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February 2004
12 February, Panama Masters, 1st Round, 72 (level)
Well that's the first round of the new season under my belt. Started in
the middle of the day in what I can only call a boiling heat. Didn't get
off to the best of starts with a double bogey at my opening hole. I settled
down with a few pars before I made a bad bogey on the par 3 5th hole to
drop to three over par for the round. I got one shot back with a birdie
on the 6th and eventually reached the turn in 2 over par. I birdied the
10th and then made a superb eagle on the par 5 12th to take me to one
under-par for the day. Things were looking up. After a few more pars I
ending up making bogey on the 16th to drop back to level. Two pars to
finish with and an even par round of 72 was the result. Sitting middle
of the field, so need a good round tomorrow to move up the leaderboard
and make my first cut of the season. David.
16 February, Panama Masters, 2nd Round, 71 (-1), 3rd Round 69 (-3),
4th Round 72 (Level)
Sorry for not been in touch this week but the email and phone connections
back to the UK have been a bit unreliable this week. Well that's the first
event of the season finish. Finished tied for 34th in the end, still a
cut made and a cheque as well. The second round was one of those up and
down rounds that should have been a lot lower. Made 6 birdies but offset
those with three bogeys and 1 double bogey. I started the round with three
straight birdies but then came the double bogey. A few more birdies and
bogeys followed until I birdied the 9th hole, my eighteenth to finish
the round 1 under par and make the cut. I played really well on Saturday
and shot my low round of the week, a three under-par 69. Made the turn
at 1 under par before birdies on the 12th and 17th holes got be to 3 under
for the round and 4 under for the tournament. Started the final round
with high hopes of another good round and a chance to move up the leaderboard
but I never really got going. I bogeyed the 1st hole of the day for the
third straight day. I was an incredible 5 over par for that hole for the
week. Got it back to level for the day as I reached the turn. Just as
things were looking up as I headed into the final 9 holes I made a terrible
double bogey at the short par 3 11th. I kept my head together and birdied
the next hole before a final birdie on 15th got me back to level par for
the day. Three pars to finish with and I had finished on 4 under-par 284
for the event. Not a bad start to the season but hopefully things will
only get better from here on for the rest of the season. Off to Costa
Rica for my next event so hopefully the communications will be a bit better
and I can let you all now how I'm getting on from day to day. David.
19 February, Costa Rica Open, 1st round, 76 (+5)
It felt like playing Troon on a windy day today. The temperature might
not have been the same but the wind was very strong and gusting all day.
I was first off today at the ungodly hour of 6.30am from the 10th tee.
This meant a very early rise! Got off to a decent start with a couple
of pars but then a made a bogey 5 on the long par 4 12th. A bit like last
week, I got the shot straight back with a birdie at the very next hole.
It's always good to come straight back with a birdie after a bogey. Was
feeling good with my game in difficult conditions. On the short par 3
17th I made a stupid bogey and eventually made the turn at 1 over par
36. That was where things started not to go so well. I bogeyed the 1st
and then double bogeyed the difficult 2nd. I got one of the shots back
with a birdie on the par 5 3rd before making two more bogeys on the 4th
and 5th holes. With the wind gusting it was difficult to judge shots but
that was no excuse as just a few lapses in concentration cost me some
of these dropped shots. Four pars to finish with and I was round in 76,
5 over par. That has left me down the field but with a later tee time
tomorrow hopefully I can make a move up the leaderboard and get into the
weekend to make another cheque. David.
20 February, Costa Rica Open, 2nd Round , 76 (-4)
Well I needed a good round and I got it today, playing very well all day
in difficult conditions. Got off to a great start with a birdie at the
very first hole but gave it back straight away at the second, a hole that
I can't seem to get right. I then got on a roll and birdied the next four
holes along with a birdie at the 8th and had reached the turn in 31, 5
under par and was back to level par for the tournament. I went into the
back nine full of confidence wanting to go even lower. Unfortunately bogeys
on 10 and 12 stopped me in my tracks. I did get both shots back on the
next two holes but a bad bogey on the 16th dropped me to 4 under for the
day and 1 over for the tournament. That is where I finished for the day.
Pleased with the way I played but it could have been a really low round.
Made the cut, so it's off to get a little practice in and hopefully can
make a move this weekend and get a high finish. David
21/22 February, Costa Rica Open 2rd Round, 74(+3), 4th Round 70(-1)
Saturday is moving day and I was all hopeful that after yesterdays round
and the confidence high that I could keep things going and produce another
low round. Well before I knew what was happening I was 4 over for the
day after 5 holes. Bogeyed the first before I made yet another double
bogey on the second hole. That's 5 over after 3 round for that hole alone.
Even after the bad start I thought I could get the shots back. I birdied
the 7th to get one off the shots back before the turn. made another great
birdie on the 13th before I dropped another shot with a bogey on my penultimate
hole. Finished with a round of 3 over-par 74 to drop from 22nd place at
the start of the day down to Tied 40th by days end. very disappointed
with my score but I feel I am swinging the club well. Away to get some
practice in before hopefully producing a good round tomorrow and conquering
that 2nd hole! Pared the second hole for the first time this week but
again I got myself in trouble early on in my round with dropped shots
on the 3rd and 5th holes. I was playing well but not getting the results.
Got both shots back with birdies on the 6th and 8th holes to make the
turn at level par for the day. With 9 holes to play I wanted to finish
strong and things were looking up when I birdied the 12th but a bad bogey
on the 14th dropped me back down to level par. Just as it looked like
a nothing round I made a superb birdie on my final hole to shoot 1 under-par
for the day and finish the event on 3 over-par 287 in tied 31st place.
Not exactly what I was looking for but it was still an under-par round
to finish with. Well that's 2 events down and 2 cheques made. One more
event in Guatemala to go before heading back home. Hopefully I can make
it 3 out of 3 and end my trip on a good note. David
26 February, Telefonica CA Guatemala Open, 1st Round, 72 (Level)
Not the best off starts to the tournament. Played well for seventeen holes
then made a hash of the last. Was off early today so missed most of the
heat. After 3 solid pars to start my round I bogeyed the par 4 4th from
no where. Got the shot back with a good birdie on the par 5 6th where
I hit a great drive and a great second into the heart of the green. Made
the turn at level par and then birdied the 10th to get to one under. My
best birdie off the day came at the long par 3 14th where I hit a great
long iron on the green the converted the birdie putt. I was playing well
and striking the ball great but over the closing holes I couldn't convert
any off my birdie putts. Then came the 18th, a long par 4 at 450 yards.
A solid par would give me a round of 2 under 70 but after a bad drive
and a bad second I ended up making double bogey and finishing on level
par 72. Didn't enjoy Lunch after that. Will need a low round tomorrow
to make the cut as I'm tied for 75th after day one. Off to get some practice
in. David
27 February, Telefonica CA Guatemala Open, 2nd Round, 76 (+4)
Very disappointed. Didn't play that well today. I either hit it very close
or very wayward. Just didn't get into a rhythm this week. After my opening
round off level par I knew I needed a low round just to make sure I made
the weekend. Starting on the 10th I pared the opening three holes before
I made back to back bogeys on 13 and 14. Got both shots back though on
the next two holes with a birdie on the par 5 15th and another on 16.
Just as I thought things were turning in my favour, I went and bogeyed
the long par 3 17th. Turned at 1 over, so needed a good back nine but
unfortunately it didn't happen. I made a terrible double bogey on the
par 5 2nd. I wasn't going to give up and so a birdie on the 3rd and the
6th got me back to one over for the day and the tournament. I knew I needed
to make at least 2 birdies on the closing three holes to stand a chance
of making the cut so I attacked the flags on the last three holes. Unfortunately
I finished with three straight bogeys instead, to finish on 4 over for
the day and the tournament. A bit disappointed with this weeks event but
I made two cuts out of three so hopefully I can keep up my good play when
I get back to Europe. David.
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