Hello Scratch golfers,

Last week on tour was the Nationwide Tournament Players Cup.

I had a bit of a detour on my way down from Cleveland to Bridgeport, WV.  I’ve had the chance to play in the Buffalo Women’s and Children’s Hospital Pro-am now four of the past five years.  I was honored to get an invitation this year, especially having shifted my focus from being a player to taking care of those who still are.  The event supports a great cause and they really take care of their professionals to the highest degree.  I was more than happy to head to Buffalo for this years event.

I’m a huge fan of the old style courses, having been fortunate enough to grow up on a Donald Ross layout.  The Park Club in Buffalo is a wonderful older track itself and it is a venue that I really enjoy going to.  My team this year was excellent company, if not necessarily contenders for the title.  I spent some time giving swing tips, telling stories (of which there are many!), killing my diet at the two food stations on the course and of course hitting some shots, too.  We were a respectable 10 under par for the day and everyone had a great time, at least if smiles and laughter are any indication.

Then it was on to Bridgeport.  The feel of the event this week was rather solemn, I’m afraid.  First, the purse had been dropped from the advertised $1 Million to (only) $600,000, and some players decided not to bother attending.  Then on Sunday night, Chris Smith, a player so many of us know and consider a friend, lost his wife in a car accident.  His children were both badly injured as well, and the news just left many of us stunned.  Bad things happen all too often to really good people, and for this to happen to Chris is just horrific.  So, understandably, the tone of the week was much more subdued.

In contrast to most weeks on tour, Tuesday was practically a ghost town.  I’m used to doing a bunch of running about on Tuesdays and this week I really didn’t have that much to do.  The qualifications for the event came straight off the money list.  So this gives some players who had Monday-ed in earlier in the season and done well another chance to play.  One of the players I worked with was just one of those guys and he ended up putting both wedges he worked with in play this week.  At T-18, he was also our highest finisher this week and earned a spot in the Wayne Gretzky Classic next week for his good work.  He’s a talented player and a good guy, so I’m very happy that he’s getting another shot right away.

Wednesday was, as always, pro-am day.  At least this week they were doing a shotgun start rather than tee times.  With the shotgun start, players who aren’t in the pro-am can come out and practice between the morning and the afternoon waves.  With tee times, the steady stream of pro-am players means nobody but participants can get any work done.  It was quiet again, really.  There just wasn’t the electricity in the air that can normally be felt as it gets closer to the first round.  Not that many players were hitting balls, there wasn’t a lot of chatter and it just seemed quiet.  I don’t have any other word for it, really.

Other than having a couple of our wedges going right from testing to into the bag this week (which is awesome!), the best part was only being 3 1/2 hours from home.  I’ve been doing a ton of traveling and I’ve been doing a lot of driving in order to cut costs down.  That’s fine, I don’t mind and I do it by choice.  I just get really tired by the time I get home.  And only having to spend 3 1/2 hours in the car after putting in my time Wednesday was great!  I was home in time for dinner and in bed at a reasonable hour.  I was sorry to see the mood of the week, but it is perfectly understandable.  Nothing seems all that important by comparison and it was just going to be a quiet week.

Everyone here at Scratch Golf would like to send Chris Smith and his entire family our condolences.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to him in what can only be a terribly difficult time.

Next up on the Nationwide Tour:  The Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic Presented by Samsung.  Until then, keep your heads down and work on your short game!

Cheers,

KGK