It has been a week since Q School ended for me in Houston, Texas.  It was a brutal week from a results standpoint.  I finished at the bottom of the leaderboard after struggling mightily with my game all week.  I just couldn't get it going with my iron play and my putter was ice cold.  I wouldn't wish the feeling I had walking off that course the final day on my worst enemy.  I have a picture above of a Ferrari in a garage.  This exemplifies how I felt about my season.  All year I felt really good about my game, but the results in competition were an absolute disaster.  It was as if I had a Ferrari in the garage ready to be uncaged, but I could never find the keys to start it up. 
    It has been a long year that has taken me to some remarkable places.  It is hard to believe the season came to an end so quickly.  All year I was unwaveringly positive and the top of my blog reiterates just that.  I really thought that this was my year.  Walking off the course in Houston, Texas last Friday that all came crashing down.  I flew home Friday night in a blur and for much of all this week I was still digesting the reality that I didn't reach my goals this year from a production standpoint, and quite frankly I didn't come anywhere close.  It was a bit like I was a lost soul out there at times this year, never finding any rhythm throughout the year.  Without any rhythm or results you can imagine it is really hard to find any confidence along the way.  Don't get me wrong, I had an absolute blast this year competing, but it just isn't any fun losing for a long period of time. 
    So the big question is, where do I go from here?  Lucky for me the Holidays are quickly approaching, so this will give me some time to reflect on this year and enjoy the company of my family.  As any successful person does, I have to take an inventory of what I did well this year and what needs my focus heading forward.  For me, I believe a substantial break from competitive golf is in the works.  Like any athlete in any other sport there is a competitive season and then there is an off season.  Last Winter, I don't believe I took enough time off to recharge heading into 2012.  I more or less just played straight through from late 2011 into 2012.  Looking back on it, I was partially burnt out for a lot of the summer from not catching my breathe last off season.  I'm by no means saying that I am going to shelve my clubs for the next several months and just sit on my hands.  That would be insane.  I am going to continue training at an elite level, but I am not going to play in a single event until next April.
    Have a look at a baseball player for example.  If all goes well, a major leaguer plays 162 games plus the playoffs from the beginning of April until late October.  That gives each ball player a 5 month window of an off season.  I used baseball for an example because this is the most grueling sport from the amount of games played compared to any other sport.  I have to do a better job this winter of shutting it down for a longer period of time on the competitive side.  I am going to stay sharp by grinding it in the gym and continue letting it rip on the range and on the course back home.  It just got a bit monotonous and I found myself just going through the motions come the second half of the year from overdoing it. 
    Golf is absolutely my utmost passion, but I need to rekindle that love with a competitive break.  Nothing in this world makes me more happy than the simplicity of being outside with my golf clubs.  I am a simple man and lead a simple life, but this break is going to be the best thing I have ever done.  I look up to the top of my blog and realize in fact that I was right.  This is my year.  I found myself.  I didn't obtain my PGA Tour card this year, but when it's all said and done when I look back on my career, I know I can see 2012 as the year that made future success possible.  A year of setbacks from a result standpoint, but I grew leaps and bounds as a man in terms of maturity.
   The PGA Tour just announced that they have taken the Canadian Tour under their wing.  This is great news and now makes the climb up the PGA Tour ladder a bit more efficient.  The top 5 players at years end on the Canadian Tour money list will advance to the Web.com Tour.  The players finishing 6-10 will advance to the Final Stage of Q School.  This makes the Canadian Tour the place to be in terms of getting to the next level.  Their schedule fits perfectly into my break.  The Canadian Tour Qualifying Tournament is in early May, so this will be what I will be gunning for coming out of my Winter break.  I'm ready to shut it down competitively and get that fire back.  I wish everyone a Happy Holidays and thank you for your unwavering support. Now it's time for me to go find the keys to that Ferrari.  Until next time.

~John Kelly~
   

    Hello from just north of Houston, Texas.  I last left you from Port Saint Lucie, Florida.  I finished the second round of the NGA Tour event with a 75, but my ball striking was much better.  I headed home for a week and a half to catch my breath and get ready for this week in Texas.  While I was home I was able to meet with my sports psychologist Jason Selk.  We were able to reinforce several elements in my game.  We really stressed getting unattached from results by zeroing in on the process of how to get there.  This hasn't changed in the least over the past several months.  1) Have FUN 2) Have a RSF (relentless solution focus) of 10 out of 10 each day 3) Fully trust and believe in my game plan.
    At home over the last week and a half I was also able to really simplify my mechanics.  I turned my attention back to the basics and focused my attention on rhythm and grip pressure.  This has helped my ball striking exponentially and has made making a great swing all the more easier by not having too many swing thoughts under the gun.  The first round of the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament starts for me tomorrow at Deerwood Golf Club in Kingwood, Texas.  I have spent the last two days getting a great game plan in order and finding my bearings out there.  I feel ready to go out there over the next four days and play golf to the best of my ability.  I can remember like it was yesterday when I was very young, the first big junior event I ever played in.  It was in Kingwood, Texas at a sister course to the one I am playing this week.  I remember the butterflies I had on the first tee, and when the tournament concluded I can remember standing behind the 18th green with my Mom and Dad and rehashing how much fun I had that week.  It all comes full circle, and I can assure you that at the end of this week I look forward to having that same feeling of excitement at the conclusion of play.  Golf is a game and it is one I am blessed to have discovered.  It's my passion and I still get that youthful feeling of exuberance every day.  By keeping it simple I can discover my full potential.  Thanks for reading and it's going to be a great week of competition.  I'll keep you posted!

    I am back in the USA and a piece of my heart was left on European soil.  I was in 13th place heading into the last day of Q School in Lisbon.  The top 29 positions advanced to second stage.  I faltered in the final round with an 80 and my hopes of obtaining a European Tour card vanished in the blink of an eye.  It came unglued early in my fourth round where I suffered back to back double bogeys on three and four and was unable to regroup from there.  All week I told you I had a three point game plan:  I wanted to have fun, trust in my game plan, and be a 10 out of 10 from an RSF(relentless solution focus) standpoint.  I succeeded in obtaining my goals in all three areas, but the final round I was unable to execute the swings necessary to get where I needed to be.  The first three rounds I struggled with my ball striking, but my chipping and putting were absolutely superb.  The poor ball striking caught up with me in the final round as I was unable to chip and putt at the same remarkable level.  It hurt really bad, and to be honest it still hurts, but I have to move forward.
    I flew home on Sunday, and made a quick turnaround to Miami, Florida for a Web.com qualifier.  I got off to a sluggish start, but finished strong on my back nine to register a 69 on a easy golf course.  It took 66, and my train of pars early didn't provide enough offensive firepower to qualify.  I made the trip north from there to Port Saint Lucie, Florida where today I played in the first round of the NGA Tour event at PGA Golf Club.  I struggled mightily today in breezy conditions.  I carded an uncompetitive 83, one of my highest rounds in my professional career.  I have tried putting a finger on what went wrong today, and all I can come up with is that I was unable today to put myself into the present as I kept looking backwards at the last few days mentally.  The moment some adversity hit me today, I wasn't ready to cope with it. 
    Without sugarcoating it, the last five days have been really tough.  Everyone in life has to deal with some really hard spots.  I am in the middle of one of those moments.  As I have preached over the last month about relentless solution focus, it is imperative that I stay true to that.  The problem of dealing with the cards I have been dealt the past few days requires a solution.  I can sit and whine and moan or I can pick myself up from the bootstraps and fight and work through it.  I'm going to do the latter.  I'm going to go out there tomorrow at PGA Golf Club and stay true to my game plan and have fun doing it.  Then I'm going to go home for two weeks and work really hard at getting my game into peak shape so that I will be ready come October 23rd to play exceptional golf in the US Q School which starts for me in Houston, Texas at Deerwood Golf Club.  Thanks for reading and much brighter days are ahead.  I have said it all year, it's my year.  I haven't ventured from that statement at any point and I stand by that belief.  I'll update you on how tomorrow went and how my practice is coming along back home next week.  Forward I go with a smile on my face.

I have arrived in Portugal and have played two practice rounds on the course I will be playing this week. The first round begins tomorrow and I am excited and ready to go perform my best. Last week I left you from Callaway Gardens. It was a course where the vast majority of the holes left me with a wedge in my hand on my approach shots. I didn't have my best week with the wedges, thus I struggled from a results standpoint with rounds of 74-70.  It is a new week and I have flushed this from the system. I hit a bunch of quality shots and the next 4 days will provide me the canvas to paint a beautiful picture on the course with my clubs. My focus hasn't wavered in the least. I need to have a relentless solution focus of 10 every day, execute my game plan fearlessly, and finally go play the game of golf as a game and have a ton of fun.  If I do those 3 things all week well, then I will be ready to perform at my best. Thanks for reading and I look forward to updating you on the week ahead. It's going to be an awesome one. Three keys, lets go out there and be great in each one!

 

"Stuff's getting better.  Stuff's getting better every day."

~Kevin Costner in The Postman

 

 

     I was watching the movie The Postman the other day and this quote came up and it drew a parallel to what has been going on for me over the past few weeks.  I want to update everyone on how my training has been going over the last couple weeks.  I last left you with the three things I needed to focus on heading into the Fall.  I made great strides in all three departments.  My commitment to every shot has been wonderful.  I have made it a point to really smile and enjoy the game of golf every step of the way.  It is so easy to get lost in the desire to be perfect and that golf is my job, that I forget the reason I play this great game in the first place.  It's a game I thoroughly enjoy.  With that mindset, it makes it so much easier to let my talent flourish and keeps me from getting in my own way.  Finally, I have done a great job of getting my lower body working in an athletic manner and in harmony with my upper body. 

     I leave tomorrow for Atlanta.  This will be the beginning of a three week run on the road.  I have a 3 day NGA Tour event at Callaway Gardens Resort just south of Atlanta that runs this week from Tuesday through Thursday.  I head from there Friday to Lisbon, Portugal for the 1st Stage of European Tour Q School.  It will be my third trip there over the past three years, so being a veteran of the location and golf course will most definitely help, especially so in navigating in a foreign country.  I get back to the USA after that and will be qualifying for the final regular season Web.com event of the year in Miami, Florida.  I am confident I will play well and qualify, but if I do not I will be playing in another 3 day NGA Tour event in Port Saint Lucie, Florida.  I will most definitely be able to keep you all updated on my progress in the US events.  The internet can be a bit dodgy in Europe, so I will try my hardest to keep everyone posted from over there as well.  I am 100 percent happy with how I have trained over the last few weeks, and am really excited about my progress.  I have given myself the best chance to go out there and play the best golf that I can.  This in itself has given me a sense of calmness and confidence.  I'm positive there will still be butterflies and anxious moments in the weeks ahead, but I am ready to take these head on and go out there and enjoy it.  Forward we go.  Look up to the top of my blog.  It's my year.  Keep you posted.

    The theme of this post is going to be about RSF.  This is short for Relentless Solution Focus.  I last left you as I was about to start my final NGA Tour event in Columbia, SC.  The event started smoothly.  I was three under on my first round headed to the 18th hole having not made a bogey.  It was the easiest hole on the course, a short par 5 that was easily reachable in two shots.  I hit a quick hook off the tee into a hazard and made an untimely bogey that left a sour taste in my mouth.  Heading into day two I was ready to go out from the start and get things back on track.  I struggled with my ball striking on the front nine, but was scrambling from everywhere.  I redeemed myself on my 9th hole of the day.  It was the same hole as the day before that I made a sloppy bogey on to close my round out.  I made eagle to make the turn in two under and get to four under for the event.  On the back nine, however my swing troubles continued, but I was not able to scramble as well.  I got out in front of an iron shot on my 12th hole and made a big number resulting in a triple bogey.  I closed well from there, but the triple bogey on 12 cost me and I missed the cut by 2 shots.  It was an agonizing week that I wanted so badly to play well in, but I took a lot of great shots out of it. 
    Today I was in Boise, Idaho for a Web.com qualifier.  I was playing very steady before a tough 8th hole put a dent in my progress.  If you took a look at my swing on the 8th tee box today and my swing on the 12th tee box in Columbia, SC in round two you would see the exact same swing replicated twice.  I hit two monster block shots that found the water right.  This has been my miss lately, either a big push or I get active at impact with my hands and hit a hard pull.  My leg drive is a burden on these shots and I get out in front with my lower body.  This is where I want to talk to you about RSF and how this is going to really help me the remainder of the year.  My sports psychologist, Jason Selk, came up with the idea.  In life, and especially in golf, there is going to be many problems that come up along the way.  For me, I got quite nervous before my tee shots for example today on 8 tee box and on the 12th tee in Columbia, SC.  As a result, my troubling swing miss of a block with excessive leg drive came into play on both swings.  I was not fully committed to my shot before hand.  It is easy looking back in hindsight, but this is why these shots didn't go according to plan.  Whenever one of these problems comes along, such as seeing the trouble of a bunker or a lake on a hole, I have to immediately recognize this and find a solution.  I need to replace that thought with  an overwhelming positive one.  It helps even more if I feel it with my body in a rehearsal.  As a human being, these bad thoughts will continue to surface, but I have to be proactive and be able to identify it, let it pass, and flush it out with positivity.  My goal each round moving forward is to be fully committed to every shot before hand and have 100 percent belief that I am going to execute it accordingly.  After that it is all out of my hands, and the results can fall where they may.  I can be totally satisfied if I can do that.  What bothers me is I can pinpoint like I said to numerous shots where this wasn't the case. 
    The other thing I really have to keep my focus on the remainder of the year is playing golf as a game.  I had a long talk with my Dad today about how uptight I get out there.  Golf is hard enough as it is, but when I start adding layers of pressure on the game such as concern about score, or worrying about not hitting it in a specific place, it makes the game that much harder.  My goal the remainder of the year is to essentially "try less".  The more zoned in I get and more I try to really stress the importance of executing a shot really hurts me in the long run.  I have to just go out there and play golf.  It sounds so simple, but it is.  It is a game.  True, I want to succeed at it really bad, but I have to go out there and hit every shot to the best of my ability.  If it works out great, if it doesn't, then so be it.  I have more than enough talent to be the brightest star in the game, I just have to get out of my way and allow myself to do it.  With a relaxed attitude, there is no reason I can't be one of the best golfers in the world soon.  In summary, my RSF includes three elements.  My three key problem areas are: 1. Mechanically, excess leg drive 2. 100% full commitment on every shot 3.  Trying to hard/putting too much pressure on execution. 
    Moving forward the rest of the year, all the rest of the elements of my game still need my attention, and will be more maintenance, but these three problem areas I have to work day in and day out to find a constant solution.  Every single golfer on the planet has things that come easy to them, and things they have to work harder at to get right.  I am proud of myself for being able to be critical and honest with myself by seeking out help in identifying what needs work.  I have a little less than 1 month before I head to Europe to begin Q School for 2012.  I have to go out and get better every single day moving forward and I need to really be in tune with monitoring my three problem areas as mentioned.  Tomorrow, I play in a 36 hole pro am here in Boise.  It is going to be a fun day with amateurs and it will give me a great opportunity to work on all three elements in a relaxed setting.  I have one final tune up before I head to Portugal just south of Atlanta at Callaway Gardens for a 3 day event September 25-27.  I am going to rectify my three issues, and come the end of the month be ready to go out and be the absolute best golfer I can be.  I'm excited about how my journey is going to unfold the remainder of the year.  Thanks for reading and I look forward to updating you shortly on my current 3 part RSF progress.  I'm going to get this right, I just need to smile and enjoy it along the way.

    Golf is crazy.  Golf is humbling.  I have been on the road now for three straight weeks, either in private housing or spending my nights in a hotel in towns that hardly appear on a map.  It is this month long journey I am on the backward half of that is inevitably going to rejuvenate my season.  Strictly from a results standpoint over the past three weeks, my performance has been nothing to write home about from a pure score standpoint.  I missed three cuts and missed three Web.com Monday qualifiers.  My golf game is starting to find flashes of brilliance from a ball striking standpoint and that hasn't been the case in a long, long time.  This has me really excited.  I am able to just go play golf, and let the mechanical thoughts stay at bay.  The past week I was unable to convert on the greens, and made some silly errors on the par 5's.  My wedge game was not crisp.  Those elements made it tough for me to have enough legitimate birdie opportunities to get myself in position heading into the last two rounds.  I drove the ball and struck the ball well, it just was a fraction off in terms of getting the ball close.  It is hard to explain to you over a computer screen how close my game really is to being really good.  My results as I said still haven't been where they need to be, but that is purely from the standpoint of me getting the scoring element down in my game.  My game is in a great place right now, I have to just be willing to dive off the deep end and allow myself to go out there and do it. 
    I have one more week on the road.  I will be playing in the final regular season NGA Tour event next week in Columbia, South Carolina.  I am ready to go out next week and showcase my game in all facets for four days and give myself a chance for a win come next Sunday.  Golf never owes anyone anything, but after the past three weeks of having to swallow the tough end of the stick, I am highly motivated to make next week mine.  As I said, I am able to just go out and play the game with trust in my swing now that the mechanics of my game are falling into place.  I have one more week to get this thing right.  I never try to make any tournament any more important than the next, but with a real quite September waiting, I want to make next week an awesome one heading into my time off in September before European/US Q School gets under way in October.  My season in 2012 has been a tough one during the regular season, but I am fully aware that for every person in developmental golf, it is all about peaking the last quarter of the year.  I know that my game is in the absolute best shape it has been in at any point this year right now, and I am getting better every single day.  The only thing I am dwelling on is what is happening in every waking second of the present, and forgetting about the past.  I can't change it.  I look forward to the future by visualizing my success.  I am ready next week to put a stamp on how things are going to go for the remainder of the year and be ready for John Kelly 2.0 to finally emerge and be ready to go out there and take what is mine.  Look up to the top of my blog for a reminder of what I have said all year.  This is unwavering:  It's my year.  Thanks for your support, and I look forward to updating everyone on how next week progresses.

    My results were erratic the last 3 rounds, but that beats the heck out of nothing but bad.  As my last post indicates, all signs pointed towards a great weekend in Garden City, but it wasn't to be.  I had a poor result in the third round that sent me backward, and a final round that had sustained winds of over 25 mph where I didn't have my best ball striking, which left me in a tough spot over the course of the last two days.  Scores were brutally high the final day, so I didn't even flinch after signing for an 81.  It was HARD condition wise.  I held my head high and left Garden City with a fighting spirit and took the positives out of a well played second round.  I left there for Lawrence, Kansas for a Web.com qualifier.  I didn't strike the ball like I had envisioned on Monday, but fought hard to stay in contention.  A slow start that left me two over through four holes left me a big hole to climb out of.  I didn't give myself enough birdie chances, consequently I missed qualifying by four shots. I made a nice run late, but I ran out of time.  I was excited though because internally I knew that I played about as bad as I could, and I ended up missing by only four shots.  My bad golf is getting better and that is a really good sign. 
    I have made the journey out to North Carolina for an NGA Tour event.  I got in a great day of practice, and my swing is feeling really good heading into the week.  The changes I have been battling with over the last month are really starting to take hold, and I am finally starting to be able to go to the course each day and trust that my swing is sound mechanically and that makes a world of difference from a confidence standpoint.  I also am able to go out and just play the game much more naturally as opposed to worrying about my swing mechanics while I am out there in the heat of battle.  I have had past success on this course in years past which will help.  I tee off tomorrow at 1:33pm.  I am really looking forward to a great week and starting tomorrow getting off to a great start.  I feel I am ready to compete start to finish this week, but in order to do that I have to focus in on the exact process of how that is done and get my mind off the results.  I must have a clear vision of every shot that I need to play, and play each shot with a fearless, fully committed attitude.  I've made two equipment changes that are really going to benefit me.  I put on some larger grips on my clubs, which is going to help keep my hands more passive through impact, and I put in a new 3 wood that has a bit more launch than my previous 3 wood that had a piercing trajectory that was a little too flat.  It is a new week and I am ready to make it a great one.  I'll keep you posted.

    The Springfield Web.com qualifier was not a success.  It always hurts to miss at a Monday qualifier, but it hurts even more when I miss in my home state at a tournament that I almost won in 2009.  Millwood Golf and Racket Club is a short layout that demands accuracy off the tee.  I hit a couple of foul balls that resulted in out of bounds penalty strokes that really stung my scorecard.  I was definitely angry, sad, and disappointed as I left Springfield, but I had an 8 hour car ride to Garden City, Kansas to regroup and find my footing.  I knew that I was starting to make some strides in my game, but Monday didn't showcase it.  I arrived in Garden City late Monday night for the Adams Tour Southwest Kansas Pro Am.  I am a veteran of this tournament, making my 5th appearance here.  The event is conducted over four days at Buffalo Dunes GC and Southwind CC. 
    Two rounds have already been completed, and I stand in 23rd place at even par after rounds of 74-69.  Yesterday I shot a three over 74 where I just could not get a putt to drop.  I hit my lines all day on the green, but the ball just didn't want to find its way home.  Today, I hit the ball about the same, but was able to get up and down a couple more times, and I recorded two eagles down the stretch to really aid my score at days end.  It felt really, really good to finally play a round under par.  It had been a long time since I had.  With the changes that I have put into place, it is a huge confidence boost to finally get the monkey off my back and play a good round of golf score wise where I was able to trust my swing changes.  I continue to look at the big picture though, not ever getting too high or too low.  A steady demeanor and a strong work ethic every day is what is going to propel me to great things as I close out the year.  I am going to go out the next two days and stick to my game plan, and execute every shot within my capabilities.  Thanks for reading, and it is exciting to kick off this month long road trip with an opportunity this weekend to make some noise.  I'll keep you posted.

    I have three more events to report to you about.  I headed to Marshall, Minnesota for a Dakotas Tour event right after Waterloo.  I shot 74-73 to miss the cut by a pretty wide margin.  I just wasn't comfortable on the course with the changes that were taking place.  I headed straight from there to my old college alma matter in Columbia, Missouri for the Missouri Open.  A disappointing 79-74 once again left me short of playing the final round.  It was heartbreaking to not even make the cut in a tournament that I lost in a playoff a couple years ago in my old college town nonetheless.  What I took away from the week was some really good range work.  The second round, I finally felt comfortable on the course for an extended period of time.  I turned my front nine in 2 under par, but fell back into old patterns on my back nine for a poor finish.  I was in Omaha, Nebraska yesterday for the Web.com qualifier.  I was well off the mark with an uncompetitive 73 that left me 7 shots shy of qualifying.  On paper it looks like I am nowhere near close to being where I need to be from a results standpoint, but I am feeling more and more comfortable on the course as each day passes.  I have been keeping detailed statistics the second half of the year.  One stat I keep is how many shots I hit inside 15 feet each round.  Yesterday, I had 5.  This tied my highest mark in the past two months.  Now down the road, this needs to get better obviously, but this was one sign that pointed in the right direction.  I birdied my last two holes yesterday which felt good, and allowed me to be encouraged that I fought all the way to the end regardless of whether I was still in contention in the qualifier. 
    I have the rest of the week back home in Saint Louis to keep practicing hard on what I am working on.  I really want to make it a point that my practice is extremely focused and done with an exact purpose.  I have an extremely busy August.  I will be playing in the next 3 Web.com qualifiers, starting next Monday in Springfield, Missouri.  I played really well there in 2009, so it would be so sweet to get back in the starting field.  To do this, I have to keep my mind off the results, and put all my attention to detail in the process of getting there one shot at a time, with a specific game plan on each swing.  I have a plan B to play in one Adams Tour event and 3 NGA Tour events over the next four weeks, so regardless, I will be on the road the next month playing in a bunch of 4 day events.  I know that I am feeling more and more comfortable with the changes in my golf swing, now it is up to me to trust the changes and go out there and play fearlessly and realize that I have put in an immense amount of time to be successful in my profession.  I love how things are coming along.  The results on paper haven't improved, but I have wiped my slate clean and know that I am going to start producing some great results.  My practice is showing signs that it is really close and that gets me excited.  Follow here for an exciting next month on the road.  It's going to be a great one.

    Hello.  It has been close to a month since my last update, so it is about that time.  I last left you as I was headed to West Virginia for the PGA Greenbriar Classic Pre Qualifier.  A 76 left me one shy of advancing to the Monday Qualifier.  This stung pretty bad, but I refused to let the one poor day keep me down.  From there I moved on to the John Deere Classic Pre Qualifier.  I successfully got through with a 72.  I unfortunately followed that up with a 73 at the actual qualifier and failed to make it into the event.  The two missed qualifiers allowed me to make it home for the Metropolitan Open at Saint Albans CC back in Saint Louis.  I finished tied for 16th with rounds of 76-70-73.  It was a week that found my game in much the same state it has been in this year with good driving, putting, and chipping, but erratic iron and wedge play.  After all of this, I knew it was time to make a change.  Something had to give to allow for my iron and wedge play to return to my old form.  I flew straight from Saint Louis to Orlando to work with Brian Mogg on my game.  It was time to make a change. 
    I knew as I stepped foot on the Waldorf Astoria range in Orlando that I could either keep swinging normally and keep getting the same results or listen to what Brian had to say and realize that I was going to have to make some adjustments to my swing in order to get back on track.  That is exactly what we did over the course of two days.  Almost immediately Brian pointed out to me that my grip was extraordinarily weak.  This caused me to be extremely active at impact with my hands in order to time out every single shot.  One day I might be able to time it out well by rotating my hands just right, but other days if my timing was not exactly right, I was going to struggle.  So we strengthened my grip substantially to get my hands much more passive through the shot. 
    Today was my first test under the gun at the Waterloo Open in Waterloo, Iowa.  What resulted was a day full of extremely frustrating results.  As the above picture indicates it is easy to see that I spent a bunch of time today in the trees.  I scraped up my forearm escaping from the trees on one hole that left battle scars.  I shot a 78 and struggled all day being able to go out and trust the changes that are taking place.  My brain was still wired to my old pattern of active hands, but I had a much stronger grip in place.  Couple that together, and it is easy to see why I fought a hard hook all day.  I want to be able to get to the point where I can just let it go and trust my swing 100 percent, but today I had to be really swing thought oriented, and unfortunately I still did not make all the swing adjustments necessary to hit the ball cleanly with the right trajectory and curve.  As I mentioned earlier, it can be really easy for me to just go back to exactly the same thing I was doing before last week and feel comfortable.  That is exactly what I am not going to do.  Change is never easy.  I will have to allow myself to feel uncomfortable out on the course and range for a period as I acclimate myself to my new swing for the betterment of my game's consistency.   Passive hands are going to translate to much lower, consistent scores day in and day out.  It may feel weird today, but as soon as I get this adjustment dialed in, look out.  The rest of my game is there waiting.  I know with all my heart that once my driving and iron play return, I am going to be destined for greatness.  The results this year have been poor, and frankly, nothing short of a nightmare, but I am fully invested in the belief that I took one step backward to take a whole bunch of steps forward.  Thanks for reading, and I look forward to finding my footing and making the rest of 2012 my best year yet.  It's going to happen.

It will hurt.
It will take time.
It will require dedication.
It will require willpower.
You will need to make healthy decisions.
It requires sacrifice.
You will need to push your body to its max.
There will be temptation.
But, I promise you, when you reach your goal, its
WORTH IT.

~Unknown

    I just got back from the gym, and sometimes you stumble across something at exactly the time you need it.  This was one of those times.  I had just completed a 3 hour drive back home to Saint Louis and wanted to release some frustration in the gym by working up a sweat.  I read this on the wall and it really spoke to me.  God works in mysterious ways.  Anyway it is apparent that today wasn't my best day on the course.  I attempted qualifying for the Nationwide Tour's event this week in Indiana and shot a 73 that left me way off the number required today on an easy course.  My iron game and wedge play were flat out unacceptable at the professional level and it was another uncompetitive showing from me unfortunately.  Previous to today I was in Houston, Texas last week where I missed the cut by one shot.  I made a ton of birdies during the two days, but those were all erased with a bunch of bogeys as well.  The beginning of last week found me in Wichita, Texas for last week's Nationwide qualifier.  The wind howled all day and I really couldn't find my swing all day.  The fierce winds and my lackluster swings found me signing for an 84, which was my second highest score as a professional in some 400+ competitive rounds over the past five years.  The week previous, where I last left you, I was in Bentonville, Arkansas.  I missed the cut there by two shots after an opening round of 77 that left me way back in the field.  I played a steady second round of 69, but that still left me on the outside looking in from the cut line. 

    I have continued to work hard at resolving my swing issues over the past few weeks and will continue to do the same moving forward, but as the quote above says, it sometimes takes time to get it moving in the right direction.  I expect a ton out of myself and I am really hard on myself at times, and moving forward I have got to be my own best friend.  I have a real good idea where my swing miscues have come from, and I have set aside a specific practice regimine over the next few weeks with four specific, disciplined drills that I am going to grind out until my swing sequence starts progressing torwards where I need to be.  In the heat of competition over the last few weeks, it has been difficult at times standing over the ball trusting where the ball is going to finish after the many miscues that I have suffered over the past few months.  I can not be afraid of failure.  I have to have  a clearer picture of what I want to do with each shot and then trust that it will happen accordingly.  I am going to hit more bad shots in the future, but you can't dwell on the bad before it happens.  Confidence in my game and swing comes from disciplined practice when no one else is paying attention.  The inner self belief and trust comes from all the blood, sweat, and tears I put into this game in between tournaments when I'm out there all by myself.  I'm going to remedy my game, and I know it has been tough to watch my results this year, but I am going to press on and my game is going to reestablish itself.  It's just a matter of time.  I know this with all my heart.  I head Wednesday to West Virginia for the pre qualifier and Monday qualifier for next week's PGA Tour Greenbriar Classic.  I'm ready to make my PGA Tour debut.  Let's go get it!  Thanks for reading.  

    Another tournament down.  I finished up play at Cherry Blossom Country Club in Lexington, Kentucky today and unfortunately missed another cut.  It is frustrating, and when I am battling as hard as I can to steady the ship and start playing competitive golf at an elite level again it can really leave me cursing under my breath as I sign my scorecard.  I gutted it out today and had my low round of the year with a 66, but an opening 75 left me in need of a 63 today just to make the cut on the number.   63's don't just appear at the drop of the hat.  This week, think of me as an actor in New York.  For the first half of the show I flubbed my lines, but for the second half I looked like a shining star on Broadway.  The reason that the course played so easy this week comes down to a simple answer.  Of the 36 holes I played the past two days, 30 of the holes left me with some sort of wedge in my hand.  The bent grass greens are receptive, smooth, and flat.  The sun shined brightly and there was little wind.  Those are the ingredients for professional golfers to flat out rip a course to shreds and that is what a lot of golfers are doing this week.  I had some fun today, but yesterday I missed my share of greens with wedges in my hand, and failed to get up and down.  This was unacceptable, and couple that in with a pull hook out of bounds on one of the par 4's and you can see why my 75 left me next to last on the leaderboard.  I was proud of the way I responded today, but each shot I hit yesterday counted just as much as the flawless shots I hit today on many occasions.  Tally that up and I missed the cut by three. 
    I have to be more consistent start to finish in every event.  I have no room for ridiculous errors like I was making in round one in professional golf.  It felt good to play well today, but I still lost my $1,000 entry fee.  In amateur golf, you can walk away with your head held high, in professional golf you walk away with a lighter check book.  It has never been about the money for me, nor will it ever be, but the stark reality is in order to make a living at this game, I have to be more consistent start to finish and I have to keep getting better each day.  I have no room to sit down and take a break.  I have to keep grinding, persevering, and out working each and every other dime-a-dozen pro out there.  I have the talent and grit to be an elite PGA Tour member, I just have to keep going.  Days like today, and days like I have had over the past few months are frustrating, but at the end of the day I have to keep seeing the big picture that I am very close to obtaining where I want to be.  It isn't like I have to reinvent the wheel.  My game is really, really close to where it needs to be to compete anywhere in the world, I just need to tighten those last couple bolts in my arsenal.  Thanks for reading and all your support.  I have to move forward with my head held high with continued optimism.  I head next week to the Carolinas for a one day event on Monday and then a 4 day event on the Egolf Tour.  I'll supply the updates.  Let's go out there and get in contention!!!

    It's time for another update.  I have played in three one day events since my last post and played poorly in each event.  I played on April 30th in a Nationwide Qualifier in Athens, Georgia on a picture perfect day on an easy course.  I shot an even par 72 on a day where six under 66 was the number required to get through.  I was two under par early in my round, but gave those two shots back as my round progressed, and finished a distant 6 shots from where I needed to be.  Over this past weekend, I played in the unofficial opening tournament in Saint Louis at the legendary Forest Park Golf Course in the heart of the city.  It is a unique course that twists and turns its away around the middle of a sprawling park, where it is not uncommon to be distracted by skateboarders, runners, buses, wedding parties, picnic goers, and much, much more.  I once again struggled to a five over par 75.  Finally, today I had my local qualifying for the US Open.  I struggled to a five over par 76 on a tough course that demanded crisp ball striking, and accurate driving.  These three days of competitive golf really have me scratching my head, and leaves a sour taste in my mouth.  I wanted so badly to qualify for the US Open this year in San Francisco at Olympic Club where I played my last amateur tournament of my career in the US Amateur in 2007.  I bowed out really quickly from the qualifying by not even putting up a remotely competitive round of golf today, where I seemed lost from the onset.  I was nervous because I really wanted to perform well today, unfortunately I never settled down and the jittery feeling just never went away.  Over my last month and a half, I have missed 3 Monday qualifiers, missed two cuts by 1 shot, missed the US Open Local qualifier, and played poorly in an additional one day event in my hometown.  I by no means am trying to be a downer by writing this, but I want to put it in writing that my results speak for themselves, and I am extremely frustrated with my performance and getting absolutely zero positive results at day's end.
    This is a night where I need to put my foot down and draw a line in the sand.  I can either continue agonizing about my poor play, or I can flush these results out of my mind and move forward.  I am home for one more week.  This is very rare for me during my summer which keeps me on the road more days than not.  This gives me seven days to get organized and push forward with my game on the range.  I have a competitive break in my schedule, and this comes at a great time.  I need this week to get myself recharged both physically and mentally.  I want to succeed in this game so bad, and for me, I always fight the battle of wanting to succeed so much that it actually hurts me.  I am going to use the rest of this week to work extremely hard, but in a very relaxed setting.  I am going to be home, which feels really good, am I need to get back to the root of what has allowed me to succeed at this game:  having fun and just trusting in my instincts.  There is no better place for me to do this than at my childhood course in Saint Louis where I will be practicing the rest of the week.  The past few months have yielded few positive results, but I continue to take with me the fact that I am hitting a ton of really good shots.  Golf is such a game of momentum and confidence.  I mean, this really is what yields success.  All I need is just a spark of success.  I'm telling you, if I can get just an ounce of positive results here shortly, that will be the drop of gasoline that is going to start my burning forest fire of great golf.  I'm going to use this week of hard work to really put myself in position next week when I hit the road again in Kentucky to go out and finally get my year going.  If you haven't figured it out already, I am about as competitive a person you will find on all of planet Earth.  I have some news for you.  I am SICK, I mean SICK of losing.  I'm ready to change this soon.  If you get knocked down on the ground enough times, at some point you come to the realization that you don't want to be bloody and beaten any longer.  I'm getting up off the mat, and I'm ready to fight and start winning.  That is who I am.  I am a WINNER, and a good one at that.    Thanks for reading, and all of your support.  I'm ready to get things rolling.

The first two rounds at the NGA Tour event here in McCormick, SC are done. I ended up missing the cut today by one shot! The first round played very difficult with a stiff breeze throughout the day. I bogeyed my last two holes yesterday to finish at one over 73. What was frustrating was I played steady for the majority of my round, but missed two routine birdies from short distance on 15 and 16. This angered me enough that I lost my composure on the last two holes and made two bogeys. I went to bed last night realizing that these tiny mental errors are completely unnecessary. Today was the most flawless I have ever been in my entire career as a pro. I missed countless 10 footers all day and I never let it bother me. I shot a 70 that easily could have been in the low 60s. What's disappointing is that I missed my second consecutive cut by a shot, but I did so this week happy with the way I executed down the stretch. I came unglued for 2 holes yesterday and it cost me, but the ramifications of that became a learning experience. I'm going to chalk this up as a blessing in disguise, because I will now be able to play a full practice round Sunday in Athens, Georgia to give myself a great chance to put together a game plan to successfully make it through the Nationwide qualifier. I've told you once, I'll tell you twice. I'm playing great golf. My results are soon to follow. Forward I go, and I refuse to let a few poor results define who I am as a golfer. I am a champion and I'm ready to go prove it soon. Stay tuned.

    I am alive and well.  The past two weeks have found me in San Antonio, Texas and New Orleans, Louisiana for two PGA Tour Monday Qualifiers.  As most of you all are aware, the Monday qualifier for someone in my shoes is painstakingly annoying when you first arrive because I have to deal with the pre qualifier that eliminates the riff raff and terrible golfers that have no business being there for the Monday qualifier.  I shot a 73 in the San Antonio pre qualifier and a really nice 68 in New Orleans to breeze through the pre qualifiers at both sites.  Unfortunately, I shot identical 75s at both Monday qualifiers.  The knockout punch during both Mondays were two carbon copy blocks to the right that left me in the weeds.  I had to write down a triple bogey on my scorecard in both rounds and in a one day shootout, this forces you to play basically flawless golf for the rest of the 17 holes.  The annoying thing is that the other 17 holes I was playing steady, solid golf.  Unfortunately one bad tee shot during both rounds got me in trouble.  My miss pattern has to be better, even if it only creeps up 1 out of 50 swings, the big miss with the tee ball has to be eliminated from my rolodex of shots.  PERIOD. 
    I have been trying my hardest to use my brain to figure out what it is mentally and physically that is causing this and am working hard to solve it.  So far, I am chalking it up to needing to be more patient from start to finish and realizing that I don't have to put the full court press down on every shot.  I don't have to hit the heroic shot and birdie every hole.  If I did that,  I would be legendary because noone has ever come close to making birdie on all 18.  I am human, and I will continue to make mistakes, but I absolutely have to minimize my mistakes to a much lesser degree.  I feel really good about my game, and I have felt really good about my game for about 2 months now.  With that being said, I have to keep improving and start getting results.  I'm not going to be happy with just making cuts and getting by.  I'm ready to start winning and getting through these Monday qualifiers successfully.  That is how good I feel about my game, and I think it is 100% crazy if I felt otherwise.  I'm driving to McCormick, South Carolina for a 4 day NGA Tour event that starts as usual on Thursday.  I'm ready to go out and play well and get the ball rolling.  From there, I head to Athens, Georgia for my first Nationwide Monday qualifier of the year on April 30th.  I'm ready to take the next step, and I hope you all are ready to enjoy the ride.  Thanks for reading.

    Five years ago to the day I was walking the hallowed grounds of Augusta National as a participant in the Masters as an amateur.  Over the past half decade I have spent my life pursuing my dream of finding a place on the PGA Tour.  It has been quite the adventure.  As in any aspect of life, it has been filled with many highs and lows, yet I have enjoyed every step of the way.  Today my competitive golf found me a long way from th prestigious grounds of Augusta National.  I finished up play in the NGA Tour event in Windsor, North Carolina.  I missing the cut today by one shot after dealing with the weather delays all week.  The conditions were very difficult from the start with temperatures hovering at 50 degrees and strong winds off the Atlantic.  I played beautifully for the vast majority of my second round.  Through 16 holes I hadn't made a bogey and I had rallied myself into 33rd place sitting on the 17th tee.  I was in full command of my game, and for whatever reason I decided to three putt the par 5 17th for bogey, then snap hook my tee shot on 18 into the weeds, hack out, then eventually lip out my 45 foot par attempt and settle for another bogey.  By bogeying the final two holes and missing the cut by one, it was very easy to want to puke all over my nicely pressed khaki pants.
    In the end, it is a missed cut and a week filled with disappointment in the end result.  It is imperative that I take away the facts that I was extremely close to playing myself back into the golf tournament.  It really does come down to a matter of feet.  I'll try to explain.  The wet conditions made the rules committee allow the players to play the ball up in the fairways.  On 17 I missed the fairway by one foot, so I wasn't able to play the ball up and clean it.  I had mud caked on the left and top of my ball, which causes the ball to veer off line.  Had I been one foot right, I could have cleaned it off, and took an easy lash at the green in two.  Instead, I pulled out a 5iron for safety to make sure the ball didn't get away from me.  I missed the fairway with my layup by 3 feet, and unfortunately was dealt a flyer lie where I couldn't impart the proper spin on the ball to control it in the wind.  I hit my approach to 45 feet left on the fringe as the wind took ahold of my ball.  My first putt settled to 3 and a 1/2 feet.  As I addressed the second putt, the wind was whipping and I lost my balance just enough to cause my ball to lip out.  Bogey.  On 18, I can take ownership of my bogey as I snapped my ball into the weeds.  It was frustrating to see my huge 45 foot par putt that broke 7 feet left to right lip out instead of lip in, but such is life.  To sum it up, lets theoretically say my ball on 17 is a foot right in the fairway, and I manage to make a pretty stock birdie from there, I would have vaulted into 24th place and been staring down the top of the leaderboard.  So as you can see, my results just flat out have been poor this year, but my game has been painstakingly close to really putting up some seriously consistent results.  It just comes down to those few shots a round that have not been going my way yet.  I'm going to head home tomorrow and keep working hard with a huge smile on my face.  If you let the adversity get the best of you and the challenge the game endlessly throws at you get you down, I will be in for a long career.  I'm really close, and by keeping the right attitude moving forward I am 100% sure that great results will come my way soon.  I am too disciplined, talented, and stubborn to let this game keep my down.  There is no rest for the weary for me as I head to San Antonio on Tuesday for the PGA Tour Valero Open Qualifier followed by the PGA Tour Zurich Classic Qualifier the following week.  I am determined to play my way into San Antonio and get myself into contention.  That's the goal and an ambitious one, but I hold myself to a very high standard and I am ready to go get it.  Thanks for reading and I flat out am burning inside to win.

STOP RAINING!!!

5/5.....what does that statistic represent?  The first five events on the NGA Tour have dealt us rain delays each week.  Sitting around each day with massive weather delays is one thing that is seriously annoying about my profession.  That has happened each of the first five weeks out here.  Today was no exception.  I got to the course to find out we had a 3 hour delay due to inclement weather.  When we finally started play, my game fell flat on my opening nine holes.  I shot 40.  Luckily, I turned it around in 34 strokes on my back nine to salvage something on the day, but at days end my 18 hole score will not suffice.  I hit two shots from the fairway on my front nine that were right at the pin on down wind holes, but I misjudged the wind and my ball flew over the green both times resulting in bogey.  Those two bogeys stung because I made good golf swings.  I had a par 5 three putt par on number 8 and a terrible iron swing on number 9 from the middle of the fairway that resulted in a punishing bogey as well.  As you can see, the front nine really got me today through a couple poor swings and a couple swings that I just misjudged the wind. 
    I was happy that I rebounded on my back nine.  As I teed off number ten, I set a mini goal to play the back nine in two under par and I obtained my goal.  This gives me some momentum heading into tomorrow, however with further afternoon delays today, the earliest I will tee off tomorrow will be 4:48pm.  This will once again challenge my patience.  At the beginning of the year, I always set some goals.  Usually I keep these to myself, but one of the 10 goals I set this year was that I have to be a heck of a lot more patient.  I signed up for this tournament a long time ago, and set aside the entire week on my schedule to be here in Windsor, North Carolina.  So with that being said, what's the hurry?  The answer is there is none.  Whether I tee off at 6am or 6pm, I need to just go out there in stride and take my time and enjoy the ride.  Zero rushing or complaining about the weather.  It is frustrating at time sitting around more than half the day waiting to play and it gets me anxious, but I'm ready to start rolling with the punches of what mother nature often times brings in terms of Spring weather.  There is 100% chance I won't finish round two tomorrow, but I'm ready to enjoy all the shots I get to hit tomorrow until sunset with not a rush in the world.  Thanks for reading and here's to a little more patience.

    Hello from Windsor, North Carolina.  Last week came and went on the NGA Tour and it is time for an update.  I ended up finishing in a tie for 34th place last week in Snow Hill, NC on a course that presented a stern test to each player in the field.  At weeks end, seven under par won the event.  This is about as high a score as I have seen since I have turned pro out here on the NGA Tour, so you can imagine the difficulty that we all faced.  The wind howled and the greens were crusty and fast.  That made for some high scores.  I played steady the first two days, but had too many three putts that set me back.  In the third round, I struggled all day to a 76.  Finally in the last round I got my game in working order and polished off a 70 to jump up the leaderboard.  In summary, had I been able to string together an average third round, I would have been looking at a top 10 finish.  That is why we play four rounds to decide a winner.  It was nice to analyze at week's end that I was just one good round away from really threatening the lead.
    So a new week has arrived.  The course this week actually is a bit tougher layout.  The conditions will more than likely not be as severe as last week, but I would expect scores to once again not be low.  My game really is starting to come together on all facets, and like I said earlier, if I can string together four rounds of golf I strongly believe I can give myself a great chance at doing something great this week.  I was one round away last week, now it's time to go out there and break that door down.  I tee off tomorrow at 7:48am and will be ready to get after it.  I am really excited about having a great week and I look forward to updating you along the way.  Thanks for reading.

    Hello everyone.  I am back in Saint Louis for the remainder of the week.  It has been nice to refocus and work on some things during the break that will help me when I hit the road for two weeks come Monday for two NGA Tour events in North Carolina.  I wanted to share this picture with you above and why this is pertinent and serves as a heavy dose of motivation for me moving forward.  The picture above is of Bay Hill Club and Lodge.  This is my home course when I practice in Orlando over the Winter.  The PGA Tour is playing here this week.  What leaves a sour taste in my mouth and downright makes me nauseous to be frank is the fact that I am not there.  It is basically like saying there is a party at your house tonight, but unfortunately you are not welcome and have not been invited.  I want to play in the Arnold Palmer Invitational so bad, but I have not made the right steps yet in my career to allow myself access to the event.  This drives me crazy, but at the same time really inspires me so that next year at this time I will be competing for the title. 
    All day today, I daydreamed about seeing myself at the top of the leaderboard.  The reality for me moving forward is that I will  be playing back to back weeks in North Carolina on the NGA Tour.  I played a competitive round with my good friend Peter Malnati today in St. Louis and played well.  I am really starting to feel great about my game and am looking forward to what the next two weeks bring.  The NGA Tour may be a far cry from the PGA Tour and Bay Hill, but it is where I am at currently, and two weeks of sound play will be able to instill a bunch of confidence moving forward.  It is all about what I can do today to get better.  One day at a time with complete inner belief and controlling what I can control.  I'm excited about playing some great golf and building towards my future of soon competing week in and week out on the PGA Tour.  Thanks for reading and I look forward to updating you on my steady progress from North Carolina.

After a week of rain delays, the tournament ended fittingly. The event was canceled because we couldn't complete two full rounds. So, I was in Gainesville, GA for a week for nothing essentially. I got out of town luckily with my entry fee in my back pocket. I head home finally to Saint Louis for much needed week off after being on the road for a month. This was by far my longest stint traveling continuously since I have turned pro. I learned some useful information about the state of my game. I was playing to be perfect for the vast majority of my rounds. As I previously stated I could string together 5 consecutive holes for instance without missing a shot, but as soon as I hit an imperfect shot I came unraveled. Golf is about staying level headed and accepting the outcome. Getting frustrated with poor shots is so silly looking back on it. That's why golf invented the wedge. So that you can save par when you miss the green. My constant search for the perfect shot wore me out and put me on edge the moment I missed my target. Moving forward this next week I am going to keep the game in perspective and get myself ready to play with a calm demeanor that rolls with the punches regardless of the quality of execution. One shot at a time, with a specific game plan. If I do that I will be able to accept the results. More than likely those results will be great if I follow those guidelines. Thanks for reading. One month down. Plenty learned and gained. Forward we go.

    I have nothing new to report.  Usually if I am playing golf on a Sunday that is a very good thing.  That still has yet to be determined for me because we failed to play any golf today due to early morning rain that left the Chattahoochee Golf Course flooded.  This course in particular does not drain well.  It was sunny for the whole afternoon, but the morning showers left the course unplayable.  We will finish up round two Sunday morning at 8:30.  Nothing has changed for me.  I need to play a solid 9 holes to make the cut.  The event has been shortened more than likely to 54 holes at best.  I don't have to do anything too out of the ordinary, but just keep my composure and make a few putts.  I'll update you all tomorrow with hopefully the good news that I played 27 solid holes of golf.  Thanks for reading.

    First off, I need to give my condolences to my alma mater, the Missouri Tigers.  What a tough loss these guys had to face today on the hardwood to Norfolk State.  They had a great year, and it all got tainted with an unexpected defeat today.  Unfortunately for me, I played golf about as well as my basketball team did today.  We got in only 9 holes today due to delays and a late afternoon storm that blew in and halted play.  I started the day ideally minus one thru my first four holes.  On my 5th hole of the day, I faced a tough par 3.  I hit a 5 iron flush directly at the flag.  Unfortunately it took a hard bounce on the green and skipped over.  I failed to get up and down and made a bogey that I didn't see coming.  What bothers me is that I let one swing, that was actually the best swing I made all day distract me and bring me down.  I proceeded to play the next three holes in four over par and went from the penthouse to the outhouse so to speak.  My mental game has been so fragile lately.  I can hit 100 good shots in a row, and then I hit 1 bad shot and I start questioning myself.  This needs immediate attention and needs to be corrected in a hurry. 
    I have 9 holes tomorrow to start over and make three birdies so that I can play the final two rounds.  Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day, so a little luck never hurts.  Right now though, it is all about dealing with adversity.  This has been such a common theme for me since I turned professional in September of 2007.  I do so well when things are going great on the course, but I have often struggled with overcoming the inner demons that can creep after less than optimal shots.  The past few weeks, I would give myself a D- score in terms of how I have responded and acted after poor shots.  I need to shrug it off, realize it is a part of the game, and move forward.  No dwelling on the past, no yelling, no sulking, keep my head up, and just flat out believe in myself for the entirety of the round.  Most importantly directly after a shot that doesn't go according to plan.  I am going to hit more miserable shots in my career.  It is all about getting up off the mat and fighting back from the adversity that a bad shot tries to throw your way.  I am going to be stronger from here on out and I have this in writting here on my blog to make sure that I do.  Thanks for reading, and I'm ready to make some strides on the mental front.  Thanks for reading.

    The first round of the NGA Tour event in Gainesville, Georgia is in the books for me.  I shot an even par 71.  I hit the ball remarkably well all day, but just could not find a way to get my irons real close to the hole.  The difference between birdie putts from 10 feet and 20 feet on these quick greens translates into forced lag putts and a bunch of pars.  I made an extremely clumsy bogey on my 17th hole, the easiest hole on the course.  I was one under on my round, and hit it just over the green in two on this par 5.  It took me 4 heavy handed shots to get the ball in the hole from there and I limped away with a bogey.  If I take away that momentary laps in my round, I would have been right where I needed to be.  I'll take away a lot of great things from today, and look forward to going out tomorrow afternoon and playing my game.  My theme tomorrow is going to be start to finish.  By this I mean, I need to be 100 percent all in from the first tee shot to the last putt on 18.  I really do feel great about my game, so tomorrow I expect my score to reflect exactly how I feel about the strides I am making.  Stay tuned...

    Why might you ask do I have a picture of a toilet on my blog?  Well, this toilet represents the pathetic golf that I have played over the last three weeks down here in Florida.  It is filled all the way to the brim and needs to be flushed.  Here in lies the good news.  In the game of golf, no matter how terrible or how well you are playing, the game starts from zero the following week.  FLUSH!  Did you here that?  The toilet is now clean and I'm back to square one.  I recorded a 74 today to miss the cut by three shots here in Ocala, Florida at Golden Hills Golf and Turf Club.  All kidding aside, the past three weeks has been immensely frustrating, but that is part of the beauty of sports.  You will have both highs and lows.  What is it that has caused me to struggle?  The answer for me comes down to having a more efficient short game and eliminating double bogeys or worse from my scorecard.  I have got to tighten my miss pattern with my shots that are off line so that I can give myself a chance to recover.  My bad shots have been so bad the last three weeks that I was forced to take penalty shots, chip out sideways from the woods, and just plain not give myself any chance at saving my pars.  When I have missed the greens just slightly, my chipping and pitching has done me no favors because of poor execution.  If you mix that in with severely windy conditions that Florida, Puerto Rico, and Mexico have to offer you can see that the game has been a struggle for me.
    Like I said, I am ready to start next week fresh and really start to get my game in working order so that I can contend for a championship next week in Gainesville, Georgia for my last leg of the NGA Tour before a week off.  The Chattahoochee Golf Club is one that has very fast greens which I like.  I have played well there in the past and this is very comforting for me moving into next week.  Even thought this post may sound like a downer, I feel really good about my game.  I know I'm close to really playing exceptional golf even though my results have been poor.  My scores are not showing the fact that my good shots have been really good of late and that my short game is starting to make some strides.  Next week I can just feel is going to be a great week.  I will have the weekend off to relax and get some work in on my game, and maybe that is just what I need.  A breather before I let loose next week with the caliber of golf I am ready to start playing.  Maximize my potential and go out there and be ready to dominate.  Thanks for reading and I'm telling you, success is going to be here soon.

    It has been a tough past 5 days on the golf front for me.  I made it safely to San Juan Puerto Rico Sunday night, but my golf game didn't seem to travel with me on Monday.  In fierce winds on a relatively simple golf course I managed a 75 on a day where it took 67 to get in the PGA Tour event.  It was another case of being unable to keep the bogeys and double bogeys off my scorecard.  I headed from there to Tampa, Florida to play in the PGA Tour pre qualifier for the Transitions Championship.  The conditions were once again more beneficial for flying a kite rather than playing golf.  Sustained winds of 25mph plus made the golf course ridiculously tough.  It was roughly 100 guys playing for the top 14 spots and ties to advance to the Monday qualifier.  I played beautifully all day, but made one bad swing on my 13th hole and ended up registering a quadruple bogey 8 on the hole and shot a 74.  I missed qualifying by one shot.  Had I made a decent swing from the fairway on 13 rather than dunking it in the water, I walk away with a par,and I would have finished in 3rd place.  That is how fine a line I have been battling lately and it has been quite frustrating not getting the results I have wanted, but being so painfully close.
    Today was the first round of the NGA Tour in Ocala, Florida at Golden Hills Golf and Turf Club.  I was determined to not let my mishaps the previous week deter me from excelling this week as I teed off this morning.  I got off to a reasonable start on a golf course that is quite challenging and at week's end will not yield many low scores due to the challenge that it presents.  I made a birdie on my 11th hole to get my round back to even par for the day and gained quite a bit of momentum as I had 7 holes left to finish my round off in style.  For whatever reason, my game went into hibernation and I bogeyed 4 of my last 7 holes for a 76.  Once again, a frustrating finish to a round that seemed destined to be a good one.  I have seen a lot of crazy things in golf in my profession, and over the past three weeks since I arrived down in Florida to start my season, for whatever reason the game has just not been coming easy to me.  I am flat out not going to play exceptional golf week in and week out.  However, it has been hard to swallow that the previous three weeks have really been uneventful and my golf has been quite lousy.  I know I am really close to finding my form again soon, it just is going to take some perseverance, and trust that the last few weeks have just been a bad stretch of golf that happens in my sport.  I am once again going to push the delete button from my memory bank and start over again tomorrow.  I can do nothing from the past.  Tomorrow starts anew, and I look forward to going out there and giving the course hell from the moment I walk on the property.  My game is close, and I am ready to go show it.  Thanks for reading and results will fall my way shortly.

My season has officially started with this week's NGA Tour event in Tallahassee. It ended in a bittersweet fashion, but there were many positives to take with me. I shot rounds of 72-70-75 and had to withdraw the final round because of a travel conflict. We had massive delays yesterday due to 3 plus inches of rain that fell in the area. That pushed today's play back substantially. I am playing in tomorrow's PGA Tour Monday qualifier in Puerto Rico and the only way for me to get down there in time was to withdraw. It is the first event I have ever had to pull out of, so it was a weird sensation, but it was in my best interest for the success of my career. I will receive the last place check, which will essentially give me my entry fee back. Yesterday on my back nine I can draw a lot of confidence as I battled to make the cut. I shot 3 under over the last nine to make the cut on the number. It was great to feel some pressure down the stretch. Unfortunately I didn't get to finish the event, but this was a one time deal where my travel schedule was tight, and I was dealt a tough blow with the weather delays. I'm extremely excited about going out tomorrow and playing a great round of golf in Puerto Rico. Plenty of confidence moving forward, even if it was found through a shortened event. Onward and upwards. Thanks for reading. Further success is near!

    There isn't really anything of significance to report, but it is my responsibility to fill everyone in.  I had a poor performance in Mexico and shot an 81.  The Iberostar Playa Paraiso Golf Course is cut out of a dense jungle.  With that being said, I hit a few foul balls that found this area.  When you start losing golf balls, this in turn leads to big golf scores.  At days end I registered a quadruple bogey, a triple bogey, and two double bogeys.  That four hole stretch led to an aggregate of +11 on the scorecard.  This all was rooted on basically four particularly poor swings that fueled the fire.  71 was the magic number to get into the event.  So if I could have found a way to keep those four wayward shots in play off the tee, I would have been right in line with where I needed to be score wise.  I hit a lot of great shots, but my bad shots were really bad and it cost me. 
    Golf is a game of misses and today I played in the pre qualifier for the Honda Classic in West Palm Beach, Florida.  To continue with the theme of this post and the last two rounds of golf, I once again struggled with my misses and shot a 76 with two double bogeys and a triple bogey.  These big numbers came from two errant drives and one really poor 7 iron that found a water hazard.  If you take away those three swings, I would have been looking at a score well under par just like in Mexico.  My misses are really putting a dent in my scorecard.  So to sum it all up, I have to get back to the drawing board, and figure out what it is that has caused me to hit these handful of shots off the map.  I am going to hit more bad shots in my life, that is a fact.  It is my responsibility through diligent practice to find a way to significantly tighten my miss pattern to where if I miss a drive, I can still recover on my next shot or if I miss a green, I still give myself a chance to save my par with an up and down.  The past week hasn't offered me that chance due to unwarranted penalty shots that I am accumulating do to the vast dispersion of my misses.  Today will be a blessing in disguise, because it will give me the entirety of the weekend to really get to work on my game on the range and find a resolution to these issues and start to pour the foundation on what is going to be a productive year that yields alot of success.  I didn't find it this week, but it will be here soon enough.  Thanks for reading and all of your support.

Hello. Well tomorrow my season really gets going in first gear. I'm in Atlanta on my way to Cancun, Mexico for the PGA Tour Mayakoba Classic qualifier. I've spent the past few days in Orlando getting ready. I feel really good about the state of my game and look forward to competing tomorrow. The course is one I am very familiar with having played there over the previous three years. The Internet is a bit dodgy down in Mexico, so as soon as I get an Internet connection I'll update you with my progress from the qualifier. I can think of nothing better than a week in Mexico to get 2012 started. Here we go.

    I fired a second consecutive 73 to finish just outside the money today. I'm going to get my venting out first. Yesterday I had my towel stolen along with my cart before my round. This morning in the first fairway I found out we were playing the ball up in our own fairways. Unfortunately yesterday I was unaware we were doing the same thing. So to play half of the tournament with my ball as it lied as my competitors were marking, cleaning, and placing it is easy to see I was at a disadvantage. It was printed very small on the rules sheet, so I am partially to blame, but it really pissed me off that it wasn't mentioned on the first tee or written in bigger print/outlined. Anyway, that is just some of the stuff you have to put up with on the mini tour level, and it serves as motivation to perform at your best and leave the mini tours for good. I hit alot of good shots again today, so I am happy with my progress. I just need to start scoring better. I have a few weeks off before I head to the PGA Tour Qualifier in Mexico in mid February. My results obviously aren't where I want them yet, but I can take alot with me moving forward. My game is getting real close to where it needs to be. I need to realize that this is just my 4th competitive round of the year and that it's January for goodness sake. It's a long year, and it's going to be a great year. Thanks for reading.

    I apologize for not updating after Hawaii. I didn't qualify for the Sony Open after shooting a 75 on a windy day. I hit some good shots, but poor iron play left me scrambling all day. I did have one memorable par save when I holed out a wedge from 130 yards after toying around in the woods for a few shots. That shot made for a nice laugh after the trouble that I had put myself in before hand. The rest of the week I spent in Maui for a great friend's wedding. It gave me some more time to relax and think about what I want to accomplish this year. I'm currently in Houston, Texas. I just finished the 1st round of a two day Adams Winter Series event. I recorded a one over 73 and stand in 16th place, five off the lead with one round remaining tomorrow. I obviously am not thrilled with my overall result on this windy day, but I am really proud of the way I hung in there on my back nine after dealing with an adventurous opening nine of 40 that left me reeling and facing some adversity. I'm always excited when I knock adversity square in the teeth and fight back. A second nine 33 clawed my way back up the leaderboard and gives me at least a chance tomorrow with a solid day of play tomorrow to finish high on the board. I'm looking forward to the challenges tomorrow brings, and using my back nine today as a springboard into great things tomorrow. Thanks for reading and I'll update tomorrow with the final results.

    Hello from Kahuku, Hawaii.  I am here at Turtle Bay Golf Club on the North Shore of Hawaii finally getting my 2012 campaign under way.  Today was the Pre Qualifier for the Sony Open.  I managed a one under par 71 today to easily advance to tomorrow's qualifier.  I have posted a couple of pictures above from the course.  The first one is of the "Official" Towel Dip.  I thought this was hilarious.  I was wondering to myself where the "unofficial" Towel Dip might be located. Haha!  The second picture is the green and backdrop of the 17th hole.  It is very hard to concentrate on the green as you look at the vast beauty of the Pacific Ocean and the waves crashing some 50 yards from you.  Absolutely stunning.  The Hawaiian tourism industry can thank me later. 
    It was nice to be able to see a lot of positives out of my round after my long layoff from playing.  I hit alot of quality shots today and I am excited to build on that moving forward tomorrow.  I played today with two other professionals, one of which was a professional in an entirely different sport: surfing.  I enjoyed watching his laid back demeanor today.  That is definitely what I am pushing myself to be more like.  I often get uptight and it hurts me.  The surfer vibe is one of not-a-care-in-the-world, and it was nice to see first hand.  If you can have the guts to get on a board and ride a 30 foot wave knowing darn well if you fall, alot of bad things can happen, then golf must not really seem that hard.  Kidding aside, there are alot of parallels to golf and surfing.  In golf you have to see the shot you want to hit, and then get up there confidently and execute what it is you see in your mind without a fear in the world.  Same goes in surfing.  You see the wave coming, then you have to visualize what you want to do with it and flat out have no fear and do it. 
    Anyway sorry for rambling, but it is always exciting playing with different athletes and picking their brain on how they think.  I can't wait for tomorrow's opportunity to go out and have another great round at Turtle Bay.  It is such a beautiful place, and if you have never been to Hawaii I strongly recommend putting it on your bucket list.  The simplicity of just being able to be outside in a short sleeve shirt in the middle of Winter really feels great.  After bundling up in Saint Louis day after day 4 layers deep, I feel like I lost 40 pounds playing golf today with the range of motion I had in solely a collared shirt.  Another great day of 80 degrees and sun is projected for tomorrow.  Heck that is what the weather is 365 days a year out here.  I'm just going to go out and enjoy the entirety of what tomorrow brings.  Thanks for reading and I'll come back with an update soon!