PGA Q-School 1st Stage - Round 1, Pinehurst, NC

I got off to a nice start, but it wasn't the prettiest of rounds. I'm very happy with a 2-under 70, but I hit a lot of loose shots today. I only hit 9 greens today, but I was saved with one chip in and two putts made from the fringe. In total, I had 25 putts in the first round. The two putts I made from the fringe were about 15 feet and the longest putt I made on the green was only 3 feet. Weird day with the putter.

My day got off to a great start, birdies on the first two holes. I drove it into a fairway bunker. My lie was perfect so I laid up with a 4-iron and have 141 yards left to the hole. I hit a soft 9-iron to two inches and tapped in for a birdie 4. On #2, I hit a perfect drive that left me with 120 yards to the pin. The second shots was one of the loose shots, as it came up short and right of the green. I chipped that shot in for a second consecutive birdie. Through two holes I had already hit some loose shots, but was 2-under. That felt great.

Round 2 begins at 8:50 Wednesday morning. I'll start on #10. Check for scores between 2 and 3 pm eastern time.

These round all take around 5 1/2 hours. They are long days. I expect to be fully exhausted on Friday when I've completed the final round.

Neil