It seems strange that we are already finished with the majors and it’s only the start of August, but as I have mentioned before, this season is an anomaly due to the Olympics taking place.
Of course, there were first time winners in all four majors this year, which doesn’t happen all that often and I think in this instance says a lot about the strength in depth in the men’s game right now. There were some wonderful host venues this year, too, and Baltusrol was once again the perfect stage to play out this year’s final major. What a golf course. Hats off to the PGA for an excellent set-up and to the staff at the Club who did a great job presenting the course and keeping it playable when Mother Nature was doing her best to make things awkward for everyone! And congratulations to Jimmy Walker on winning his first major.
As we know, Baltusrol is always a tough test but if you drive the ball consistently in the fairways you can make a score here. And that’s the only thing that let me down on Thursday. I just didn’t hit enough fairways out there and that inevitably had a knock-on effect on my ability to score. I battled hard for a 73, but it left me a lot of ground to make up on Friday.
The good thing was I drove the ball much better in the next couple of rounds, though, and that in turn meant I could hit more greens, set up more birdie opportunities and crucially build some consistency and momentum in my scoring. I shot back-to-back 69s on Friday and Saturday and I was pushing hard to make some big strides up the leaderboard, but this is a course that needs respect so you can’t chase things too hard here.
Anyway, as I’ve said throughout this summer, my game’s in good shape. I’m seeing my shots and hitting the ball nicely. My putting stroke feels good, too. All that’s missing is the final result, but I feel like I’m so close on that front and I just need to stay focused on my golf, keep working and keep pushing hard as we move towards this year’s FedEx Cup playoffs and into the remainder of the season.
Right now we have some ground to make up on the points list, but I’m extremely motivated to try to do something about that in this week’s Travelers Championship. I played this tournament last year for the first time since finishing tied-10th in 2002, when I shot 64 in the final round. Then in the first round in 2015 I shot 66. That would be an ideal 36-hole start this week, to say the least! I certainly enjoy this golf course and the fans here are fantastic. It’s a wonderful tournament with a great sponsor, so naturally I’m really looking forward to playing here again.
On a sad note, I want to use this forum to express my condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Suzanne Wright, the co-founder of Autism Speaks, who passed away recently. Suzanne and her family were an inspiration in the autism community and their contribution and determination to the cause is immeasurable. Through Autism Speaks they helped raise awareness for autism and really made such a difference to those on the Spectrum and their families.
Just before we sign off, I want to send big congrats to the Golden Lions on their Super Rugby semi-final win against the Highlanders in Joburg at the weekend; it was an unbelievable game and they made South Africa proud. The final against another Kiwi side, the Hurricanes, on their home turf in New Zealand is going to be some game and I absolutely can’t wait. Good luck guys!
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