watch some World Cup! Played with one of my friends Laura. Started a little shaky. Had a bad three-putt right out of the gates and missed some birdies, but it was a little breezy and I was playing steady. There were tons of birdies out there so I stayed patient. My game-plan for the week was to attack the pins, not be so aggressive off the tee. So I hit 5wood around that course and played pretty well. I got to my seventh hole, #16, and had a great second shot (par-5) and was left with about seven yards to the green. I hit a great chip, even knew I was gonna make it just because it set up so well, and chipped in for eagle. Kept it steady until the back, missing some birdies but staying patient, and made another birdie on my thirteenth hole, #4. Overall it was a decent day, it could have been a lot better though. Some of my putts were burning edges but to have them close to the hole was at least positive.

I didn't even practice after my round, of course it was like 8pm, but I hustled home to watch the US game. What a waste though. I was so excited, I thought we were at least gonna give it a fight, and we did, but wow how many chances came and went. It was the longest two hours of my life. So bummed, but I gotta do some work tomorrow!! Can't wait to get after it. Tee it at 9:35pm off #10.

City of Hammond Classic: Round 1

I teed off this morning at 8:30a with my good friend Emma and new friend Hannah. We had an awesome group chatting all day and joking. I got off to a rough start, missing two birdies on the first two holes then having to chip from the right side of the fairway to the left for a shot to the green. Ha, yeah weird right? It was windy today and slightly deceiving. Some poor club selections led to some bogeys and nothing fell on the front.

Made the turn and played smart golf. Left driver in the bag almost the entire back nine, hit it on two holes. I played the wind in my favor and made some putts. The back nine here at Lost Marsh, is played around a huge lake. The front doesn't surround it quite like the back does so it's all about placement. Missed some birdies on the back, but had some awesome up and downs. Very pleased with that.

Got done and hit some putts. At that point it was 2:30p so I decided to leave. Headed to the gym after watching the Brasil v. Portugal game and hung out by my lonesome all night. Our hosts Rich and Lucy were cart drivers for the tournament and they rode 36 holes so I'm sure they were beat when they got home at 9pm!

I peg it tomorrow at 2:20 with my friend Laura. Always fun playing with her! Hope those nasty Illinois storms stay away!!

Busy Week!

Lots of traveling this week! We left Decatur, IL on Monday and drove up to Hammond, IN to drop off a car. Then my friend Jasi and I drove onto Angola, IN for a pro-am. We got there around 4pm and played five holes. It was an awesome golf course, so solid. Greens were amazing and fairways were flawless. We got all dolled up and went to the pairing party at the course. It was a blast! Needless to say there were some adult beverages consumed and dancing. Ha. It was so much fun. I met my group for the next day and felt like we were gonna have a great day. The next morning we started at 10a. We got off to a slow start but I had a great group so they were a lot of fun to play with! We finally got some birdies and got something going. Not enough tho! We missed some fair putts that could have easily gone our way. Came in at -5 but -16 won! We had a fantastic time in Angola, but headed back to Hammond after the round.

We went straight to our pro-am party for the FUTURES event then home to head to bed! The Angola pro-am was fun, but we were TIRED. Our practice round on Wednesday was at 7am. We played 4 holes, were called in then went home. There were some really thunder and lightning. Driving home, the highway was flooded and could barely see out the windshield, so we were happy to get home okay.

Practice round went well today. Our host family took us out for some Chicago-style deep dish pizza and it was awesome. Big fan. Of course I have had it before, but it's just better up here :).

Other than that, just been getting ready for the week and recording/watching a lot of World Cup futbol. It has been awesome. One of the best, if not the best, sporting events in the world. The passion and drive from the athletes is awesome. The US game was incredible. Just watching the Italy v. Slovakia game and it's pretty intense as well! Can't wait for the US game on Saturday to see if they can keep this run going. What they are doing is HUGE for US soccer so I'm very excited about it!

Anyway, I peg it tomorrow at 8:30a with my friends Hannah Yun from Florida, and Emma Calderone from Canada. Pumped to have a great group and excited to start and make some birdies!

Tate & Lyle Players Championship: Round 2

Today I teed off at 9:40am off #10 with the same group. My front nine was decent. Two birdies coupled with two bogeys. One a three-putt-bogey where I missed a short one. My birdies were solid. I made the exact same putt I had on #11 yesterday. Yesterday the hole was where my ball was today and yesterday my ball was the hole today! I knew the read just had to hit it with the right speed. Awesome. Dominated the hole I tripled yesterday. Love getting that revenge on a hole. Ha. Overall, a solid front. On the turn, my caddy disappeared and I had to run and find her! I got back to the tee- which had a little gallery and hit is sooo far right into the trees. I wasn't worried though, I am a certified escape artist! :) We got up to the ball, and it was a good lie just had to take it under this first tree and over the second. Had a pitching wedge in my hand and about 125 yards to the pin. Easy right? Haha. Well, the ball hit at the front of the green and rolled up to 2-feet. I think that made my caddy feel better!

Played my back nine very well until #4, 5, 6. Went bogey-bogey-bogey. Missed a short birdie, 6' that broke a foot left on the edge, one more rotation and it was in.

Overall, things were good again. Followed an okay round yesterday with a little better round today. If my mistakes are minimized, those birdies shine through and it turns into a pretty good day. I am frustrated to miss the cut, which was at +1, but I am improving every week. Can't ask for more than that?!

On another note, there was a heat index of 103* today! It was so hot. Pretty sure I lost some weight sweating! Glad my caddy made it too, she was a champion! It was fantastic to have her on the bag [also my host mom for the week].

These next two days I will be putting in a lot of time chipping and putting. My chipping needs work and they have some great greens here to get in some good time. I will also be spending ample amounts of time in the gym. I see it as punishment for missing the cut, however it just gets me in better shape! :) Hoping to prepare better than anyone for the next week.

Rocky Mountain High

[Sunset a block from my house]

Things at home have been good! I got back to Colorado after a long 9 hours back from Kansas City. Since then, I have been enjoying the benefits of home: own bed, home cooked meals, my favorite people, etc.! I have been practicing a ton. Yesterday I played 27 holes. I have been giving some lessons, which is so much fun. I love it.

On Sunday, I leave for Colorado Springs for the US Open Sectional at the Broadmoor East Course - Site of the 2011 US Women's Open. I have a practice round on Sunday then the tournament starts Monday. I'm really excited for this because it is a marathon 36-hole qualifier. Only the tough survive! I tee off at 7:10a and 1:10p. If you are in the area feel free to come out and watch!!

After that, I will be heading back home that night and resting up for the HealthONE Colorado Women's Open which starts on Wednesday, June 2. I am teeing off at 8:40a on Wednesday and 1:40p on Thursday. Come out and support!! It's one of two tournaments I will be in Colorado for so it's always nice to have local support!

Soggy Weekend & What Is Ahead

This weekend wasn't the most favorable. We played on Friday without any weather. I can't say that it went very well. I had a great start after 8 holes but had some trouble on holes 9-11. After that I battled back but got some bad breaks. After the round I was pretty frustrated so I identified the mistakes and worked on them a bit. That's all you can do.

On Saturday, we woke up to a mist. Warmed up in the mist and started in the mist. For two holes we had no rain but it started back up on our third. I pride myself in playing well in tough conditions because everyone just complains about the weather. It's kind of amazing to me in tournaments when people do complain. It's something we can't control and you just have to fight harder to get those birdies. We played eight holes in a steady borderline downpour until they called us off the golf course. Some girls withdrew during the rain delay. I was standing on #9 tee box and really wondering if I was going to have to tee off in casual water. There was no place to take relief on the highest thing around! The fairways were underwater as well as the bunkers.

Saturday's round was eventually cancelled and we were sent home to dry off. I didn't realize just how wet I was until I got home. My socks, shoes, rainsuit, three towels were just soaked. In that weather, you are trying to keep everything dry but sometimes you just can't. Thank goodness for FootJoy rain gloves. They work only when they are soaking wet so if a player didn't have those, I don't know how they hung on to the club!

We were scheduled to resume play on Sunday at 7:30am. I got out there and warmed up and it was supposed to rain again that day so I was prepared. No rain during the warm up but it started misting as we were getting ready to go out. Another delay. This time they came back at 7:45 and said they were going to cut after 18 holes, meaning top-70 and ties advance to the second and final round. Not me. That is always frustrating when you are playing well and so many people are going down the leader board but that's the way it goes! Every round needs to be everything you have just in case something like this happens.

I left for Colorado shortly after the news of the cut. Enjoyed a nice 9 hour drive home. In the middle of Kansas on I-70, I saw three of my good friends from home; IN THE CAR. It was so crazy and so we stopped to get gas and chat.

The traveling aspect of the tour is so much fun. I have never had such a long adventure by myself but loved every second.

For the next two weeks I will be doing some tuning up and re-focusing. It will be nice to have mom cook some meals and hang out with the family in addition to really working hard on my game. This isn't a hard game, just have to go out there and play. Working off some of the rust has helped and I am excited for my "Colorado-swing". I will be playing in the US Open Sectional Qualifier at the Broadmoor to get to Oakmont CC in Pennsylvania. That is May 31st teeing it at 7:10am and 1:10 [36 hole qualifier]. After that I will have a "day-off" probably practicing at Green Valley Ranch to get ready for the HealthONE Colorado Open, June 2-4 one of my favorite events of the year!

A Day Off

Another storm rolled in last night around the time I was going to bed. I had probably been asleep for thirty minutes and in came the winds, thunder and lightning! Not gonna lie, it was so scary. It was dead quite when I went to sleep then all of a sudden it felt like we were in the middle of a tornado. After about forty minutes of that madness it quieted down and I fell back asleep.

Unfortunately, that storm had dumped 1-2" of rain on the golf course and it has left us with an untimely day off. The course/practice facilities are closed all day today. I will probably head to the gym and get in a good stretch and stay loose. Perhaps Julie and I will see a movie or head to a nearby golf course that isn't closed. Whatever we do, it sucks to have a day off when we are ready to fine-tune for tomorrow's round. That's part of the job! And always a possibility when you play in Tornado Alley!

Just gotta roll with it...

What I am reading: Swinging From My Heels: Confessions of an LPGA Star by Christina Kim and Alan Shipnuk

The Perfect Storm

I am alive and well in Leawood, Kansas! It was quite the journey to get here though. I left Ft. Worth, TX around 10am on Monday. Good thing I left early, because I was driving through Oklahoma and the south eastern corner of Kansas where a huge super cell was coming in that night. My dad helped me with the weather while I was in the car. We originally thought it would be better if I stayed in Norman, OK with a friend over night and let the storm pass. It looked to be a bad one. Instead, I continued on not hitting any weather at all until about 30min outside my destination. As I was leaving the Tulsa area, the radio said there were tornadoes all over the place touching down. Little did I know that Norman, OK was getting a beast of a storm as well. My friend said a tornado went right down the street flipping cars. Thank goodness I didn't end up staying there! I should have picked her up and taken her with me! 

I arrived safely and the storm came in later that night. All we got were heavy rains and high winds. Nothing too bad. The course was very soggy yesterday; cart path only. 

The golf course is beautiful. Mature trees and lush, dense, US Open rough compliment every hole. The greens are rolling nicely but have a lot of sneaky breaks in them. They are very undulating with swails on every inch of them.

I played yesterday with Miriam Nagl from Germany who had been on the LPGA tour for the last 5 years. We had fun playing 9 then I played the back by myself. The back nine is quite a test. It will be key this week to keep focused, hydrated and dry to play those last holes well. 

We had another big storm come in last night around 3am. I woke up to strobe lights lighting up the room with very loud thunder. Gotta love being in Tornado Alley!! The course was even more soggy than yesterday. We aren't getting any roll out there which some girls really need. I played 18 today with my good friend Julie Wells and Sydney Cox. We played in about 4 hours staying dry, thank goodness. It has been chilly and overcast all day and hoping for storms only at night, if at all. 

Tomorrow I am practicing in the mid-morning and playing a late practice round with some girls from Florida. I won't be playing too many holes just gonna get some more practice on that back nine. 

I tee it at 1pm on Friday for the first round.

Ft. Worth , TX

I have been here during my 'off' week. We wrapped up in San Antonio and I drove up to Ft. Worth on Sunday. I have been staying with an old friend and we have had a blast together!

I have had the chance to play some awesome courses here: Shady Oaks Country Club--  home course of the legend Ben Hogan; Mira Vista Country Club-- home to the 2004 US Girls Junior Amateur Championship and Fossil Creek Golf Club-- where Tiger Woods evidentally filmed a Nike commerical trying to hit it on the green in one on a par four with a lake on the right. Members tell me he took six takes to get it on. I played Fossil Creek with comedian Carl LaBove, who is hilarious by the way. We are probably going to play there tomorrow too. There is nothing better than a great golf course with great company!

I have been catching some workouts here and there. The other day I ran some mileage down the Trinity River which is to the north of Colonial CC so I tried to sneak a peak. Looks awesome. The PGA tournament is there in two weeks.

Other than that, its been pretty relaxing. However, my golf excursions usually take all day so by that time I'm tired anyway! Ft. Worth has been a really cool place to explore and hang out. It is really laid back but still has a little Texas twang. :)

I'll be packing up here on Monday and moving on up to Kansas City where our tournament week will start on Tuesday. Tournament is Friday - Sunday. After that, its a 10 hour trek back home for some regrouping and more touranments.

Thanks for checking in!

Texas Hill Country Classic: San Antonio, TX

So far, my impression of San Antonio has been verrry positive! I am staying with a great host family with a friend Jasi Archarya. We are only about three minutes away from the course. We are playing this week at The Dominion Country Club just west of San Antonio. It was home to a Senior PGA event for a number of years. The course is in amazing shape. The front nine reminds me of Old Warson Country Club in St. Louis where I played in the US Amateur. Very old, mature trees, fast greens, well-placed bunkers and very green! The greens today were running at a 12. If you were above the hole, down grain, forget about getting it anywhere close. You had to barely touch it and it would take off rollin'! The area we are in is pretty hilly [shocking for TX, I know]. I went for a run this morning around the neighborhood and my quads burned the rest of the day becuase all I was running up and down were hills! Registration was today so I practiced in the morning then headed out for 18 with Jasi in the afternoon. There was very little wind and the temperature was fantastic. There was very little humidity becuase my yardage that I play in CO was the same down here. That rarely happens.

Tonight we had the 'Meet the Pro' party at the golf course. It was formal so we had to get all dressed up which isn't what you want to do after spending all day on the course but it was a lot of fun to try and guess people's names in formal attire. We usually only see each other in golf clothes. So it made for a fun evening. They put on a great party here in TX. We had live music, a dance floor, great food. It was a lot of fun.

Tomorrow will be the same kind of day. Going to workout in the morning, then head out to the course about 10:30 after the pro-am tees off. Practice all day then get in 9 tomorrow evening with Julie. I am ecstatic to be here this week and really looking forward to playing.

Aint nothin' like a little competition!

Galloping Armadillos?! Yeah....Galloping Armadillos

Besides missing the cut this week in Brownsville, my week has been pretty eventful. I met a lot of new people, learned a thing or two about my golf game and travel abilities. I drove down from Ft. Worth on Monday and met my house mom for the week, Kathy. She is an avid tennis player and was heading out for a match with her friend when I got there. I hung out and watched some tv and got settled then headed to bed.

Tuesday, I woke up and headed to registration. I registered early then out for some practice. We usually have a 'player area' where we register, have water, and there is even a chiropractor that you can see during the week. They have fruit and internet access up there so it's a common area for everyone. It's really cool that is available. I saw my friend Julie Wells from the Hawaii Big Break and we headed out to play 9. The course is really straight forward like I had said before. Well today, I made up a new name for the crispy, dried out greens/surrounding fringe -- Texas Toast. Ha. I thought it was brilliant. Anyway, later that night we had the 'Meet the Pro' party at a local restaurant. All the players are invited and there is usually food and drinks and some sort of entertainment. On Wednesday we had a shotgun practice round in the AM. I played with two girls that played for Florida Southern where the Hodgkinson sisters attend! So they knew them and that was fun! I practiced in the afternoon for a little while then got dinner and went home.

It was so warm this week. Very humid and steamy but we are in a desert, very arid climate. Doesn't make much sense to me, but that's okay. Brownsville seems like a nice city. I am a fan.

Thursday, I practiced in the morning then played 9 holes with Sydney Cox, a Oklahoma City University grad and NAIA National Champion! We had played together my 2nd round at Qschool in November so it was fun to get to know her a little better. It was a bit more windy out so it was nice to see the course when the winds from the south east kick up. Their wind patterns are pretty reliable. They come from Mexico.

The day of the first round was pretty relaxed. I had a 1:30pm tee time so I set my alarm for 8am. I had no trouble waking up then so I read the paper and did some things around the house for awhile. Before I play, I try to get a good warm up workout in. I do some stretching and a little cardio. Just to get the blood moving. I feel better when I get to the course and warming up on the driving range doesn't take as long. I played with Kim Augusta and Angela Oh. I played decent on my first 9, coming in at even par. My back nine got a little ridiculous. I had some trouble with yardages. Seemed like I never had the right club in my hand on my approach. The greens are very small so if you missed the green sometimes you had a tricky chip. Overall, mentally I was great despite the numbers. Kathy took me to Carino's for dinner the night before so after a long day on the course [I got home at 7pm] it was nice to just reheat my leftovers!

The second day round came quickly. I teed off at 8am, first group off #1. I played with Kirby Dreher and Carolina Llano. They were friendly but we were all business on the course. We had a crazy lady for a cart driver. She tried driving away as we got things out of our coolers and such. On #11 she tried to run me over. Ha. She had me a bit worried that she could really operate a moving vehicle. It's things like this that I think about between shots that make me laugh. Haha. On #4, I was lining up my putt and all of a sudden I hear Peggy say, "watch out! Here he comes!" Having no idea what in the world she was talking about, I looked up to see a galloping armadillo. Yes. Galloping. His shell was hitting the green with every step and it sounded like a faint horse's gallop. It was hysterical. Scared the @#$* out of me but we all had a good laugh then got back to business. Besides that the final round was VERY uneventful. I turned at +3, knowing I had to get something going on the back. Turns out, it backfired, which sometimes happen, but it can also go the other way and you can make a lot of birdies. Just accepting it wasn't my week and moving on is the key. On #18, I hit it left on my approach behind the stands. I got to take relief, immovable obstruction [YES!]. I took relief on the right side of the bleachers so that a palm tree was in the line of my shot to the pin. I had about 20yards [yeah, great shot Rach haha] but it was pin high. No big deal. I had to flop it over the tree, from a downhill lie in front of some fans. Well I kept the same attitude I did all of the back nine, go for it. The shot came off perfectly, bounced twice and rolled out to about 12feet. I putted last, and rolled it right in. I was rather proud that my day ended with SOMETHING positive. It was nice to end with some applause.

Kathy took me to South Padre Island [aka SPRING-BREAK-WOO!-destination] and we had some fried oysters at Pier 19. It was right on the bay so we could watch the boats and the fisherman. South Padre is essentially a sand bar so there were guys fishing 100 yards from shore in not even waist high water. Kinda weird. The island is very narrow. It only had two streets north to south but it is very long. We headed home at the perfect time. We had front row tickets to a beautiful sunset over the bay.

If you miss the cut, you have the choice of heading to our next destination or staying and practicing. I opted for staying becuase my host family isn't expecting me until tomorrow. So I played on the range a bit trying different shots, trying to simulate competition. Moved on to some short game which I spent a great deal of time on and some putting. Not much putting though becuase I heard next week's greens are awesome and there is no sense getting used to crappy ones!

I will head to San Antonio tomorrow staying with a different family and a girl that is also on the tour. I am excited to stay with her.

I am excited for a new week. Knocking off that rust baby.

So Far...

So far the week has been really good. We have already had two practice round days. I practiced in the morning yesterday then played 9 holes with my buddy Julie Wells. We had our meet the pro party last night at a local restaurant and I met some other players there. Trouble was, the band was playing so loud we couldn't hear each other speak so we were pretty much just playing charades.

Today was our shotgun practice round. We were off the golf course by noon which is always nice to get it an early morning. This afternoon looks to be a pretty relaxing one, probably squeeze in a workout and a nap and have dinner with my mom for the week.

The course is very straight forward. There aren't a whole lot of memorable holes out there. Greens are a little bumpy but that just means you really have to commit to your line. The weather is awesome, high-70s with some wind. Thursday it is supposed to get warmer then on Friday we hit 90.

I tee off of #1 at 1:30pm on Friday.

The Countdown Begins...

Well, I leave in only 4 short days! I will be heading down to Brownsville, Texas for the Historic Brownsville Open. If you don't know where Brownsville is, look on a map. It is located where the Gulf of Mexico, the country of Mexico and Texas meet. Oh boy. Needless to say, I have a long trek ahead of me but years of driving Denver to Memphis have seasoned me.

My practice the last couple weeks has been awesome. I really feel productive opposed to just being out there mindlessly hitting balls. For me, it has always been a struggle to keep a purpose and practice with consequence. I keep it interesting with little games or challenges for myself. That makes time fly by and before you know it the challenge is complete and it's time to go home! I went to see Eli about my putting alignment and feel really good about it now. Sometimes, it's easy to groove a bad habit and for a set of eyes watching intently on good technique helps tremendously! It definitely avoids hours of grooving that bad habit!

I will be gone for about a month playing in three tournaments. I am very excited to start playing and getting back into that atmosphere. It is something I crave when I practice and knowing the feeling of competing on a high level also helps make practice productive becuase you want to be prepared for those high-pressure events. I feel that I have succeeded in my preparation and I am ready.

What I am reading: The American Plague by Molly Caldwell Crosby
What I am listening to: Tusk - Fleetwood Mac

Exciting News + Update

First of all, I am proud to announce a new partnership with LEFT HAND BREWING COMPANY. I am so excited about this as it something I love from my hometown and cannot wait to promote around the country! I will be sporting their logo on my hat, as well as my shirt. Thank you Left Hand for your support!!

Things have been going great lately. I spent some time on the course on Tuesday before it snowed. A quick nine holes followed by some technique on the range until it started raining sideways. Since, I have been writing some sponsor letters, and honing my mental game. I finally finished Your 15th Club. In the book it says to write down affirmations so I have been compiling something that I can take on the road but still colorfully displays the positive things that should be flowing through my brain at all times. By reading them every day, it is a small reminder what I am supposed to be focused on while I practice/play. 

My new sticks should be here any day. I got my balls and gloves on Tuesday. I am so excited to get them and take them down to Robert so he can fix them up for competition. It will depend on how they perform on the golf course if I will take them down to Texas. The FUTURES Tour does require conforming grooves but the actual rule isn't in effect until July.

The countdown is just a mere 22 days away. I will be doing the drive in two days, stopping and relaxing in Ft. Worth with my best friend for a day/dinner to hang out and catch up. I will need to stop anyway becuase the drive is 22.5 hours. Yikes!

What I am reading: Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls
What I am listening to: Mercy Me - Spoken For

Typical Tuesday

Today I had a great session down at the Colorado Golf Academy. My swing is feeling really good, but more importantly I am fundamentally better than I have ever been before. I am really happy that all my hard work has solidified a great swing and it can just get better. I have never moved the golf club so efficiently and I am really excited to put this into contention and see how great it can get. I hit so many balls today I have blisters on my hands. I have never been so excited to see them.



What I am reading: The Fundamentals of Hogan by David Leadbetter and Lorne Rubenstein
What I am listening to: Flyleaf