Progress...Progress...Progress

A busy and exciting week has come to an end as I reflect on all that has happened. The week started out with the 3rd Gateway event of the season at Whirlwind Golf Club. Despite coming off the course with a score of 74 in the first round, the confidence I had been lacking in my ball striking had improved greatly. After working with my coach last week and beating balls to try and groove it, things seemed to have taken a turn for the best. My short game held me back some, but it wasn't for lack of good putts as the ball just didn't want to disappear into the hole. I knew if I just kept putting my self in good position to make birdies, they would eventually start falling. Round two produced much of the same without the couple mistakes that came the previous day. A bogey-free round of 67 that included 5 birdies was enough to put me inside the cut-line and eligible for the third round. Another great ball striking round followed by lip outs and burned edges kept my score from being even lower. I wasn't shaken however, as I knew I had to be patient and they would start to fall soon. Sure enough, when my ball striking wasn't quite up to the quality of the first two rounds, my putter seemed to pick up some of the slack. A final round 69 in some windy conditions vaulted me up the leader board into a 13th place finish. I got off to a hot start making 3 birdies and an eagle through 10 holes to get to 5 under on the day. Following some good pars, a couple bad swings on my 15th hole led to a triple bogey. I kept grinding to finish out the last three holes and post a good score, and did so making a birdie on my 17th hole. I was very pleased with my top 15 finish after a rocky start to the year. There are still things to fine tune as always, but it was a nice confidence boost to hang in there throughout the week. However, there was still one more competitive round to play on my schedule the very next day. That round was the pre-qualifier for the PGA Tour's Waste Management Phoenix Open. On another blustery day, the qualifier plotted 103 golfers for 9 spots into Monday's official qualifier for the Phoenix Open. Finishing with back to back birdies on 17 & 18, I grabbed one of the 9 qualifying spots shooting 67 for a fifth place finish. Yet again, my ball striking was very solid, allowing me the opportunity for many birdie chances. The putter again felt great all day, but the putts just wouldn't fall. Patience kept me going as I made the turn at 1 under. Finally, a few birdie chances fell when it really counted as I made 4 birdies on the last 7 holes to get inside the number and qualify. As I look back and reflect on the past week, I'm so thankful to be blessed with patience and a trust in God that things will always work out in the end. I trust and embrace his plan, along with the highs and lows that come along with it. If I take care of the little things and just keep getting better every day, great things will come along with them. I'm excited for the coming events, and can't wait to test my game against the best players in the world. Next up: the Waste Management Phoenix Open Monday Qualifier at McCormick Ranch GC! Current and former PGA Tour players, Nationwide players, and many others will compete for the final 3 spots in the event starting next Thursday at the TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course. The results for the qualifier should be posted on the following website after its conclusion: http://southwest.pga.com/ (scroll down towards middle of page) That's all for now from "the tips", but until next time remember....."the harder you work, the luckier you get!" Bryce