Practice, Practice, Practice...

The battle at the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am turned out to be just that with my golf swing over the three days. I struggled each round to get comfortable with my grip, alignment, and take away from the ball. Fortunately however, I was able to fight through the struggles and play some good stretches of golf to make the cut on the number. My swing would come and go quickly, and the up and down numbers on the scorecard were and indication of that. A first round 74 was not the start I was hoping for to get into contention. I knew I would need to improve in order to make the cut and be able to play the final round on Sunday. Saturday I got off to a hot start going -4 on the day through six holes, including two chip-ins to quickly get to -1 for the tournament. From there however, things went downhill fast as I had to birdie the last hole just to shoot 72. The final round was much more steady and included fewer mistakes. A couple late birdies got me into the clubhouse with a 69 and a tie for 21st. The upside was how great my putter felt all three days, even though the results weren't there. It was one of those weekends where I hit my lines, but a slight misread or too much/too little speed made all the difference and caused me to keep burning edges.

A slight change in schedule unfortunately happened while I was at the Tapemark event. Because of the recent tornadoes around the Joplin, Missouri area, the Hooter's Tour felt it was best for us to not interfere with the relief/clean-up efforts in the area. Many people hit by the tornado were being housed or living in or around the Miami, OK area where the tournament was supposed to be. The event has been rescheduled for later on in September. I'm hoping to make the trip down this fall to compete to see what the Hooter's Tour is all about.

Next up on my golf schedule is the Waterloo Open in Waterloo, IA. The tournament will take place on July 16th-17th. In the mean time I will continue putting in long hours at the practice facility, as well as playing on a regular basis to prepare for a busy summer of traveling. Also, this Tuesday I'm headed to "The Kingdom" on the Reynolds Plantation east of Atlanta, GA to get a tour fitting from TaylorMade. This facility is one of their two "tour fitting facilities" in the country for professional golfers. This is a great opportunity to get clubs that match up to my exact specifications and golf game characteristics. Check out their website: The Kingdom at Reynolds. If the fitting goes well and the equipment will benefit my game, I'll have the option to play and represent the TaylorMade brand. As one of the top club manufacturers in the world, I'm excited for the opportunity to try out and see what TaylorMade has to offer.

That's all for now from "the tips", but until next time remember...."It doesn't matter how you get the ball in the hole. There are no pictures on a scorecard, only numbers."


Bryce