Getting Back to Business

After a much needed week off, I am now starting a busy three-week schedule which will include the Memorial Tournament, the St. Jude Classic and finally the US Open.   My first stop will be in Dublin, Ohio for the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village.  This tournament is always one that I enjoy competing in because of its tradition, golf course, community, etc.  In addition, the combination of Mr. Nicklaus’ hospitality and Morgan Stanley’s event sponsorship makes for an unbeatable combination.

I am excited about the progress I am making with my golf game.  The AT&T Classic in Atlanta was my last event and I finished T8.  I was leading through 54 holes and unfortunately did not make anything happen on Sunday.  However, my play the first 3 rounds definitely helped my confidence.

In returning home last week, I continued to work with my instructor, Kevin Smeltz to refine my full swing and short game.   During the first three rounds at Atlanta I shot 67-69-67 and felt good about every aspect of my game.  Therefore, Kevin and I did not need to make any major changes to my swing this week and simply focused on building on the progress we already made.

As always, I appreciate my fans taking the time to read my blog.  Hopefully, I will have some good play in report over the next three weeks.

CH3

My Latest!

I really appreciate everyone taking the time to visit my website.   My fans are an important part of my career;  I enjoy seeing Bridgestone hats in my galleries and knowing that people are rooting for me.  In addition, I enjoy reading your e-mails and I try to respond to as many as possible. 

Since my last blog, I have some exciting news off the golf course–I signed a new corporate sponsorship with Lexus.  Lexus has been involved with golf for several years and increased their presence in 2007 by sponsoring the US Open.  After I turned professional in 2000, Lexus was the first car I purchased, and Heather and I have been Lexus owners since.  So, given my history as a Lexus owner, it is hard to describe how proud I am to wear the Lexus logo and to have the opportunity to partner with such a great company.

On the golf course I have competed in three events since my last entry:  the FBR Open, Northern Trust Open and WGC Accenture Match-Play.   At each event my game showed flashes of great golf, but the results should have been better.  At the FBR, I played extremely well through the first two rounds, but was unable to sustain my momentum on the weekend.  At the Northern Trust Open, I hit the ball extremely well, but putted poorly.  At the WGC, my game was in good form and I was pleased with my play on both days.  On Wednesday, I finished eagle-birdie-birdie to rally and defeat Stephen Ames.  On Thursday I made seven birdies, but lost to Colin Montgomerie.  Each day I was well under par, but on Thursday Colin was the better player.  Hopefully, I will get another shot at Colin in September at those little matches between the US and Europe!!!

Overall, as the Tour wraps up the West Coast swing, I am excited about my game.  I made all six cuts on the West Coast and was inside the top-10 at some point in four events.  So, to quote my good friend and world #1 Tiger Woods—“I am Close”.   

This week I am home in Orlando for some rest and work with my instructor, Kevin Smeltz.  Most of my work with Kevin will focus on the short game with some continued work on my full-swing.  Kevin is a great resource, he based in Orlando which is convenient, but most importantly Kevin is good player himself (former NCAA All-American).  So, he understands that low scores happen with the short game and he constantly reinforces this to me.  I am confident that a few sessions with Kevin will help me find that extra bit consistency that held me back on the West Coast.  

I return to competition the week of the PODS Championship in Tampa, so I hope to have something great to report after the event.  Again, thanks for your support.

CH3

2008 Update - My First Entry!

After a busy off-season, I am beginning to find my rhythm for 2008.  By winning the Nissan Open in 2007, I qualified for the Mercedes Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.  In setting my schedule for 2008, I decided to play two events in Hawaii, take a week off, play two events, take a week off and finish the “West Coast Swing” with the last two events.  This schedule is allowing me to return home for periodic visits with my swing coach to monitor the progress of our off-season work.

This week, I am competing in the FBR Open in Scottsdale, Arizona–my fourth event of the season.  I have always enjoyed playing in Arizona, dating back to my junior golf days when I finished runner-up in the 1996 US Junior Championship in Flagstaff, AZ.  I have traditionally played the FBR Open.  The Phoenix Thunderbirds do a nice job in organizing the event and the crowds are the largest, rowdiest on Tour.  So, hopefully, I will hit it stiff on #16 this Sunday and the crowd will go nuts!!!   

Thus far in 2008, I have played fairly solid, making all three cuts while finishing T8 at the Mercedes Tournament of Champions and T13 at the Buick Invitational.  As many of my fans know, I am using Bridgestone equipment in 2008 and I am pleased with my performance.  The engineers and staff at Bridgestone have been great to work with in making my transition seamless.

Thanks to all my fans for visiting my website and taking the time to read my blog.  Ideally in my next entry, I will give you guys some insight into some good play to close the West Coast.

CH3

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