You've seen all the big boys at The Open, you know how they get there, you know their game more than you do your own, so much so you might think they can hear you through the TV when you're shouting "Rory, what the f*ck are you doing" as if he's going to answer you. We take for granted that the likes of Rory & co. feature in every major. They make it look easy. It's anything but. There are plenty of lads out there that you've probably never heard of. It's those lads that have had an absolute grind just to get into the field and who will have achieved so much even before teeing it up in the first round.
THE Road to The Open...
It starts at Regional Qualifying; thirteen courses, around 100 players each and somewhere between 6-10 will progress to Final Qualifying. There's a real mix of players at this stage, from scratch and lower handicap amateurs who have full time jobs to full time playing professionals all vying for the same thing. A spot at Final Qualifying.
Final qualifying
Those that progress from regional qualifying will play at one of four golf courses where they will join a host of tour professionals from Challenge and European Tour. At this stage there are around 90 players at each golf course playing for a total of 12 spots at The Open Championship, three from each course.
36 holes in one day decides these qualifying spots. This does seem a tall order but I'm a firm believer, the same way that I am at any level of the game, that if you are good enough you will find a way to get it done....and I don't mean nudging your ball in the rough or lobbing it out of a bunker when no one's looking. Doesn't go down too well.
MY ROUND UP
So, I've just played regional qualifying at The West Lancashire Golf Club. Excuse this post if it seems slightly all over the place, but to be honest at the moment that's where my head's at. Working towards a specific goal is a challenge. A struggle. This isn't a negative, it's why you wake up earlier, work harder, practice longer, think about it all day, everyday....and trust in yourself that one day it'll all come together. Hopefully you find some of the following useful. Or at the very least, you know that you're not the only one that is at risk of smashing every light in your house with a six iron.
First off, let's talk about the golf. The course was in incredible condition. Real links golf. Hard, fast, almost burnt fairways and the greens and surrounds were all flawless. Unfortunately, my game didn't match up to the course. I ended up shooting a +6, 78. I didn't control the start line or ball flight of my irons. On fast, hard fairways its an absolute must if you're going to score well and I didn't. My iron play wasn't good enough. When I got it into a good position, I'd follow up by missing the green. One of those days where you are struggling to find a way to make it work. My strategy was to play fairly conservatively. A lot of 2 irons off the tees as I knew it would go far enough being so firm. But that only works if you hit the ball in the fairway or at least near it, which I didn't. 6 fairways isn't good enough. I only hit driver 3 times and hit the fairway with two of those so that shows how poorly I controlled the golf ball from the tee. Another awful stat is that I hit six greens, SIX!!!!! Wow, I just worked that out. Shocking. I putted ok, But nothing special.
There's no excuses here. I cocked up, I played like a 🛎🔚. That's not even me being harsh on myself. Just being honest. I'm not talking so much about the shots that I played. You're not going to hit great shots all round. It's part of the game. My biggest mistake happened before I hit a shot. I'd decided that my strategy was to play conservatively. I played to qualify, not to win.
I am someone who loves to compete. I enjoy the challenge of the game, that pumped up feeling when you make a birdie, the adrenaline you get when you save a par, even the rages that come with a bogey and the determination to make more birdies. This wasn't me today. So why the f**k would I decide to play it safe? Why on earth did I think that was going to cut it.
Now I will literally do anything if 'I think' it will make me a better golfer. I love it. For the majority of my life I've worked pretty much every day to improve my game. My focus has always been the same. To play at the highest level and I believe I have the ability, but I've struggled to find my way to play at my full potential.
You can obviously work on your game, prepare in the best way possible and on the day, it just doesn't happen. Sometimes that's golf. The best players find a way to do it when they need to. A combination of talent and mental toughness. Being able to perform when the stakes are high. You're not only playing against the field, you're playing against yourself.
For me, when I don't feel comfortable or when things aren't going quite to plan on the course, that's when I can lose the plot. Ask myself ridiculous questions, and make stupid statements. Stuff like what are you doing here, go home you idiot or something incredibly sarcastic such as "good shot Al" when I've just hooked one into the jungle. That's one of my favourites...usually out loud. That's the part of my personality that I need to manage and learn to control, but I don't want to lose it completely. It's obviously not all mental, playing safe or not, you still have to hit the shot and today was one of those days were I just wasn't swinging well, I didn't play well. It happens but you've still got to get round and I certainly could have done that, but I didn't. . .
I am not a keep calm and carry on type of person. I'm an aggressive - well, aggressive is probably the wrong word - I'm an emotional performer... now I sound like I'm in a show on the West End, but hopefully you get what I mean. I'm certainly not a flat level type of person, I will have ups and downs especially on the golf course. Over the years, for some reason when I step into a tournament I've literally tried to become a different person. I've trained myself to remove my personality from my game. My version of calm is to be, well, for want of a better word, blah. To the point where I try and tell myself it's just another round of golf. It's a chance to play at the Open for f**ks sake. It's the one you d**khead.
This might come as a bit of a shock, but I can be ever so slightly hot headed. Hard to believe I know. I tend to feed on the adrenaline. I enjoy competition. I love to win. But I don't let myself, perhaps I fear it. Why would anyone fear winning? I think it's more of a fear of not to be honest. Trying to be cool, calm and collected on the golf course is just not me. If anything it's made me feel more anxious, more frustrated and on edge rather than being in the state of mind where I can perform at my best. No matter how hard I try, I don't believe you can consistently perform with a different personality. It's almost like you have two conflicting people, one trying to out do the other. Over the course of a round or a tournament, you'll get found out. To give myself the best chance, I know I can't fake it and make it.
The Open Championship is where I want to be, it always has been. Qualifying is a chance to play in a major championship and obviously a stand out fixture when I plan my season. But when it comes around I play it down. I act like it's just another tournament even though deep down I know it's not. I play better when I know I'm 'up for it' yet when Open Qualifying rolls around I resist being excited and react like 'it's just another round of golf', 'it's just another tournament'. Well it's fu*kin not is it!
If there is anything good to take from days like today, it is to learn from it and don't go and do the same s*it again thinking that you're going to get a different result. It doesn't happen. It's easy to forget which is part of the reason why I've written this post. It's a good way to reflect and a reminder that I won't be that version of myself again. I'll be me. I'll manage and handle my emotions but it will still be me. So if you see a story on the news about a lad that had a full on fight with his caddy, snapped all but one club in his bag, and still qualified for The Open, you know who it is. I'd take that scenario right now to be honest!
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