Calgary Revisited

I'm back in Canada for 6 days and I'm hoping that we're able to play our tournament in Calgary this time.  I was here about 6 weeks ago and a ton of rain flooded downtown Calgary and we weren't able to play our tournament.  They rescheduled it for this week, Tuesday through Friday, and we have completed at least one round.  I play round 2 on Wednesday morning, but the forecast is for rain all day, which shouldn't be a surprise because it's been raining on me all summer.

Follow along at home or work as I tee of at 9am CST.

Neil

Back into the USA for 2 weeks

After playing in Winnipeg I've had 2 weeks back in the US and I "spent my vacation" playing golf tournaments.  First off, I went to Marshall, MN to play a Dakotas Tour event there.  Then I snuck in a CVGA on the weekend at Whispering Pines GC in Cadott, WI.  Finally I went to Yankton, SD to defend my title at the Hillcrest Pro-Am.

Marshalls event was one that I really wanted to play.  I have always enjoyed playing Marshall GC and I have a great family to stay with when I'm in town.  It's a tournament that I've won before so it's fun to go back and try to win again.

I didn't win, but I was happy with the consistency of my game.  71-71-66 put me in a tie for 6th and earned $1485 for the week.  The difference between the first two rounds and the final round were making putts.  I didn't make much during the first two days, but it wasn't because of bad strokes/putts.  During the second round I had a handful of putts curl around the edge of the cup and end up 6 inches past the hole, directly behind it.  All of the putts looked like they were going to go in and rolled beautifully, but they just failed to catch the cup.  All of those putts went in during the final round - especially on the front nine where I shot a 5-under 31.  The putter cooled down on the back.  An unfortunate 3-putt on 10 was my only bogey of the day, but I finished the day with a birdie on the final hole.

A few days later, I played a CVGA event, something I haven't done since 2008.  The weather was very fall like.  Temps didn't even approach 70 degrees, the wind was blowing all day, and we even got some rain on the back nine.  I played well through the difficult conditions and won with a 3-under 69.  My putting was really solid throughout the day, but especially early when my ball striking was trying to figure out the wind.

My last tournament before returning to Calgary was the Hillcrest Pro-Am in Yankton, SD, which was the site of my big win last summer.  Just like Marshall, I was really glad that I could return to this tournament because it's always been a favorite for me.  The course is a great test - you can't just bomb the ball like some other courses and it's a long 4 round tournament that turns into a week long marathon.  I also have a great host family that puts up with me for the week.  Every year I kick one of the kids out of their bedroom and they don't seem to resent me for it.

The tournament started out on Tuesday with the Ladies day Pro-Am.  This wasn't part of the actual tournament, but just another chance to get a practice round and a chance to win some money.  I finished  T-2 and won $550.  The ladies I played with became fans and they recruited their husbands to cheer for me so I was winning over the crowd one marriage at a time.

Thursday was the first round and I got off to a slow start, but finished with a 31 on the back nine, which included a hole out from 88 yards on #4.

Day 2 was a stormy day and I didn't tee off until about 7pm, but I got really lucky.  The players who teed of in the morning had to play through a lot of rain and it was perfect by the time I teed off.  I only played 7 holes on Friday night, but I took advantage of the scoring conditions with birdies on the first 3 holes.  I resumed played on Saturday morning at 7am with 11 holes to finish in round 2 and 18 to play in round 3.  I battled for the rest of the 2nd round and stole a couple of late birdies (#16 and #17) to shoot 68.  I had to time between the 2nd and 3rd round - in fact, I was teeing off on #18 when they announced my 7 minute call to the 10th tee.  The quick turn around didn't bother me and I had a great 3rd round.  I was really hot in the middle of the round playing holes 17-3 6-under par!  One more birdie on #7 after I knocked a wedge to 5 feet and I had a 3rd round 64 and a one shot lead heading into the final round.

I was extremely confident going into the final round, but I knew I had some good players close enough to catch me.  I didn't play as freely as I did in the first 3 rounds and that resulted in a bulky putter.  I didn't make anything and left a lot of putts short.  That opened the door for a bunch of players and Brady Schnell came from behind and caught me by the 10th hole.  I watched Brady make a lot of putts or at least barely miss and that added to my pressure.  I hung close and had a chance with 4 holes to go, but a missed 5 footer for birdie on 15, followed by a lip out on #16 and #17 left me 3 back on the 72nd tee.  I drove it hole high, got up and down for birdie, but had to settle for a T-2nd place finish.

I've been traveling with Brady all summer up in Canada and I knew how well he has been playing.  In the back of my mind I figured he would be the one guy outside of the last group who could catch me.

No break for me.  I'm flying to Calgary on Monday morning to play a PGA Tour Canada event that is Tuesday through Friday.

Neil

Syncrude Oil Sands - Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada

Three weeks ago I traveled to Fort McMurray, Alberta for a golf tournament and was able to take a tour of the oil sands.  My host family took me, as he has worked there since the mid-80s.  Prior to the tour, my knowledge of the oil sands and the process of getting oil from the ground and into our cars was at a 1st grade level.  After the tour, I had only advanced to junior high, but it was a lot of fun to learn the process and see some of the heavy machinery.

Proof that I was there.  My tour guide, "host dad", worked on the fire crew for years and now he trains the volunteer firemen.  He gave me a tour of the firehall and showed me all of the trucks.  The beast in the picture is their emergency response vehicle that has 8-wheel drive and can navigate the mines with speed.

In my hand is a chunk of oil that is mixed with sand.  Didn't feel much different than a chunk of dried mud, but up close it looks quite different and gets your hands very dirty.  The process of separating the oil and begins by adding hot water and moving the sludge into big spinning tubs and eventually the sand falls to the bottom.  After the separation, some very complicated chemical processes are used to refine the oil into Syncrude Sweet Blend.  Simple enough.

One of the many byproducts of the chemical process is sulfur.  They build pyramids of sulfur and plan to turn it into fertilizer.

When mining is completed on a section, Syncrude has to reclaim the land to the way it was before they started.  Some areas are reclaimed as a forrest and pine trees are planted.  Look at the first sulfur picture and you can see a thick green forrest on the horizon.  Those pine trees are all about 10 feet tall.  Another option for reclamation is turning the land into a buffalo ranch.

Dirty

Huge hauling trucks - costs about 5 million dollars

Another huge hauler

'67 Dodge Hemi Charger - how we got to oil sands.

I really had a fun time in Fort McMurray.  That is as far north as I had ever been, but it's a very pretty part of North America.  The town is all about the oil sands.  Nothing else is up there, but the town has a a huge recreation facility - with ice rinks, curling lanes, badminton, floor hockey, fitness center, lap pools, swimming pools, and a water park.

MacDonald Island Park

Pools!

Neil

Players Cup - Winnipeg, MB - Getting Closer and Closer to Minnesota!

I was up early today watching some of the Open coverage, but this afternoon I get to play golf in yet another PGA Tour Canada event.  I've continued my travels east and find myself in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  The tournament is being played at Pine Ridge Golf Club which is a wonderful Donald Ross designed course.  Donald Ross designed Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina and he also designed White Bear Yacht Club in Minnesota.  He loved to make greens look like upside down saucers - a big challenge to any players short game.

Storylines

Expert Picks  *spoiler alert, no expert picked me

Leaderboard

Looks like they've started hole-by-hole scoring.

Neil

Syncrude Boreal Open Recap

Final Results - T-19th - 70, 70, 74, 69 - 5-under par.  $1768.75

It was a good week in Fort McMurray, AB.  The end of my third round was a bad 7 hole stretch, but I'm really happy with how I played the other 65 holes.  I stuck to my game plan and had enough confidence in my putting that if my tee shot found the rough, my only goal was to get the ball into the green.

Before the tournament started, I didn't think this golf course would be a great fit for my game.  Fort McMurray golf club is very narrow and they let the rough grow up to nearly 5 or 6 inches in some spots.  You're forced to hit a lot of irons/hybrids/3-woods off of tees and everybody ends up hitting into the green from the same yardage.  I prefer a course that gives you the option to be aggressive with driver, a club that has usually been one of my strengths.

During the practice rounds, my swing didn't feel good, and I honestly hit it very bad on the range and on the course.  The only bright spot was my putting.  Late in the practice round I found that a more aggressive putting stroke produced a more consistent roll for the putts.  The greens were heavy on the poa annua which always makes the greens bumpier as the day moves on, but the aggressive stroke seemed to help keep the ball rolling, instead of hopping.

The shapes and contours of the greens were fairly benign so that gave me more confidence when I reached the greens.  I lived in the rough all week, but from there I just tried to get the ball to the middle of the green and I knew I could 2-putt.  That worked all week and took pressure off of my short game or even my iron play.

Trust me when I say that I lived in the rough.  The most fairways I hit in any round was seven (1st round), but then I only hit three in round 2 and six in the final 2 rounds.  Sticking with my gameplan - to aim at middle of green from rough - I hit 14, 15, 12, and 16 greens in each of the 4 rounds.  That gave me a lot of chances at birdies and resulted in a bunch of tap-ins for pars.

The most positive thing about the week was how my ball striking improved and my confidence grew each day.  That's no doubt a result of the confidence in my putting carrying over to the rest of the game.  It was a lot easy to make confident swings when I knew all I had to do was get the ball onto the green surface.

Glad to have my first top-20 on the PGA Tour Canada especially after the week started off with apprehensive thoughts.

Next tournament is in Winnipeg, MB and then I'm back in the USA for 2 weeks.

** 2013 Schedule & Results have been UPDATED **

Neil

Syncrude Boreal Open - a.k.a. "Oil Sands Open"

It's Thursday, which means the start of another golf tournament.  I tee off later this afternoon, but I'm posting a few links before I get started.  There will be live scoring every 3 holes this week.

Fort McMurray, AB is the furthest north I have been, but the weather has been beautiful and the golf course is cut straight out of a pine tree forest.

I'm hoping to get a tour of the oil sands at some point this week.  If so, I'll have a bunch of pictures.

Neil

Recap Dakota Dunes Open

All done in Saskatoon and I battled all weekend to finish T46, which earned me $651.  That wasn't a great pay day, but keep in mind that I only paid $450 to enter this event (as opposed to normally $1000).  I briefly talked about the first two rounds after Friday's round, but now I'll get into a deeper recap.

FIRST ROUND - 

1st tee time out, 7:30, with perfect conditions and a group that all played well.  I made three birdies and shot 33 on the front, but was beaten by both of my playing partners (30 & 32).  The back nine finished as a disappointing 36 because I had putts inside of 12 feet for birdie on 10, 12, 13, and 18 - and I failed to make any of them.  My lone bogey came on #16 with a bad 3-putt from 25 feet.  Basically my 3-under 69 was 2 or 3 shots higher than what it looked like and felt like.

SECOND ROUND - 

More perfect conditions in the morning helped that wave of golfers reach double digit under par and I teed off at 12:30 wondering if the cut would move to 7 or 8 under par.  I don't really concern myself with what the cut might fall at because I know if I play well, I'll be on the good side, but most of the afternoon golfers were mentioning that the cut could be a record low number.  Once I started playing golf I got off to a slow start and was +1 through 8 holes.  The ninth hole was a down-wind par-5 and I took advantage with a simple 2-putt from 15 feet (eagle try just burned the edge).  Two holes later I had another 2-putt birdie, this time from 40 feet.  The very next hole (3) I hit a 5-iron to about 3 feet and made my second straight birdie - 3rd in 4 holes.  I kept the momentum going with a 3rd straight birdie on #4 after making a nice 10 foot putt.  That stretch of 4 birdies in 5 holes, right around the turn, helped me make the cut on the number.

THIRD ROUND - 

Awful conditions after a 4 hole weather delay made the round very difficult.  It rained for 15 holes and it was just windy enough to annoy you.  I made 2 bogies and a double bogey on the front nine, which included a 3-putt for par on #2.  I birdied #10 and told my caddie that it's about getting those shots back one at a time.  I battled for the rest of the back nine and when the rain stopped with a few holes to go, I managed to make one more birdie on #17.

FOURTH ROUND -

Sunny conditions, but for the first time all week the wind started to blow.  I missed a short putt for birdie on 1, then lipped out for birdie on 2 and 3.  I bogied 2 of the next three holes, but quickly rebounded with a birdie on 16.  My third shot on #16 was 82 yards from the thick left rough.  I hoisted a lob-wedge high in the air and it landed 10 feet short and released right up to the pin - tap-in.  That shot turned my final round back into the good side.  I played pretty solid after that hole and made 3 more birdies without a bogey.

Overall, it's a positive that I made the cut and kept battling throughout the entire weekend.  My putting held me back all week, but that didn't stop me from stepping up on the next tee and hitting the drive right down the middle.

Now that the week is done, I'm off the the next tournament - Fort McMurray, AB.  It's way up north and I'm flying up there tonight.  Tuesday will be a light day for me, just a little bit of practice, before a practice round on Wednesday.  So far, these travels in Canada have been a great experience.  Every week is a new town, new course, new housing, and a new schedule so the biggest challenge has been getting accustomed to everything new as quickly as possible.  I play my best golf when all I'm focusing on is the shot at hand, instead of worrying about my flight to Calgary or trying to find housing in Winnipeg.

Goodbye from Saskatoon,

Neil

Dakota Dunes Open is a Shootout!

Two rounds are complete and the leaderboard is a sea of red.  The cut fell at 6-under par, which is probably the lowest cut I've seen as a pro.  I battled for 2 days and got to 6-under.  My ballstriking has been solid, with a bunch of birdie chances and a few eagle tries each day.  My putting has able been good, but I hope to start rolling in some putts from 15+ feet.  I'd like to believe that I have played better than what my score has been, but that's why it's fun to still have 1/2 of the tournament to play.

My third round starts at 8:30am and we get to play in twosomes, which should keep play moving.

Neil

Next Stop Canada

I have left Arizona, stopped in Reno, and now I'm spending the weekend in Seattle. Tomorrow, I will ferry across to Victoria, BC and spend the next 7 weeks in Canada. After Victoria, I will be in Vancouver, Calgary, Saskatoon, Fort McMurray, and Winnipeg. I expect to drive nearly 5,000 miles - starting from last week when I left AZ to the middle of July when I re-enter the USA.

My phone will be of limited use while I'm up north, so the easiest way to contact me will be via email. However, those of you with an apple iPhone or iPad will be able to sends me message through IOS. I'll have plenty of access to the internet so you'll still get updates from my adventures. Other ways to contact me:

Skype
Facebook
Twitter

Now let's get caught up on my results over the past few months. It has been a bunch of tournaments flirting with great, but often retreating back into mediocrity.  Pretty much every tournament had 1 great round and then 2 disappointing rounds, which placed me right around T20.  When looking at each individual aspect of my game I have liked where it has been, but matching all of those pieces together at the same time was the challenge.

I expect that playing the events in Canada will help me remained focused throughout the entire week.  I have been looking forward to the PGA Tour Canada events since I returned from Thailand and that meant the Arizona events were overlooked.

My trip has already provided me with some beautiful scenery - something that will certainly continue in Canada.  Photos are posted below showing how pretty the Northwest part of the US is.

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You

At the end of 2012, a few days after Christmas, I held a casual happy hour fundraiser in my home town of River Falls, WI.  I was 2 weeks away from heading to Thailand and I hoped to raise some money that would support my golf career and allow me to start focusing solely on golf.  No longer would I be balancing a part time job at a golf course - I wanted to dive head first into playing and eliminate my excuse of having to work 2 days a week.

The turnout was fantastic, with family, friends, teachers,  classmates, former bosses, and former co-workers.  Some people weren't able to make it due to the busy holiday season, but they still contacted me and wanted to express their support and help out in whatever way they could.  I opened a PayPay account with hopes that people who no longer lived near River Falls would have a way to donate and reach me.  I've received donations from former neighbors, godparents, college roommates, and friends from the golf course.

I can only try to say how thankful I am for those that have donated and those who have clearly wanted to help me succeed.  Even if I say thank you in every sentence, it still is short of what is necessary.  Below is a list of those who showed up and donated.  From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you.

Paul & Deb Meyer
The Wiersmas
Peg Steinmetz
Grandma Conroy
The Ornelas Family
The Conroy Family (Pat, Lora, Brendan, Keely, & Matthew)
The Kjosas
The Rasmussens
Diane Brady
Matt Piper
Jonah Evenson
Phil Kluss
Sue Moen
The Ericksons
The Loomis Family
The Heiman Family
The Loney Family
Jack Cullen
Mike Miller
The Babler Family
The Wells Family
The Deal Family
The Nelson Family
Tom Carroll
Todd Schultz
Matt Danielson
Kevin Pechacek & The West Wind Supper Club
The Mielke Family
The Dawsons
The Schultz Family
The Betzel Family
...and of course my Mom and Dad!

Since the fundraiser,  I have seen results that are directly related to the extra time and energy that are devoted to golf instead of work.  My trip to Thailand was a success.  I advanced to final stage of Q-school and even though I did not earn my card, I realized that traveling around the world to play golf is an option and I have begun planning a trip to Europe this fall for European Tour Q-School.

Once back in Arizona, I started playing All-American Gateway Tour events.  I played a handful of these in the fall of 2012, but without great success.  The first 6 events of 2013 on the All-American Gateway Tour, I have recorded 4 top-10s.  Prior to this year, I have only 3 top-10s, while playing over 40 Gateway Tour events.  That is a pretty obvious improvement and exactly what I knew I was capable of.

My new schedule involves a lot more time to practice, but also a lot more time to relax.  The day after a tournament used to be a work day - from 6:30 am until about 7:30 pm, but now I have turned it into a mental/physical health day.  I'm able to work out with my trainer, and regardless of how I finished in the tournament that week I tell him to "punish" me because I have the weekend to recover.  Those of you on Facebook have probably seen some of the pictures of me working hard.

Taken Feb. 7th, the day after finishing t-4th.  At the very end of a workout when the body is  in fatigue.

My hard work has not gone unnoticed and my trainer recruited me to be a model in a couple of his golf fitness videos.  Here's another one.

Besides working out, I have the time and guts to start going to yoga classes.  Just one more way to improve my flexibility, but more importantly, even out the imbalances in my body and discover how difficult it is to truly control your breathing.

The rest of the year will be a new and exciting one with tournaments in new states and new countries.  I have posted my schedule in the sidebar and you can follow results there as well.

Many more thank you's for everybody who has donated.  I still have the PayPal account open and will continue to accept donations throughout the year.  Any amount will help with entry fees and caddie fees while I play PGA Tour Canada events.  Your continued support and help will allow me to play the tournament schedule I want to.

Thank you, and keep following my results, reading the blog, and cheering for my success.

Neil Johnson