Hello from the Sunflower state!
I'm currently in Kansas for the last part of the Symetra season. It's crazy how fast this season has gone by! To catch you up on my travels, I was in NY for two events, NH and VA during July and August. I had three weeks off in July from tournaments which was great to be home and relax a little bit. After my three week break I drove out to Albany for the first of four events. I shot 77-70 and missed the cut. I had simple up and down mistakes the first round and didn't make many birdies. It was great to bounce back the second round and shoot under par but unfortunately it wasn't low enough of a round. I knew I was playing well and it was a matter of time for my scores to come together. I enjoyed being in Albany because I stayed with my same host family as last year, Adam and Katie. It's always fun to catch up and visit with people from the previous season of traveling. One good restaurant my friend and I went to in Troy was The Illium Cafe. Great choice for delicious sandwiches!
My next event was in Syracuse, NY and it's one I'll NEVER forget. I started out the trip with a wonderful breakfast at Mother's Cupboard. This place is so little but their pancakes are huge!! Between three girls we each had two eggs with hashbrowns and then split one pancake. We came so close to finishing the pancake! I played in the pro-am in Syracuse and enjoyed a fun day out on the golf course with my group. I felt comfortable and confident with my game going into the first round. I had dinner Thursday night with some friends, the tournament director and a staff member of the Symetra Tour. At one point during dinner, our conversation was about hole-in-ones. My friends had all mentioned they had 3-4 and I sadly said I had 0. Ironically enough, the next day I had my FIRST EVER hole-in-one on my 17th hole during the first round!!!! I had no birdies going into it and was +2. I thought to myself "Just put a good swing on it and give yourself a chance for birdie." The next thing I hear was people cheering who were at the green as my ball rolled into the bottom of the cup. Sadly, I couldn't see my hole-in-one because it was an elevated green with the pin being 124 yards but playing 130 yards with elevation. That was one perfect 8 iron swing :) It was such a cool feeling having people cheer that loudly for my shot. I finished my next hole with par by just lipping out a 10 foot birdie putt. I finished the rest of the tournament with 71-69-74 for a T40 place. I was 12th going into the final round but a cold putter hurt on Sunday. Big thank you to Pat, my host mom for being so sweet again this year and for having a cake made in the Players Area for my hole-in-one. I felt confident heading into the next week in Goffstown, NH.
Driving to Goffstown had to be one of the prettiest drives I've ever done. After driving through numerous states the past two years, I can honestly say that Vermont sticks out the most. There were such beautiful views during my whole drive. My scores this tournament weren't what I was expecting to happen after last week's results. I shot 79-74 and missed the cut. Same things happened with poor putting and simple up and down mistakes. My host family had a professional bass fisherman in the family and I was able to enjoy a relaxing night out on the lake. I did catch a bass that night which made a better ending to my tough weekend. John and Judy were a great host family and I even tried shark for the first time...it was good!
While traveling I am able to visit friends/family if my schedule allows me to and this year I was able to visit my cousin in CT. It was so fun to see family and to get my mind off golf for a couple of days before heading down to Richmond, VA. I was able to meet their new baby boy who is so cute and was only 12 days old. It was an enjoyable two days :)
My final stop was to Richmond, VA which was supposed to be a 6h30min drive that turned into a 10h drive. It was unreal the amount of rain and traffic I saw on that drive. Lucky for me that my host family is absolutely wonderful and had a sign wishing me good luck along with a goodie bag when I arrived. That definitely helped to change my mood and made me feel at home because I had stayed with Michael and Judi last year too. I shot 73-74 and missed the cut by 1 that weekend. I struck the ball so well...probably the best of the 4 week stretch but putted terribly. I just have to stay positive and know that my golf game will work out by staying patient and confident. The next day I played in a USGA testing event that tested whether or not distance measuring devices helped with pace of play. It was interesting to see the times and how they will determine the results for future events. That night I drove to Raleigh and stayed with a friend to cut my driving time to Jacksonville, FL. Once I drove to Jacksonville I flew home that night and enjoyed a two week break at home. I'm happy to say I have changed putters and put a new Wilson Infinite putter in my bag for these next events on the Symetra Tour. I was able to play with the putter in a pro-am in Milwaukee benefiting the DDC through the Medical College of Wisconsin and a Pro-Member event at my home course, Racine CC. I enjoyed my new putter during those events and during my practice days!
I have two events in Kansas starting this week and will then make my way to FL! Looking forward to finishing off the season on a good note with some great golf! :)
Staying positive and being confident!
I'm currently in Kansas for the last part of the Symetra season. It's crazy how fast this season has gone by! To catch you up on my travels, I was in NY for two events, NH and VA during July and August. I had three weeks off in July from tournaments which was great to be home and relax a little bit. After my three week break I drove out to Albany for the first of four events. I shot 77-70 and missed the cut. I had simple up and down mistakes the first round and didn't make many birdies. It was great to bounce back the second round and shoot under par but unfortunately it wasn't low enough of a round. I knew I was playing well and it was a matter of time for my scores to come together. I enjoyed being in Albany because I stayed with my same host family as last year, Adam and Katie. It's always fun to catch up and visit with people from the previous season of traveling. One good restaurant my friend and I went to in Troy was The Illium Cafe. Great choice for delicious sandwiches!
My next event was in Syracuse, NY and it's one I'll NEVER forget. I started out the trip with a wonderful breakfast at Mother's Cupboard. This place is so little but their pancakes are huge!! Between three girls we each had two eggs with hashbrowns and then split one pancake. We came so close to finishing the pancake! I played in the pro-am in Syracuse and enjoyed a fun day out on the golf course with my group. I felt comfortable and confident with my game going into the first round. I had dinner Thursday night with some friends, the tournament director and a staff member of the Symetra Tour. At one point during dinner, our conversation was about hole-in-ones. My friends had all mentioned they had 3-4 and I sadly said I had 0. Ironically enough, the next day I had my FIRST EVER hole-in-one on my 17th hole during the first round!!!! I had no birdies going into it and was +2. I thought to myself "Just put a good swing on it and give yourself a chance for birdie." The next thing I hear was people cheering who were at the green as my ball rolled into the bottom of the cup. Sadly, I couldn't see my hole-in-one because it was an elevated green with the pin being 124 yards but playing 130 yards with elevation. That was one perfect 8 iron swing :) It was such a cool feeling having people cheer that loudly for my shot. I finished my next hole with par by just lipping out a 10 foot birdie putt. I finished the rest of the tournament with 71-69-74 for a T40 place. I was 12th going into the final round but a cold putter hurt on Sunday. Big thank you to Pat, my host mom for being so sweet again this year and for having a cake made in the Players Area for my hole-in-one. I felt confident heading into the next week in Goffstown, NH.
Driving to Goffstown had to be one of the prettiest drives I've ever done. After driving through numerous states the past two years, I can honestly say that Vermont sticks out the most. There were such beautiful views during my whole drive. My scores this tournament weren't what I was expecting to happen after last week's results. I shot 79-74 and missed the cut. Same things happened with poor putting and simple up and down mistakes. My host family had a professional bass fisherman in the family and I was able to enjoy a relaxing night out on the lake. I did catch a bass that night which made a better ending to my tough weekend. John and Judy were a great host family and I even tried shark for the first time...it was good!
While traveling I am able to visit friends/family if my schedule allows me to and this year I was able to visit my cousin in CT. It was so fun to see family and to get my mind off golf for a couple of days before heading down to Richmond, VA. I was able to meet their new baby boy who is so cute and was only 12 days old. It was an enjoyable two days :)
My final stop was to Richmond, VA which was supposed to be a 6h30min drive that turned into a 10h drive. It was unreal the amount of rain and traffic I saw on that drive. Lucky for me that my host family is absolutely wonderful and had a sign wishing me good luck along with a goodie bag when I arrived. That definitely helped to change my mood and made me feel at home because I had stayed with Michael and Judi last year too. I shot 73-74 and missed the cut by 1 that weekend. I struck the ball so well...probably the best of the 4 week stretch but putted terribly. I just have to stay positive and know that my golf game will work out by staying patient and confident. The next day I played in a USGA testing event that tested whether or not distance measuring devices helped with pace of play. It was interesting to see the times and how they will determine the results for future events. That night I drove to Raleigh and stayed with a friend to cut my driving time to Jacksonville, FL. Once I drove to Jacksonville I flew home that night and enjoyed a two week break at home. I'm happy to say I have changed putters and put a new Wilson Infinite putter in my bag for these next events on the Symetra Tour. I was able to play with the putter in a pro-am in Milwaukee benefiting the DDC through the Medical College of Wisconsin and a Pro-Member event at my home course, Racine CC. I enjoyed my new putter during those events and during my practice days!
I have two events in Kansas starting this week and will then make my way to FL! Looking forward to finishing off the season on a good note with some great golf! :)
Staying positive and being confident!