We’re a few months into the season and tour is in full swing! Eric and I have been running WhalePants clinics all over the southwest and they’ve been super successful and rewarding. I am really enjoying our tour so far and am looking forward to the rest of the season running about the same. Tournaments, however, are a whole different breed.
We started our first big tournament with Gentleman’s Club Challenge, where I took my first cash at a National Tour event. This is a pretty big milestone for me. Although I finished in the last spot that get’s paid, it showed me that I do have what it takes. What I did that tournament was played consistent and solid disc golf. I may not be the BEST golfer out there, but I do have a good skill set and if I can play mediocre for every round, I can find myself in the money.
Although I still look at that tournament as a great accomplishment, I find myself a few weeks, and a few tournaments later where I haven’t been able to play consistent golf. I have played some of my highest rated rounds in the last few weekends but mixed in with those, I’ve found myself floundering and playing some of the worst golf I’ve seen myself play in a long time. I’ve done well to bounce back, often shooting my best golf after, but almost every tournament, if I could have just played mediocre golf that one round, I would have been in the cash again.
I’m out here and learning every shot, every round, every tournament and I don’t have unrealistic expectations, but I DO know that I have potential if I can just get out of my own way.
What I’ve most recently learned is I throw bad shots when I’m tense. Maybe that seems obvious, but recognizing the actual trigger is really important. I played my first round this weekend at the Open at Temple with Paige Pierce, my fellow team mate on both Whale sacs and Team Dynamic Discs. She has skills well above mine but what I learned in that round is how relaxed her game is. I have come a long way in playing more relaxed rounds but her composure through bad shots and holes is outstanding and something to learn from. My second round was my hardest at the Temple where I opened up well, feeling relaxed and confident, then one par 5 that is particularly tricky, I threw out of bounds twice and took a double OB 9. That pretty much summed up the rest of my round as it seemed I had given up and forgot how to trust my abilities. This is what I want to learn. How to bounce back and keep the confidence no matter what happens.
My goal this year does not have numbers or placings or ratings involved. My goal is to play my game, to play with a enjoyable mindset and to not let the bad shots shake me. There is a lot left to the tour this year and I am happy that my game IS advancing and I am shooting 900 rated rounds every tournament, I just need to make that more consistent and I will be happy with where I’m at.
Thanks everyone for reading and that you everyone else for supporting us out here on the road! Our impact already is blowing me away, we love growing the sport out here and it’s so great meeting fans and fellow disc golf addicts.
Keep calm, have FUN and keep loving disc golf.
Thanks to my sponsors! Dynamic Discs, Booom, The Nati, Launchpad
