The First Day of Competition

Finally, I got to throw some plastic and have it count for something real at Am Worlds this year. Being in the A Pool and playing one round with some of the best players out there at Kenwood was a good experience for me. I got up early, ate breakfast and then hopped in the car with another guy staying at our hotel who needed a ride to the course. I had plenty of time to warm up without over exerting myself and even though my putting had been off in practice, I was ready for the round to start.

Oddly enough I got to start on hole 1. I took a picture of that just so I could claim that I was on the lead card once in this tournament. I know it really isn't the lead card, but I am going to pretend that it was. My card for the first round was awesome. I played with John, who was a local Minnesota guy and Waren who now lives in Oregon. The fourth guy in our group never showed up. I think that is the first time I have had that happen in a World Championship. There were so many great things about this group. We were just talkative enough to make it interesting. We were all very respectful. And we all played a solid game. Good form and strong mentally. Sure we all made mistakes, but we all kept it together.

The hot round in my pool was 10 under par and I shot 4 under par. I am tied for 12th in my pool and quite pleased that this will help me reach the goals that I have set out for myself. The tough part about the game at this point is that I have to keep doing what I was doing today and not think about where I am at. I have done that in past years and it really gets you no where. Play smart, play consistent, do not make mistakes.

This evening was also the fly mart. Lots of stuff to buy. Not much that I actually want. I was able to find a full run down on the field events. I found out that I not only cashed in both the skill shot and putting competition, but I also finished in the top 10 in both. I finished 6th in the Skill Shot and 8th in the putting competition. So there, I made $76 dollars back from my entry fee. I technically have to spend it at a local shop, but that is a little more than half of what I paid for my entire entry to be here in Minnesota for this event. Add that to the players pack that I got and I am sure that I am ahead.

Tomorrow is another day. Keep it simple. Play smart. Play my game.