A Final Report from Africa

In terms of golf results, my trip to Africa was definitely disappointing. I played very poorly today in the final round of the El Jadida Classic. In fairly calm and very easy conditions, I failed to make a single birdie and posted a final-round 75 to drop into a tie for 49th position for the week. That, combined with my missed cut last week in Marrakech at Samanah Country Club, certainly were not the results I was looking for or expecting from my golf game here in Morocco. Outside of the results from the two tournaments, however, I would say that my time in Africa was very good. I did get to play tourist a little bit in Marrakech and gained a little bit of a feel for a completely different culture. I also gained some experience being apart from things that I take for granted at home, such as my cell phone and a readily available kitchen for making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (or any of the many more complex dishes that I often prepare for myself). I learned how to cope with a little bit of jet-lag and that I need to use more caution when diving into new types of foods. On top of having some fun and learning a lot about playing international golf, I also really saw some positive signs from my golf game, even though the final results were disappointing. It has certainly been a great trip overall, and I know that I will build on the positive things, learn from everything else, and be a better golfer in the future because of this journey.

As far as my golf game goes, I'm not really sure how to describe the way my game has felt the past few days. I am actually starting to feel very comfortable with my ball-striking, but it seems that I was never really able to get very much from it on the course this week. I hit the ball very solidly and was close to being on-target with most shots the last two days, but it seems that I never quite had my distance and my direction right at the same time. Couple that with a putter that was just icy cold today, and it is a very good recipe for a lousy score. My short game was pretty lousy all-around today, and that is something that I really need to spend some time practicing in the coming weeks. I believe that my short game is one of my strengths and know that it will be a big part of my success, I just need to put in a little extra work in the near future to get my short game back to where I expect it to be. My game is in good shape; I just need to keep sharpening the edge. Good tournament results will follow.

I'm excited about a lot of things right now. I'm excited about the potential I see in my golf game. I'm excited to get home and see family, friends, and Miss Alicia (soon). I'm excited to put the battery back in my cell phone and turn it on for the first time in two weeks. I'm excited that it's only a couple of weeks until it's time to compete again. (I have decided not to go to Louisiana for the Nationwide Tour Monday Qualifier there, by the way.) But perhaps most of all, I'm excited to settle back into a regular practice routine so that I can get after my process goals en route to accomplishing my outcome goals. I believe that this is going to be a very big year for me, and I'm excited to continue working towards making that a reality.

Morocco has been great, my friends, but the United States is home to most everything I love in this life, and I can't wait to get back to them. Thank you for following me. I'll drop a quick line on here in the next day or two just to let everyone know I'm back on the home turf. Good things are in the near future. Keep it here to hear about them all!