Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to anyone reading/following this thing. I've gotten quite a bit of work in over the last couple of weeks, despite the crappy weather. I got out on Christmas Day for a while and hit balls and worked on putting & chipping. Today I got out and shot a respectable 69 in a pretty good wind. Lately it seems that at least once in every round I knock something in there rediculously close to the pin. Today's shot of the day was a punch 7 iron into the breeze. It hit 6 feet behind the pin and backed up to within 8 inches.

There is a set of blades from about 2 years ago that caught my eye a couple if weeks ago. I found a set of used ones here in town for $400, which seems steep for what's probably going to be nothing more than an experiment. I bought a set off of ebay today for $155...much better. They already have s4oo TT shafts in them, which is slightly stiffer than stiff. I used this shaft in my irons in college with some success. I can't wait to get these things on the course.

I also added another wedge to the bag. I put in another black pearl Cleveland...this one a 60 degree with only 4 degrees of bounce. I LOVE THIS WEDGE!!! I've carried L wedges for years but rarely found one that I really liked. I think it's the bounce that's making it easier for me. I took out a Black Pearl 58 degree, which had way too much bounce at 12 degrees. This new wedge is probably going to be in my bag for a very long time.

Blackjack...21 in a row

The weather has been less than cooperative these last few days, so I've spent much more time on the range and practice green than I have on the course. I've gotten into sort of a routine when I practice putting. I typically won't leave the practice green until I've made at least 100 putts, and I added another ritual to my practice this week. I find a nice flat spot on the green and set up about 8 to 10 feet from the hole. This is the last thing I do before quitting for the day, and I make myself sink 21 putts in a row from the same spot before I'll let myself leave the green. The first dozen or so go by pretty easily, but the closer you get to 21 the more you start thinking about not screwing up and having to start over...especially when it's freezing cold out there.

The 2009 schedules for the PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour are out now, so I can start to plan where I'm going to try and qualify when. I can't tell you how much I want to make a field early on in the year and make a cut. I know I can do this, but a little validation in the form of a pay check would be nice as well.