Back Home For Now

I braved some grueling driving conditions to make it home yesterday. Donner's Pass was brutal. I played a Nationwide qualifier Monday without success. The course was tough, weather was bad, but 75 just won't cut it. I think 70 played off (that's high for these qualifiers, 130 guys for 7 spots).

I was planning on staying in Northern California for another week for a USPGT regional event. Thing is, the USPGT is having to postpone the next 7 events. They are hoping to resume the tour at the Baton Rouge tournament towards the end of April. My schedule now becomes out of whack.

How to remedy that? Well, I got in my entry for the Canadian Tour qualifier today. The qualifier is this coming week. So, if all goes well, I may end up with a better schedule than I had before. The money on the Canadian Tour isn't as high as the USPGT, but the events are like tour events. It is as close to tour golf as you can get, and the 10-14 tournaments that a Canadian card would add would be great. And if the USPGT gets back to rolling, you couldn't ask for a better "off the tour" schedule. Let's hope both go well.

So I'm off to San Diego this weekend. The qualifier is for a guaranteed 30 spots, but there could be up to 260 players. So it will be tough, but solid golf will always do the trick. If/when I make it, it's up the road to San Jose for the first Canadian Tour event. After two events in Northern Cal, it's down to Mexico for a 4 tournament swing before the Canadian Tour earns its name back in Canada.

I had nothing to play in a couple days ago (not true, there's always something somewhere), now I have a big chance to have a dynamite schedule.

Luke Swilor

Rough

I was in it. Way too much. When there is real rough, you can't play this game from it. It killed me the last two days. 77 today left me with a stupid missed cut. Shouldn't have happened.

I didn't feel too bad about my game. I seem to have worked out my putting woes of last week. My iron play was solid this week, too. Very solid, actually. Off the tee, well, I was bad. Mainly the three-wood. It is normally my go-to club, but I missed so many fairways with it this week, I can't comprehend. It was the sole reason for my poor play, and I need to work it out.

I feel good on the course, though. Mentally, I'm doing fine. I know with some hard work I will be able to get over this little hump. For some reason, I've really struggled in the spring. One thing will work, while another won't. Another thing to work on/get over.

I've got a Nationwide Tour qualifier Monday. One thing I'm sure of is that if I get hot, I can change my life. One great week and I'll have a totally new outlook on golf and life. I'm going to work hard the next couple of days to give myself the best opportunity to do just that.

Working hard to keep the chin up.

Luke Swilor

Eh...

I played okay today. A few mistakes cost me, but I hung in. Scores are high, the course is tough. The rough is the main factor, but there are some tough holes out here. You generally have a pretty long shot into most of the holes. The driver is taken out of play quite a bit. The long iron shots weren't my problem, though.

I hit my irons great. I had a lot of 10 footers with 6-irons and up, which is a very good thing. I didn't hit enough fairways, though. I hit a lot of 3-woods off the tee, missing almost every fairway with it. Not normal, and not good. I seem to have worked it out, though, so I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

The tweaks I've made with the putter seemed to work pretty good. I didn't make any long putts, but the shorties were solid, and I started pretty much everything online. That'll work.

So my 73 left me in 23rd, and the leader was at 67. Not out of it, but I've got some work to do. The game is coming along, and with a little confidence I should be able to go low again. It's been awhile, but I'm looking forward to it.

Scores are updated after every 9 holes at USPROGOLFTOUR.COM. Click on the California Series "Diablo Grande Classic" link down the right side bar.

Luke Swilor

CPT Diablo Grande

We start the California Players Tour tomorrow at Diablo Grande GC in Patterson, CA. It's a good course, can be tough. We're in the middle of nowhere, about an hour south of San Francisco.

I've been doing some heavy travelling. Flew home Monday, then drove the 10 hours here. I'm beat, so I took it kind of easy today. My swing feels good, and I got some good work in with my dad Monday night. We worked on my putting setup, and it feels good too.

Other than being a bit tired, I feel good. Let you know how it goes.

Luke

Struggle in Texas

The struggle with the putter continued today. I hit 13 of the first 15 greens, but I was still two over. Not good. I felt confident, nothing seemed amiss, but I wasn't starting the putts online. When I did, well, I lipped out.

A couple of mediocre shots, along with a couple of bad breaks led to double on 16 and 17. Really not good. Lipped out on 18. Nothing more to do.

So it was a rough end to the week. I've been STEAMING mad, but it is only the beginning of a long year. I'll get to work with my dad tomorrow before heading to California for a couple weeks, so hopefully we'll get it back on track.

Luke Swilor

Oh, 78 today. Bad. T60. Not aweful, but not good either.

LS

USPGT Dallas Round 3

I played okay today. I made a few more of the short putts, but a few mistakes cost me. My distance control was the main negative today. All bogies were caused by mis-clubs/distance control, so I continued to battle all day for a 72. It was windy again, so it wasn't a terrible round.

I climbed from T48th to T35th, so that is decent. A good round tomorrow will give me a good check. There is definitely some rust on my game. I'm just not getting enough out of my rounds, but I'm getting closer. The rust seems to be wearing off every day, and with the season hitting full-steam that is right where I need to be. I'm grinding, keeping the rounds from getting too high. To be in the spot I'm in with a not very good game is not bad. When the pressure hits (like the last few holes yesterday), I've done very well. That is a good sign.

My "off-season" game much better this year than past years, so hopefully that will continue into a much better "in-season" game. The in-season this year is coming earlier than usual, which seems to me like a good thing. I'm better when I've been playing a lot. In another week or two, I will be able to say I've been playing a lot. Good tidings? I think so.

A good one tomorrow will vault me up the leaderboard. Winning is most likely out of the question, but every birdie will be worth some pretty good money (and that is an exponential equation, looking at the payout). Sounds fun.

Luke Swilor

Whew

Well, I made the first cut. The field in these USPGT main events is very strong. The cuts aren't going to be a cake walk, which they kind of were last year.

So my 73 yesterday wasn't very good. I hit the ball perty darn good, but the putter let me down a bit. I wasn't making the short ones. So that put me on the cut bubble.

The wind was blowing today, so I knew scores would go up. Even par 72 would be good enough to make the cut. It was a battle, but I ended up making birdie on the last hole to shoot an...even par 72.

I hit the ball very good today in the wind. When I did miss a green, I hit some very good chips. Once again, though, I was missing short putts. This put me in a tough spot. I did make a few 15 foot putts, but the 5 footers were a roller coaster.

I was +2 for the tournament with four holes left today. I knew +1 was safe, +2 should get in, and +3 was very borderline. I needed birdies.

I birdied 15. Good. 16 is a 200 yard par 3, into the wind. I managed to airmail the green into a hazard. Not good. 17 is a tough par 4, so I can't afford a double here. I made a great up and down on 16 for a bogey 4. I hit two great shots on 17, left my putt just short in the jaws. So I'm back at two over going into 18. Need a birdie on 18 to assure myself of the cut.

18 is a fairly easy par 5. I hit a good drive, leaving myself 210 in. It was down wind, and my 5 iron skipped over the green. I needed to get it up and down. My chip almost went in, and I MADE my 2 1/2 footer for birdie. Cut made.

Quite a few groups didn't finish today due to darkness, but the cut will be two or three over. I gutted it out pretty good today. I wasn't clicking on the greens, and that will often leave you grinding all the way around the course. I feel good about the way I hung in there. If the putter manages to get hot this weekend, I could still have a chance.

One thing happened today on 13 that I hope never happens again. One of the guys I was playing with was also battling to make the cut. He's a great guy from down the road in Austin. He was teeing off on the hole and I was looking at my yardage book. A little gust of wind came up, and I didn't have a very good hold of the book. It made some noise, a little flapping. He heard it and pulled it into the water to make double. Ugh. I try to be the most courteous guy on the course, stay out of the way, make no noise, watch everyone's through line. I felt so incredibly bad, I don't know how I made my way around the last few holes. Playing competitors should have NO effect on each other. Though it still happens a lot, for me to be the culprit, well, it sucks. Bad. I hope he has no hard feelings, but I can understand if he does.

Anyways, a good one tomorrow might give me a chance on Sunday. I'm going to dream about making some putts.

Luke Swilor

Let's Go

The first USPGT event of the season starts tomorrow, and some big money is on the line. Every one of these "major" events has the possibility of a huge payday. Sounds good to me.

I'm hitting the ball okay. I played a couple practice rounds the last couple days, but it really is hard to tell until you get into an actual tournament round. We will see, but I'm confident.

I like the course. If you miss any green you are in jail. The greens are all elevated with steep drop-offs on all sides. If you fall off of these, it is almost an automatic bogey. So I'm going to go out and hit some greens.

The course isn't long, so there are some low scores out there. I wouldn't mind grabbing 3 or 4 of my own.

You should be able to follow along at usprogolftour.com. I'm not sure how often scores will be updated, but they will all be posted there eventually.

Luke Swilor

I Laughed

I'm watching Cops in my Dallas hotel, and I had to post. The cruiser they put the suspect in had solitaire running in full view on the in-dash laptop. Classic.

LS

We're Open! I'm Leaving

Now the season starts here in Salt Lake...right when I'll be gone most of the year. It has been a long Winter. We normally get to play quite a bit in between the storms. Not this year. Playable days were very rare. The snow just wouldn't melt. I had to hunt down more little tournaments this year just to stay in some sort of form. I was chasing some good weather (didn't always work). But it's been nice for a few days, so the courses are starting to open. I'll get in some good work the next few days.

Monday, it's off to Dallas, then to Northern California for two weeks. So hopefully I'll enjoy some nice weather on the road. There'll be some golf pretty much every day for a LONG time. Not bad work if you can get it. My game should get sharp really quick.

So far this year: two wins, some missed checks. Now the season starts for real.

Talk to you from Texas.

Luke Swilor

GS Moreno Valley

I didn't play all that good this week. I didn't play bad, either. 72, 72 wasn't good enough to make the money. I was working on the rust this week, and it just wouldn't come together. A lot of time left this year.. Next up, Dallas, TX.

Luke