Monday, May 11, 2009
The US Open
Tomorrow my caddie and I head to St.Louis to try and get through the "locals" of the US Open qualifying process. This year there were 9048 entries into the event, and at this time there are 63 fully exempt players into the field. That basically means that the 9048 dreamers and PGA Tour professionals will be teeing it up in a series of qualifing tournaments trying to earn one of the other 93 places in this year's tournament.
Friday, May 1, 2009
I've managed to resist the whole "hybrid" movement for quite some time now, but caved today. Agfter hitting a dozen shots with the new club I could kick myself for not doing this sooner. I hate the way they look, but these clubs perform pretty well. Lets face it...if the best players in the world use them, they can probably help the rest of us to some degree.
This one is a couple of years old, but is exactly what I was looking for. It's a 2i hybrid. I normlly don't play with a 3 iron and carry a 5 wood. But tring to take something off of a 5 wood can be tricky, especially in wind. This 2i thing should be easier toback off of when I need a 3 iron distance. I was able to dial it down and hit it about 2oo by choking up on it, and got a couple on the green at about 237 by swinging away. That's a pretty handy spread to be able to hit a club.
So, about 2 weeks out from my first qualifying tournament, here's what's in the bag.
Ping G10 9 degree driver
Cleveland High Bore XLS 3-wood
Cleveland duo 2i hybrid
Cleveland CG2 irons, 4iron-PW
Cleveland CG12 Black Pearl 52 Wedge
Cleveland CG12 Chrome 56 Wedge
Cleveland CG12 Black Pearl 60 Wedge
Ping Isoforce Darby F (prototype, 1999)
This one is a couple of years old, but is exactly what I was looking for. It's a 2i hybrid. I normlly don't play with a 3 iron and carry a 5 wood. But tring to take something off of a 5 wood can be tricky, especially in wind. This 2i thing should be easier toback off of when I need a 3 iron distance. I was able to dial it down and hit it about 2oo by choking up on it, and got a couple on the green at about 237 by swinging away. That's a pretty handy spread to be able to hit a club.
So, about 2 weeks out from my first qualifying tournament, here's what's in the bag.
Ping G10 9 degree driver
Cleveland High Bore XLS 3-wood
Cleveland duo 2i hybrid
Cleveland CG2 irons, 4iron-PW
Cleveland CG12 Black Pearl 52 Wedge
Cleveland CG12 Chrome 56 Wedge
Cleveland CG12 Black Pearl 60 Wedge
Ping Isoforce Darby F (prototype, 1999)
Time to write again
Ok, so I've taken several months off from blogging about my golfing adventures. Time to start back up...I'm playing for real here in about 3 weeks.
I quit writing for a while because they were all sounding the same. Get up. Practice. Work out. Go home. Sleep. Repeat.
Here's what's new.
Charlie (Chuck) Farley is going to caddy for me some this summer. Charlie worked for me when I was a Store Manager for Dillards. Actually, his wife and parents worked there too. One of the most genuine and caring families I've ever been around. Chuck graduated from college in December, so hopefully we can earn both of us some money this summer before he goes to work teaching and coaching. He grew up around the game and has caddied before, which is a big advantage for me. He's also a fierce, spirited competitor of a person who will be able to keep me fired up and shooting at flags.
On May 13th we're playing in the local qualifyer for the US Open in St. Louis. Locals are held at about 100 courses around the country. A few players from each local tournament site will make it to the next level, called sectionals. That's when it gets tough. The sectionals not only consist of the players who made it through locals, but also PGA Tour players who are not exempt into the US Open already by way of winning tournaments or being high enoughon the money list. Sectionals separates the men from the boys. Get through sectionals, and you're playing in a major championship. Around 8000 people will enter the US Open. About 70 of those will earn spots into the field. The competition is brutal.
After that we're trying to play our way into the St. Jude Classic in Memphis. PGA Tour events are even harder to qualify for, with 150 or so guys playing for 4 spots in the field. It takes flawless golf to pull it off. You might get away with a mis- hit shot once or twice...maybe. But make an actual mistake...like miss a green on the short side or hit a shot into a water hazard and you'd might as well keep walking all the way to the car.
After that I'm going to try and Monday qualify a few times on the Nationwide Tour before going through q-school in the fall. Most likely I'll try in Ft. Smith, Springfield, Chattanooga and a couple of others.
I've been playing very well for the past several months, and am still grinding hard every day looking for any improvement I can find. I'm looking forward to getting the first tee jitters again. I'm sure I'll be horribly nervous, but I'm still looking forward to that first tee shot.
Watch for several posts a week from now on!
John
I quit writing for a while because they were all sounding the same. Get up. Practice. Work out. Go home. Sleep. Repeat.
Here's what's new.
Charlie (Chuck) Farley is going to caddy for me some this summer. Charlie worked for me when I was a Store Manager for Dillards. Actually, his wife and parents worked there too. One of the most genuine and caring families I've ever been around. Chuck graduated from college in December, so hopefully we can earn both of us some money this summer before he goes to work teaching and coaching. He grew up around the game and has caddied before, which is a big advantage for me. He's also a fierce, spirited competitor of a person who will be able to keep me fired up and shooting at flags.
On May 13th we're playing in the local qualifyer for the US Open in St. Louis. Locals are held at about 100 courses around the country. A few players from each local tournament site will make it to the next level, called sectionals. That's when it gets tough. The sectionals not only consist of the players who made it through locals, but also PGA Tour players who are not exempt into the US Open already by way of winning tournaments or being high enoughon the money list. Sectionals separates the men from the boys. Get through sectionals, and you're playing in a major championship. Around 8000 people will enter the US Open. About 70 of those will earn spots into the field. The competition is brutal.
After that we're trying to play our way into the St. Jude Classic in Memphis. PGA Tour events are even harder to qualify for, with 150 or so guys playing for 4 spots in the field. It takes flawless golf to pull it off. You might get away with a mis- hit shot once or twice...maybe. But make an actual mistake...like miss a green on the short side or hit a shot into a water hazard and you'd might as well keep walking all the way to the car.
After that I'm going to try and Monday qualify a few times on the Nationwide Tour before going through q-school in the fall. Most likely I'll try in Ft. Smith, Springfield, Chattanooga and a couple of others.
I've been playing very well for the past several months, and am still grinding hard every day looking for any improvement I can find. I'm looking forward to getting the first tee jitters again. I'm sure I'll be horribly nervous, but I'm still looking forward to that first tee shot.
Watch for several posts a week from now on!
John
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