Rocky Start but Good Patience

My game was lousy in round 1. After a great start where I executed well for the first three holes, I just sort of lost it. I was hitting tee balls everywhere, mishitting iron shots, and putting with the touch of a Romanian power lifter. It looked ugly, but I stayed committed to my plan and never started to press. Finally, after a bad tee shot on the 13th hole, I pulled it together and salvaged a birdie on my way to playing the next four holes in four under par. A disappointing bogey on the 17th ended my run and capped me at three under par for the round. It was a round of 68 to start the event. Southern Pines Golf Club played as easily as any course we've played this year, so that is not a good score, but I am very proud of the way I battled and kept myself in the tournament.

Tomorrow I tee it up at Little River at 10:40. I'm going to stay relaxed, have fun, and commit to an intelligently aggressive plan on every shot. Good strategy and fearless execution will equal a good round tomorrow even if I can't quite find my "A" stuff. Check back here for the good news from round 2!