Marshall

I just finished competing in Marshall, Minnesota. I feel that my game is close, but I still have a lot of things to work on. In Marshall I shot 69-72-69 (3 under). Although I was not too pleased with the way I played in the last 3 days I managed to still shoot scores to keep myself in contention. I have to continue to remind myself that golf is not a game of perfect.

In my first round I had two bogies and 4 birdies for 69, In my second round I had my first double bogie as a pro. I did not manage to get up and down from 25 feet form the hole, and then continued to 3 putt. That was my second hole of the day, I managed to grind out a 72 in very hot and windy conditions. In the third round I had my first eagle as a pro, ironically again on my second hole of the day, Isn’t it funny how golf works sometimes. I played solid and was 4 under through 9 holes, which brought me back into contention to win, however I bogied my 10^th and 11^th holes after missing two 6 foot putts. I could only finish with 7 straight pars to finish with 69. I was frustrated that I could not keep my round going, however I did move up a few spots to finish Tied 5^th for the tournament.

The results can be found here.

http://dakotastour.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/dakotastour10/event/dakotastour108/contest/1/leaderboard.htm

After assessing my game, and schedule I have decided to not travel to Wichita for the Monday qualifier for the Nationwide Tour. I have been doing a lot of driving and playing golf over the last 3 weeks and feel that a rushed 10 hour drive from Minneapolis, to then play a practice round and then compete on Monday is just a little too much. I feel that I need to work hard on my game over the next couple of weeks before I play in the more major Dakota tour events. And a rest from driving would be nice.

Just thought you would like to know a few of my stats since turning Pro.

Of the 10 rounds I have played so far my Scoring Average is 69.9 (-12)

I average 4 birdies per round, 10 pars and 3 bogies.

Par 3 Average is 3.13

Par 4 Average is 4.03

Par 5 Average is 4.46

I have only been hitting 8 Fairways (62.12%)

13 Greens (71.67 %)

And Average 30 Putts per round.

Hope all is well with Everybody

Thomas

Minnesota State Open

Since my last tournament in Britton, South Dakota I have been very busy. On Wednesday I had a relaxing day I took the opportunity to spend some time at the range focusing mainly on my short game and wedges. It was nice to put in a quality practice session after all the traveling I have been doing. On Thursday I was back on the road. Since I was due to compete in the Minnesota State Open Friday through Sunday I would not have the opportunity to get a practice round before the beginning of my next tournament in Marshall so I decided to make the 3 hour drive to Marshall on Thursday to sneak in a practice round. I left at 6am, played a practice round in a cart by myself at 930, and was back on the road at 1230 to get back to Minneapolis at 330. I did not have a practice round at Bunker Hills before the State Open as I had played there before and felt I knew the course well enough. Instead when I got back to Minneapolis I had a light practice session mainly focusing on hitting shots I would in a tournament, and lots of putting.

My first round of the State Open was late in the afternoon. I went to the range and practiced for about an hour and a half in the morning to kill time. I struggled with my ball striking especially tee shots during the entire round but managed to shoot a scrappy 71 (1 under) thanks to my chipping and putting. Even though I did not take advantage of the easy conditions I was not to upset with my score.

My second round was in the morning. I was hoping to post a low number and hopefully make up some shots on the leaders. I once again struggled with my tee shots to get the ball in play. It is very hard to make birdies from the trees when you have to pitch out, and I as beginning to get frustrated that I was continuously trying to scramble for pars. I made a terrible bogie on my 9^th hole of the day an easy par 5. I was in the middle of the fairway with 230 yards left and walked off with 6. During the walk to the 10^th tee I managed to calm myself down (even though I bogied my 10^th hole) made a couple of good saves and birdies to shoot 72 (Even par). The scoring was low on the second day I ended up 8 shots behind the leader tied 13^th.

Later in the afternoon I went to the range to focus mainly on driving. After a good session I felt that my swing was where I need it to be to give myself an opportunity to make up some places and try and salvage a decent pay check on Sunday.

The final round was a mixture of great and bad ball striking. I struggled with my driving for the first seven holes and managed to still be 1 under for the day thanks to some good par saves. However I don’t know what happened from the 8^th hole My ball striking turned around and I couldn’t miss a shot, however I could not make a putt, well anything from 6-15 feet. I made 3 birdies and 8 pars on my last 11 holes. The 3 birdies were longer range putts, and the missed putts were from short range, burning the edge on every putt. I ended up shooting the weirdest 68 I have ever shot. I was also frustrated that I did not birdie a single par 5 in the last round. I had to remind myself that golf is not a game of perfect. As I perfectionist I struggle with this concept, as I expect to make everything, but it is simply not possible. I made plenty of those putts earlier when I wasn’t hitting the ball as well, so I guess it is a law of averages. I couldn’t be upset that I shot 68 and moved up a few places, but I am still left wondering what could had been.

In the end I made a decent pay check finishing tied 6^th at 5 under.

The results for the Minnesota State Open can be found here.

http://mnpga.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/mnpga10/event/mnpga1055/contest/1/leaderboard.htm

I received a useful tip from my coach Simon Thomas back home in New Zealand after reading a couple of my blogs. He explained “Remember to always look for the good in what you have done before looking at what could have been better”. As many of you that know me well enough I show characteristics of a perfectionist, which is great, but can hurt me at times as I get down when I do not hit the perfect shot of putt. The perfect shot does not always go where you want it to. After assessing my State Open performance, sure I wasn’t too pleased with my ball striking, but I am very pleased with my pitching chipping and putting. It is something that I have struggled with over the last several months, so rather than dwelling on the poor shots, I need to congratulate myself on my short game performance.

Last night directly after the State Open I made the drive down to Marshall, Minnesota. I completed my first round in the morning shooting 69 (2 under) This put me in Tied 2^nd after the morning scores were posted with 2/3 of the field playing in the afternoon.

Results for Marshall can be followed here.

http://dakotastour.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/dakotastour10/event/dakotastour108/contest/1/leaderboard.htm

Sorry this blog is so long I had not updated in a few days.

Thomas

Britton Pro-AM

On Monday morning I drove 4 hours to Britton, South Dakota. Once I got off the main highway there was not much to see, apart from farms, plains and a few trees. Britton is a small town in South Dakota with a population of only 1000. When I arrived I realized that I had no coverage for my phone. However it was nice to relax and play a tournament at a country course. When I arrived I had a practice round, practiced for a while, and then found the place I was staying. The tournament was a one day Pro-AM format with 3 amateurs and 2 pros in teams. I got off to a great start birdying my first 3 holes, and was 4 under through 6. However I bogied my next two holes which were back to back par threes, which killed the momentum I had. I managed to get back to 4 under with 7 holes to play, however I did not play very well my last 7 missing two costly short putts, finishing with 3 under. I finished tied 6^th, which was good enough to at least get my money back, but left me wondering what could had been. I was annoyed that I could not keep my round going, and my only bogies were on three par 3s.

Up next for me is the Minnesota State Open. I am really looking forward to playing in this tournament as a Pro (I have played the last three years as an amateur). I love the golf course Bunker Hills, and can feel the progress in my game is leading me to a breakthrough very soon. The Minnesota State Open is Played over Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and scoring can be found on this website.

http://mnpga.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/mnpga10/event/mnpga1055/index.htm

As soon as I complete my final round I will drive three hours to Marshall, MN for my next tournament beginning Monday till Wednesday.

I will keep you updated during these next couple of tournaments.

Thomas

Waterloo Open

Hi All.

I just got back from a disappointing tournament this weekend. Its never fun missing the cut in a golf tournament and this is my first missed cut in a professional event. Looking back on the tournament I have a lot to learn. I came into this tournament playing well and full of confidence in a good performance. However my expectations got in the way. The course the Waterloo Open was played on is a short 6200 Yard course providing plenty of birdie opportunities. And with my confidence in my game I gave myself too many expectations rather than just taking the tournament one shot at a time. I found it hard knowing not only did I need to go low, but I needed to go low in the first round as the event was only 36 holes with an 18 hole cut. I only managed one over 73 and the cut was 69. I hit my drives in play all day but just couldn’t get the birdies to drop. Not only was I frustrated that I hit good putts that didn’t drop the round took over 6 hours to complete in hot humid weather. I’m still happy with where my game is at. The putts don’t always drop, and it certainly was one of those days.

Up next for me is a one day event in Britton, South Dakota, which I leave for tomorrow morning. The golf course is only 9 holes, which I will play twice, and very short. It will be a real country feel in a small town. I am looking forward to the different experience, hopefully making plenty of experience a long the way. I will update you all on my results there.

After Britton, I have the Minnesota State Open on Friday through Sunday, I am very excited to play in this event. I really enjoy the golf course Bunker Hills, and feel good things will happen in the weekend.

Directly after the tournament I will be competing in another 3 day event in Marshall, MN about 2 and a half hours from Minneapolis.

For now this is all.

See you in Britton.

Bakker Crossing Pro-Am

On Friday morning I drove 4 hours from Minneapolis to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. I traveled with three other friends also competing in the tournament. I did not really know what to expect when I got to the golf course for the practice round, but once I arrived I felt very comfortable. I was surprised how many other players I knew. I played a practice round with Ben Patrick and Andy. We decided to play a little competition called Umbriago to decide who would cook dinner, luckily Andy and Myself managed to pull off a win, but Ben and Patrick cooked a great dinner of spaghetti. I felt pretty good with my preparation for the tournament and was excited to tee it up the following day.

The tournament was a 36 hole event comprising of 91 professionals. My first round started off a bit slow, having two horseshoe lip outs from 6 feet on the 3^rd and 4^th holes. In the past I may have got frustrated that I hit a good putt that did not go in, but I managed to remind myself that patience is important because it will happen to everyone at some stage. The conditions were very windy which made the course challenging at times. I turned the front 9 one over par although I could easily had been 3 or 4 shots better I but still managed to stay patient. On the back nine I hit it close on a few holes and had three consecutive birdies on 12, 13 and 14 to post 2 a 2 under par 69 on my professional debut. I was happy with the performance but disappointed that I did not hole many putts considering how well I hit the ball. After day one I was tied 5^th 2 shots behind the leader.

Day two was the day where low scores were needed. The pin positions were slightly easier but there was hardly any wind. I turned the front 9 one under par with 8 pars and one birdie but once again missed a lot of chances. I knew if I had any chance of winning or a high finish in the tournament I would need a strong last 9 holes. I managed to make 4 birdies on the back 9 but also had 4 weak bogies, with only one par on my last hole. Shooting 70 cost me a lot of spots as people passed me in the easy conditions. One thing I learned from this week is bogies are costly. I had 10 birdies in two rounds, but also 7 bogies, to finish on 3 under 139. I finished tied 14^th 5 shots behind the winner.

The results can be found on this link.

http://dakotastour.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/dakotastour10/event/dakotastour102/contest/1/leaderboard.htm

I managed to pick up a small paycheck but I am left wondering what could have been. Considering this is my first pro tournament I have learned a lot from the weekend to take to my next tournament and know what I need to work on before the next tournament beginning Saturday. I am disappointed that I could not finish higher after putting myself into contention, but I know if I keep putting myself into contention I will break through.

I have three days back in Minneapolis to fine tune my game, working especially hard on my wedges and short game as this weekend I need to score low numbers to be in contention on a shorter golf course.

My next tournament is the Waterloo Open in Waterloo, Iowa beginning on the 17^th.

See you in Waterloo, Iowa.

Thomas

Professional Career Begins!

Hi All. I thought a great way for you all to keep up with my golf career would be to create a blog that you can keep track of my progress. It has been a while since I have given you all an update on my life living in The United States and goal to become a professional golfer on The PGA Tour.

In the beginning of May I played in my last college tournament representing The University of Minnesota, this was The Big Ten Men's Golf Championship. I finished 20th Individually and the team finished 8th. Unfortunately We needed to win Big Tens to extend my college career to Regionals, and Nationals. I was lucky enough to have my parents come watch me compete in the Big Ten Championship and attend my graduation ceremony at The University of Minnesota. In my four years of college in USA I managed to complete both an Undergraduate, and Graduate degree. I gained a Bachelors in Science in Sport Management, and a Masters in Education in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Sport and Exercise Science. Since then I have had two months to fine tune my golf game, and I feel I am ready to take the step to begin my golf career as a professional. Over the next couple of days I will continue to prepare for my first professional golf competition this Saturday and Sunday. I will begin my professional golf career playing mainly on the Dakotas Tour July through September. Bakker Crossing is my first tournament this weekend @ Bakker Crossing Golf Course in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The following weekend I will be competing in the Waterloo Open in Waterloo, Iowa.

Luckily I will not be traveling alone to most of these tournaments. I will be traveling with Ben Pisani, Patrick Datz and Andy Paulson, three other recent graduates from the University of Minnesota who have similar goals to become a successful professional golfer.

Below is my schedule of golf tournaments until September:

July 10-11 Bakker Crossing Sioux Falls, SD

July 17-18 Waterloo Open Waterloo, IA

July 20 Britton Pro-Am Britton, SD

July 23-25 Minnesota State Open, Bunker Hills, MN

July 26-28 Marshall GC Marshall, MN

Aug 2 Nationwide Tour Monday Qualifier for Preferred Health Systems Wichita, KS

August 5-8 Nationwide Tour Preferred Health Systems Wichita, KS

August 12-14 Arrowhead GC Rapid City, SD

August 19-21 Minot GC Minot, ND

August 27-29 Fargo GC Fargo, ND

August 30 Millbank Pro-Am, Millbank, SD

September 1-3 Dakota Tour Championship, TBA

I plan on updating my blog regularly while on the road, and will post pictures and stories during my process to become a successful professional golfer.

See you in Sioux Falls this weekend.

Thomas