I cannot believe it is already the middle of June! Summer has flown by and golf has been a huge part of the summer thus far. I am actually writing from Scottsdale, Arizona right now, getting ready for a great event this week. It has been really cool to get a couple bigger events scheduled for this summer, working my way up into some really great amateur golf competition, and it is only the beginning!
Summer started off with the Washington State Champion of Champions event, held in Dupont, WA at the Home Course. This was a really special event for me and I was stoked to get the opportunity to play in the event after winning the Bellevue City Championship in 2015. God bless my parents and family for helping me get back to Washington while school was getting ready to end. It was hectic during finals week but the event was a blast, played with some awesome guys, and really played pretty solid golf. I ended up finishing T9 in the event, shooting even par 71-73 to kick off the summer was great for the confidence!
Graduation was next up, and unfortunately, golf was sort of put on hold for the week with family and friends being the focus during the end of the school year! I got home on May 9, and got ready for the Washington Open, in between shifts at work. The tournament is held at Meridian Valley CC in Kent. It was a struggle for me during the event. I gave myself tons of chances, lot of opportunities from the fairway, but my iron game was not sharp, neither was my short game. A bit of an off week and I finished with 77-78-79. If that is the worst it will get.. I will survive just fine. It is easy to lose confidence after struggling in an event like that, but one event can’t be what defines your game.. just get over it and move on to the next tournament, and I am thankful for having more events to play.
The Bremerton City Amateur was an event that really helped me gain confidence in my abilities as a golfer. In 2014, I finished runner up in the event, getting into a playoff for a chance to win the tournament, only losing on the second playoff hole to a great birdie. I know the golf course like the back of my hand, and it is one I absolutely love. Gold Mountain is a name that is recognized by a lot of golfers, and I proudly call it my home course when I am home! Anyways, that was next on the schedule, and it was great to get back to the event. Chad, my boss and also caddy, surprised me and showed up on the tee to carry my bag. We played solid on the first day, unfortunately not putting very well, I ended with about 15 greens and a few over par.. that equals a LOT of putts and 74 at the end of the day. Gotta make putts to score, and the second day was much better. I got off to a great start again, having good birdie looks on the first three holes, only to make a double bogey on 4. I came back with a great birdie on number 9 and followed with birdies on 11, 12, and then 14 to get to 2 under for the round. I try and forget my score, but I knew I COULD have a chance with an even par finish. Bogeys on 16 and 17 halted my momentum and I finished with 72. Felt good to get on a roll and really give myself a chance on the final day, finishing 4th in the event, I was happy with that.
Next up was The Royal Oaks Invitational! This was a really exciting event for me, competing in my first ROIT was a privilege and I loved the experience, not to mention some good golf. After the Bremerton City, I was starting to feel better about my game and get some confidence back. Everyone rants and raves about the ROIT, and I was stoked to have a chance to play such a great golf course. Weather was beautiful, golf course was incredible, and the guys were great to play with, needless to say, I had an awesome experience. Played with some great guys for the first two rounds from Puyallup. Round one was up and down for me, a hitting the ball well, not making too many putts again, but I had a lot of chances on the course. Whenever I get opportunities to score, it is hard to complain. The second day, I took advantage of those opportunities and shot even par, putting me close to the top 20. The field was close to 200 guys, and I was really pleased with my play on the first couple of days, but the final round was yet to come. I have been hitting the ball great, which had given me a lot of chances, on the course, and that continued during the final round. I got to play with a group of local Portland boys, who were an absolute blast on the course, and made me a lot more comfortable during the final round anxiousness. I started off very nervous, Sam Miller came out and was on the bag, my wonderful Mother also came down from Tacoma to watch, and I wanted to play great! The front nine was a bit rough, I think I shot three over par, which was not exactly the start I was looking for. If I have learned anything from my past experiences, it is that scores can’t be forced and patience definitely wins in the end. I made the turn with a lot of confidence in my chances and it paid off. I parred 10-14, and hit it close on 15, making my first birdie of the day. After making that birdie, I quickly gave it right back on 16 with a bogey. Here is where it got interesting for me.. I lost my tee ball way to the right on 17, we couldn’t find the ball, after I turned back to head back to the tee, none other than my mom finds the ball, way farther up than we had been looking in the trees, and I was back in the game again! Thankfully, I had an opening in the trees from about 180, punching it about 30 yards short of the green, I had a chance to save par. The pin was tucked as they are for most final rounds, but I had some green to work with, knocked the shot dead weight into the cup for a birdie! Quite the change of events. Golf is a funny game, but my patience and trust really came through for me. It is not very often that happens, but it is ALWAYS worth the wait when it does. I ended up hitting my approach on 18 within 2 feet of the cup for a birdie to finish with 73, not bad after double bogeying my opening hole of the day. The final round gave me a three day total of +4, which was great for my first time at the event and playing the course, which put me in the top 15 for the event! (75-72-73)
This week, I am in Scottsdale Playing the Southwestern Amateur. This is the highlight of the summer for me, and I am BEYOND excited for the event. I posted a photo of the golf courses, which are incredible, and go along really nicely with an incredible field of some of the best college players in the country. I am almost considered an old guy for this event, many of the guys are Freshman or Sophomores in college. This tourney will be fun and I will fill in more when the event is over!
-Keynan
Comments