I flew into Chicago, picked up my rental car and drove a couple hours south to Decatur. On the drive down, I realized that the fire flies were out thick that night. I could see them glowing all over the corn fields and on the side of the road. I actually pulled off the side of the road to get a better look, and realized that I was in the middle of acres and acres of corn fields. The fire flies were everywhere. There were literally thousands of them hovering just over the tops of the fields, sparkling as far as I could see. It was beautiful. Since I have never even seen one single fire fly, this was one of the most amazing things I have ever observed. It was a nice introduction to Illinois.
Cubs & Blues
I played a practice round the next morning and got some putting practice in afterward. Then I was off to Chicago airport again to pick up Andy who was caddying for me this week. From there, we took the L train downtown to Wrigley field and went to a Cubs game. They were playing the Astros. Unfortunatley the cubs lost 5 to 4 but Andy and I had a great time. Experiencing Wrigley field is something to always remember. Afterwards, we enjoyed the free Blues Festival in the park. It was a lot of fun. The Band was great! We just sat there and enjoyed some blues and beer for a couple hours.
(more…)
This week I am back on the road to Illinois, Ohio and Indiana for three tournaments on the Futures Tour. This past Monday, June 12th, I did not qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open. Although I was exempt from the local qualifyer because I played in the final last year, I just did not play well in the one-day 36-hole loop here at the Hacienda Golf Club in La Habra heights, California.
Andy my caddie and Doc Parent my mental coach are both telling me that I am placing too many high expectations on myself rather than just go out there and play one shot at a time. Now that I had the night to sleep on it, I realize that I did put too much pressure on myself. I guess because I played in the U.S. Open last year, I felt that I had to make it this year.
My friends, my family, all were excited to make the trip out there. So I felt failure was not an option, and with each bad shot I raised the bar even further for the next one. Eight birdies, a phenomenal 45-ft sinker, and decent ball striking were not enough to make up for stupid bogeys.
In any case, I’ve put this behind me now, and I am going to focus on the Championship Tournament of the Futures Tour this week in Springfield, Illinois – The Michelob Ultra Futures.
Cheers,
Megan Heckeroth
I flew into El Paso and stayed at the hotel for only one night. My travel partner, Kelly and I were introduced to a very gracious host family who welcomed us into a beautiful home for the entire week of the tournament. So I just want to send out another thanks to Bob and his family for their generous hospitality. It sure beats hotel life week after week.
Numbness in my left side
Thursday during my practice round, at about the 11th hole, I set up to a shot and felt a burning tingling pain shoot straight down into all five of my fingers and I couldn’t even grip the club. That really freaked me out. I had been having some issues with my left side for about 5 days and ignored it for too long. Amanda, the local massage therapist was excellent. She stretched, iced and massaged my upper back. Most of my pain was gone the next day and actually stayed away throughout the weekend. That was a huge relief. I will keep up with my stretching from now on and hopefully stay pain free!
Three-footer hell
The weather was gorgeous all weekend, with a few wind gusts up to 20 mph. That was nothing compared to McAllen last week. I started off the weekend with a 75. I struck the ball very well all day but had issues with my putting – 3 footers to be specific. I missed 4 of them. It was difficult to give up 4 shots that way just because it makes such a big difference on the leader board. But because of how well I was striking the ball I felt that I could make up for it on Saturday.
No peeking! Thx Doc!
After having a conversation with “Doc” Parent, my mental coach, and doing the drills that he suggested, I was a lot more confident about those 3-footers. I found out that part of the problem was mechanics but the main problem was that I was moving my head. So if I keep real still and feel my arms travel more down the target line, my percentage of making those short putts gets much higher. So no peeking!!!
Can’t I birdie them all??
Saturday was the complete opposite of Friday. I actually started off with a birdie, and I thought back to what my friend Andy always says to me when he witnesses me with an immediate birdie. “You can’t birdie them all if don’t birdie the first one!” So I was excited after the first hole and was ready for more. Unfortunately, that was my only birdie of the day and had to put up with my awful ball striking for the rest of the round. But contrary to Friday, I putted great!!! So the conversation and drills from Doc definitely helped. This game is all about staying consistent. Physically and mentally. I bogeyed the last hole by going for a par 5 in 2 and hit it in the water. I missed the cut by 1 shot and definitely learned a little something about course management from that.
Post-tourney unwinding
I tried to get a flight home Sunday but nothing was available, so I kept myself busy by going to my favorite group exercise class, spinning early Sunday morning at a local gym. I went shopping at the mall and finished the day at a Barnes and Noble bookstore doing some research on Switzerland, France and The Netherlands since I will be traveling there for a Month to play 3 Ladies European Tour events.
Yeah I missed the cut, but this is only the beginning. I have a lot more opportunities. I am flying out to Switzerland on Thursday and have already set this weekend aside to visit and play tourist around Lugano before the Deutsche Bank Ladies Swiss Open next Thursday.
Bye,
Megan Heckeroth, On Tour
If you keep the 100 degree weather and add about 90% humidity, that’s what it was like walking out of the McAllen airport on Monday afternoon. So I decided to stay indoors for the rest of the afternoon and just relax. The next day I slept in and watched ER television which is one of my morning routines. Checked out the area a little bit and then headed for the golf course.
That’s Texas golf for you!
Once I discovered that the Palm View Municipal golf course was one that you could take advantage of to score low, I was excited to start playing on Friday. I was 3 over through 6 holes and then the wind picked up and I actually started to play better. To give you a sense of playing in the wind, I shot a 7-iron with 110 yards in and still was 10 yards short. That’s Texas golf for you! I finished the day with a 75 which I was very satisfied with because it seemed like most of the girls in the afternoon were struggling with the wind. I was very fortunate to have had one of the morning tee times to start the tournament with.
Stand back and take a deep breath
The next day I came in with another 75. I didn’t make one single birdie on Saturday which was very frustrating because it seemed like the ball was lipping out of the hole or burning the edge every single time. I will have to admit that my round on Saturday was one of the most annoying rounds I think I have ever played as a professional. But you just have to stand back, take a deep breath and accept the fact the some days they go in and some days they don’t.
I am hungry for birdies
I made the cut and finally a couple of birdies as well on Sunday to finish tied for 54th. Not my best finish but I am still learning and improving with every tournament. I am getting more consistent and I am hungry for birdies. So I am headed to El Paso for one more tournament in Texas. The only thing that I am going to do is to stay patient and wait for those birdie putts to fall.
Cheers,
Megan Heckeroth
So I landed in Dallas on Monday, got my luggage, took the escalator downstairs to catch the shuttle to pick up my rental car and was hit by a wall of 102 degree weather as soon as I walked outside. This made me instantly appreciate the weather back home in Southern California. I got on the shuttle and was welcomed to Texas by Shania Twain which was the ring tone of the woman sitting next to me.
After discovering that the Dallas airport is a city of its own, I got lost on the way to the hotel. The next morning, I got lost on the way to the golf course for a practice round and got lost on my way to the gym after that. Sure enough, that evening I got a little turned around again on my way back to the hotel. I’ll admit that I am not the best at directions but the road system here completely baffled me.
So Friday rolls around and the weather had actually cooled down to the low 80’s. I shot 75 that day which put me in a tie for 87th place. I feel that I played well but just had one hole that gave me some trouble.
It takes a lot of self motivation when you are out here on your own.
After being confident in my pre-swing routine, I hit my 4 iron on the par 3 hole #6. I look up and it was headed left. It hit the top of the mound left of the green and I watched it kick dead left out of bounds. I hit another 4 iron and landed short and couldn’t get up and down and made triple bogey. Of course I was a little upset but I pulled myself together and played great for the rest of the way in.
Can you do the math?
The next two days I played well. I shot 70 on Saturday which moved me up to 42nd place and had a rollercoaster of a round on Sunday but still came in with a 71 which put me in a tie for 28th place. If you didn’t get a chance to see my scorecard for Sunday, by rollercoaster, I mean I had 6 birdies for the day and only 2 pars on the back nine. You do the math.
Can we transfer birdies?
I am very satisfied with my tournament in Frisco. It’s my best finish as a professional so far and I believe I am getting more comfortable being under par which is a big step for me. Let’s see if I can keep all those birdies for McAllen this weekend and leave the bogeys in Frisco.
Until next time,
Keep it inbounds.
Megan Heckeroth
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