Hello again golfers!
Here in Fort Smith, Ark., this week for the Fort Smith Classic, and it’s going to be in the 90’s every day! As summer approaches us out on the links, it is imperative that you stay well hydrated and also try to eat while playing, which is sometimes very hard to do in the heat.
Amino Vital is a great powder additive to water that has plenty of vitamins and amino acids that your muscles need to recuperate and rejuvenate during conditions like these.
I’m feeling very confident about my game, and I feel like that there are some high finishes in the near future for me! I’m striking the ball well, and my putting is not too shabby, either. A bit of luck and good fortune here and there, and you just never know what can happen.
I have been using the Titleist Pro V1 (black ball) for the longest time and just recently switched to the new Pro V1 X (red ball). The ball has helped me pick up some distance and higher launch. It seems to not spin as much, and I tend to be a high-spin player. Some added distance and more control are allowing me to be more aggressive and take dead aim more often.
If you get the chance to do some experimenting with different brands and types of golf balls, I would suggest it! I think there are a lot of great golf balls out there, and you just need to find the one that suites your swing type, speed and spin rate. Give ‘em a try!
Good luck and stay cool!
Good day…
CC
Note: Follow Chad online this weekend on the Nationwide Tour by clicking here!
Hello again golfers…
This past week, in the Rex Hospital Open in Raleigh, N.C., was a big jump for me in the positive direction! I led the week in birdies and finished the tournament in a tie for fourth place, making a big jump up on the money list from 80th to 37th! Very pleased with the finish!
The tee ball is still giving me fits, but the rest of my game feels pretty solid!
I had my old college coach from Methodist University in the gallery on Friday and again on Sunday. It was good to see him again and get some support and cheering going on from the sidelines!
I’ve got four more weeks of good play in me before another needed off week back at home. This week it’s the Melwood Prince George’s County Open at The Country Club at Woodmore in Mitchellville, Md. Looking forward to the rest of this stretch, having this top-five under my belt and a little stress taken off my back! Still have some work to do with the driver, but good things are yet to come, I believe!
Tune in next week online to see more exciting action on the links!
Good day…
CC
Note: Follow Chad’s progress this weekend in Maryland by clicking here starting Thursday, June 4!
Hello again all golfers and race fans!
Last week at the BMW Charity Pro-Am tournament, I needed to make a 35-foot putt on the 72nd hole to make the cut. I thought I just needed to two-putt to make the cut safely on the number. Instead, I tried to two-putt and actually made the putt to make the cut on the number! I was laughing with joy and surprised at the result, not trying to make the putt! A little luck every now and then never hurt!
This Monday, I was playing in the U.S. Open local qualifier in Cincinnati and needed to make a 15-foot par putt on the last hole to get into what I thought was going to be a certain playoff to move on to the next stage. I made the putt and had to wait around the rest of the afternoon to see if my score of 71 was good enough for a playoff. Two guys in the last group of the day came in with better than 71 and bumped me out of a playoff!
Golf is a funny game, and some days you have luck on your side, and some days you ain’t got nothin’!
Good day…
CC
Hello Hoosier golfers and race fans!!
Back out on the road again after a two-week break at home, which seemed like five days! I’m here in Greer, S.C., for the BMW Charity Pro-Am tournament.
Three beautiful golf courses set in the hilly terrain of South and North Carolina. Playing with one pro this week, along with my amateur partner, should be a slightly more relaxing and conversational time. Playing three different golf courses the first three days, setting up the cut for the final round back at the home course on Sunday.
Before leaving on Sunday evening, May 10, I had a chance to work with my swing coach, Sam Foley, out at the Brickyard Crossing. After a few issues he saw with ball positioning and swing path, I feel like things are back to where they should be for this week’s event! Sometimes another set of eyes helps when the game goes a little sour.
I am really looking forward to this week, as I feel like my game is getting into “summer mode!” Another week off after this event brings me back home for a week, then back out on the road for another five weeks.
Wish me luck and watch my scores, as I feel a solid week ahead!
Good day…
CC
Note: Click here to follow Chad’s scores online starting Thursday, May 14.
Hello Hoosier Golfers:
This week is the first of my two off weeks, and I’m not wanting them to end. Mushrooms are up, turkeys are gobbling, and crappies are biting. What could be better!?
Dad and I were setting up a turkey blind to hunt the next morning, and I think I received poison ivy! And that’s not all.
The next morning, we were turkey hunting in the blind with our bows, and two jakes came into our decoys but were afraid of our dominant gobbler decoy. Nonetheless, this morning (Wednesday, April 29) was no luck on bagging a gobbler, but we still had an enjoyable hunt.
Meanwhile, a few first-timers happened this evening. Tonight was the first time that I’ve had my Jeep off the beaten path in four-wheel drive in some sloppy mud. Also, tonight was an encounter with probably the largest yellow sponge mushroom I’ve ever found. Unfortunately, it was not on my property!
While mushroom hunting on a fence row looking for more mushrooms like this one, I was shot at by an angry redneck who apparently thought I was on his property! Walking along the property line, Dad and I heard what sounded like a four-wheeler about 200 yards into the woods coming our way. As the engine got closer, we decided to head back to the pond to see if the fishing had picked up. While heading back to the pond, a shotgun was fired in our direction, causing us to hit the ground like two army vets!
I was shocked when I heard the shot being fired! So we continued to tread our way through the woods back to the pond. After recovering from our adrenaline high, thankfully the rednecks left the territory and we made it home unscathed.
Glad I’m still alive to write more fun and interesting blogs! Tune in next week. Hopefully I’m still in one piece!
Good day…
CC
Hello Hoosier Golfers!
Last week I traveled out to California for the Stonebrae Classic. I was feeling under the weather for a good part of the week but managed to make the cut and bring home some dough! The Stonebrae is a new tournament for the Nationwide Tour, and the course is only a couple years old. The country club sits right on San Francisco Bay, making for beautiful scenery and unpredictable winds.
The wind on Thursday was outrageous. To make matters worse, the greens are the most undulated and difficult to read of any course I have ever played. Mainly on the front nine, the greens are gargantuan and would prove to challenge my game extensively. I mentioned last week that I hadn’t been knocking down key putts, and this was certainly true again this week on Thursday and Friday.
I also received some good TV time on Thursday evening. Driving the par-4 number 14 and teeing off on a par-3 … I’m sure all of you serious golf fans were watching!
My confidence is greatly improving week to week as I get more comfortable with my game, along with a new driver in the bag, which seems to be producing more yardage and hitting more fairways. I also made a putter change on Saturday after making the cut. It greatly improved my putting stats, and resulted in a 69 and 70, respectively. I ended up finishing tied for 32nd, which is a little shocking considering the way I felt physically on Saturday and Sunday. I am more than ready to make the trip home and get well again.
Due to the way I feel, I am greatly excited to recharge my batteries on my off week at home and to prepare to leave for Georgia for two weeks for the next set of tournaments. Look forward to chatting with you next week.
Good day,
CC
I’m playing this week in beautiful Louisiana in the Louisiana Open at Broussard, La. Good to be back in the States after the trip to Australia and New Zealand. Still trying to get acclimated with the different time zones, food and cultures. Sleeping habits have been really hard to get readjusted.
The game still feels rusty, as it is still early in the year. I have been working with different drivers and putters as my confidence in these two clubs has wavered in the last couple tournaments.
I am really looking forward to getting going Thursday. Looking forward to putting myself in a position on Sunday to hopefully having an opportunity to come out with a high finish and possibly a win.
Good day!!
CC
Hello Hoosier Golfers:
I’m in Australia and ready to go!!!
The flight was brutal. A total traveling time of 20 hours. I flew out of LAX to Auckland, New Zealand, and then onto Melbourne, Australia.
The course this week, the Moonah Links in Victoria, Australia, is very challenging. The greens are very undulated, and it is hard to get the ball close to the hole. The key for the week will be the wind. We Hoosiers are used to dealing with the wind, so hopefully that will help me this week at the Moonah Classic.
The time change has been kind of hard to deal with, but with each passing day, I get more used to it. We are 16 hours ahead of Eastern time.
The game feels good. I have been practicing a lot during the past couple months and am looking forward to finally getting back into the tournament mode. Thanks for all the support, and we will talk to you next week.
Good day,
CC
Note: Follow Chad’s progress Down Under at the Moonah Classic by clicking this link daily through Sunday, March 1.
Hello again, Hoosiers!
The grind of Q-School (PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament) is a lot of pressure and built upon nerves!
Going into the second stage of Q-School, I had just previously played seven PGA Tour events in a row! I was wore out and burnt out on golf and a little disappointed at where I finished on the money list, having to go to second stage and not straight to Q-School finals. Nonetheless, finals could get me a ticket back to the PGA Tour with a top-25 finish!
I chose the Hombre golf course in Panama City Beach, Fla., where four years ago I got through and went to finals to secure my fully exempt status on the Nationwide Tour. Having a lot of knowledge and experience on the course was a huge asset to me.
Going into the final round, I found myself needing to shoot 1-under par to make it to finals. A great start to the front nine left me needing basically to par out on the back nine to comfortably get through. The fatigue and nerves started to creep in after eight straight weeks of golf, though, and a bogey here and a bogey there caused me to just miss by two shots.
Your body and mind are umbeleivably important to be coinciding together to have success in golf. Knowing I could play well enough just wasn’t good enough, as my body had taken a toll and was ready to take some time off an do some deer hunting!
Thanks to all who tuned in for my blogs this season! Hopefully you have learned a little more about me and life out on Tour. Feel free to write in with any concerns or comments, as well as questions.
You can follow my progress next year on the Nationwide Tour!
Good day…
CC
Hello golf fans…
Last weekend was the final week of the season, at the Walt Disney Resort! Last opportunity to win, finish in the top 125, finish in the top 150 or just make another consistent seventh cut in a row.
Coming into the week, I was feeling very confident about my game and the chance at hand. I actually had played the Magnolia and Palm golf courses back when I was a junior playing in an AJGA tournament. Other than Pebble Beach and these two courses, the year has brought totally new courses to my eye.
Off to a disappointing start, the opening round led to a 2-over-par round. Playing the easier of the two courses the next day at the Palm, I had good vibes of playing well enough to make the cut. A solid round of 5-under 67, but two shots shy of playing on the weekend.
This year was a great year and also a disappointing year of not keeping my PGA Tour card for 2009. Off to second stage of Q-school to earn my way back to the finals and another chance at getting back to the PGA Tour.
Thanks to everyone tuning in these past seven weeks to learn more about me and follow my progress this season!
Good day…
CC