I haven't really written a lot about my golf this season, so I'll talk about recent tournament rounds, that I can remember, including some in the Newport Cup.

Part 1 will cover before Cup events.  Part 2 will be Cup stuff.  Just separating my thoughts a bit.

I don't remember when I first started the swing thoughts I have now, but I've been working with them for a few months now and it really seems to make my game consistently better and better.  In my pre-shot routine, I start with my creating my grip with the club just behind the ball.  I like to make sure my left thump is pointing down the shaft with my left wrist parallel with the face (at least what feels parallel with the face).  Then I create my stance that feels slightly open.  If my stance gets into a position of aiming right, I'll have no chance to hit my intended target.  I like to feel more weight on my left side than what is normal because it helps start the back swing. 

Before takeaway, my objective is to make sure that if I were to swing, where would the ball go?  If it is not at my intended target, I'll adjust.  Those who played with me recently at the Cup probably noticed that I do a dance with my feet before swinging.  I do it to make sure I feel aimed at my target and am good to go.  If it feels way off, then I'll step away from the ball and start the whole routine over again.  In the swing, I only have one thought with irons and two thoughts with my driver and fairway wood.  With irons, it's to make sure I feel my left wrist being flat at the top of my swing. This will insure the face, for me, is squared at impact and that I finished the turn on my back swing, to start the in to out path on the down swing.  With driver, I have the same thought as above but with the added thought that I want to watch the club head's blur go through the ball.  Reason is because it will slow my aggressive swing down a bit and relax myself enough to make sure contact is good.  With my fairway wood, the added thought is to feel like I'm swinging up on the ball.  I know this isn't "right" for how you're suppose to do it, but if I think swing up on it, I usually come into the ball flat versus hitting down with it too much.

My biggest fault, recently, has been short game.  More specifically, the shots between 45yds and 65yds.  It's more than a easy pitch and less than a full swing, and I get super flippy and start skulling the darn ball.  But, at the range for 5 minutes during the Cup, I decided to really grind it out and figure something out.  I know that I needed to get my hands ahead of the ball and have them stay there.  So, I got I figured it out.  Hands ahead take the club back to a half swing or so and go through and it worked.  So that really helped me come out shooting darts for the 2nd and 3rd days of the Cup.

Before this trip, I had major issues, but because my long game and putting was on point, I made up for the losses.  It's really annoying to say that.  To go out there and have 4 - 5 birdies a round, but because you chunked/skulled 2 or 3 pitches in that zone, you shot even or one over.

Before the Cup, I played in my PGA chapter's Fall Fling.  It's 3 pro ams at 3 different courses, but all close to each other.  I had the same team for the first two days and a different team for the third day.  The first day was at a course I liked and was really ready to go low.  At the first hole, it is cold and raining, so I had an extra layer on.  Felt tight and i hooked my 3 iron into the drink, getting a double bogey.  I had one other double bogey because of a skulled pitch in my no good zone.  Thing is, I hit a long ball off the tee and yeah I'd rather have a 55yd shot than a 90yd one, because you should be closer on average.  But it simply wasn't the case for a while because of how bad I was from 55yds. But I kept trying to get it down.  I think I finished with a 76 that day.

The next day was a good day, finally.  It is a pretty open course off the tee, and lots of driver-wedge opportunities.  Not as many in my no good zone, but more between 75yds and 100yds, which is my very good zone.  I don't remember how many greens in regulation I had, but it was close to 15 or 16.  I made 5 birdies, 3 of which were from getting on in 2 on a short par 5 and 2 putting, and I had two other decent holes that I managed to sink a putt on.  I kid you not, I had at least 10-12 putts from 5-20ft for birdies/eagles and I missed every single one them, save for 1.  I breezed by the hole within an inch or sat on the lip on all of them.  I was putting well, but nothing would drop. I did have one bad hole, because i got sloppy on my routine and sliced the bejesus out of it OB.  So got a double on the easiest hole on the course.  STUPID.  BUT, I shot my first 60's tournament round of 69 (-3).  Of course, I had to think about all those barely missed putts and the stupid double, and to talk about how much better it could've been.

On the 3rd day, we played a course that was my home course for a year, a little while ago.  But I still know the course very well.  After a 69, I was pumped to go low again.  I hit the ball well enough but my approach shots got wary and I had several no good zone shots that sucked again.  I don't remember too much of the round, but I still shot a 73 (+1).  A course like that, I feel like I should be shooting in the 60's pretty consistently.  It was just an off day, I guess, although a 73 is still a decent score.

The 2nd and 3rd days, I managed to pull a T-5th gross place to earn a few player of the year points.  The winner the 2nd day was at -7 and the winner the 3rd day was at -3.

Oh yeah, halfway through my round on the 3rd day, I noticed my driver had a nice crack in the face, but I still hit it decently enough. Luckily my G400 was already in the mail and I got it before heading to North Carolina.