There's a First Time for Everything

Outside of Q-School last fall, I hadn't played an official event as a professional. This weekend served that opportunity for the very first time as Grey Rock Golf Club hosted The Austin Open. I got off to a good start chipping in for birdie on the opening hole. I was still dealing with some nerves in the opening stretch, but managed to recover well from my misses until a few bad breaks finally caught up with me and I finished round one with a disappointing 5 over par 75, which included a quadruple bogey 8 on the final hole. This was only half of the theatrics that Kevin Na showed us at TPC San Antonio on Thursday at the Valero Texas Open carding a 16 on the 9th hole, but needless to say I was very disappointed in myself.

I was a little out of sorts while preparing for the second and final Round. I was tied for 33rd place, 8 shots behind the leader, and worst of all, it was very windy. I have been known to play well in just about any condition (Cold, Wet, Rainy, Hot, Dry, Fast, etc.) but for some reason I just don't seem to perform well in the wind. So I spent a considerable amount of time on the range just hitting awkward shots that would stay low and not really aiming them at anything specific. I was just trying to feel myself hitting the ball solid, since this is more important than anything when playing in heavy winds.

By the end of the day, I had bettered my score by three shots shooting a two over par 72, which in comparison to the conditions was about six better as the course played to a stroke average three shots higher than day one. Only 19 of the 87 players in the field improved on their first round score in the final round.

I still felt as though I wouldn't crack the top ten and earn my first official paycheck as a golfer, however I was pleased at the grit I had shown on a windy golf course that isn't kind to someone missing their spots. As it would turn out, my 147 Total was good enough to tie for 7th place as many of the upper half of the field struggled to put it together in the afternoon. So, with my first official event as a professional comes my first official check from a golf tournament. In a very small way this is a childhood dream realized, and I am very proud, although it's just a stepping stone to where I want to be. You have to start somewhere, and there's a first time for everything...