Riverside Club Championship Recap

The Riverside Club Championship did not go how I thought it would.

Awaiting the winner was $50 to go towards next year's AFGL Membership, so winning was a priority for me as I made a promise to my wife to pay for all of my footgolfing using money I make aside from my full-time job. It was just as important to me as any tournament I've played in thus far, and I choked.

I was unable to make the 2 p.m. start time as it conflicted with work, so I asked the other players if it would be acceptable if I played my round in the morning. Another player said that would work better for him as well to play in the morning, so we set the tee time for 9 a.m..

On Saturday and Sunday mornings I work at the golf course to help pay for my footgolf addiction, so the tee time was right after my shift. Another grounds crew member didn't show to help out with the morning routine, so I was scrambling to make up what difference I could as the tee time approached. I finished up with less than 10 minutes before our scheduled tee time. I quickly got dressed, and met the other player at the club house just in time.

We were in the middle of the Saturday rush with golfers ahead and behind us and I felt hurried. Whenever I play, I want to be sure to be out of the way of the golfers as much as I can. I know many of them don't appreciate the sport of footgolf invading their fairways, so I do my best to be accommodating to show we can coexist. This can sometimes lead to a lack of focus or me feeling rushed to finish a hole, which can show on the scorecard. 

Unfortunately that was the case that Saturday morning. I still lack the mental toughness to be able to ignore those outside factors and focus solely on my next shot. Fortunately, I don't think that I will run into the same issue for the Regional Championship in a week and a half.

My finals score was -1 and my opponent finished +2. We went back and fourth throughout the round in a tough battle, but I finished strong. He hit into thick bushes on 17, where I birdied the last two holes to jump ahead of him. I was happy with personal best of seven straight rounds under par at Riverside, but doubted my score would hold up for first place.

I was right. The winner shot -4, which I knew I would have had a better chance of matching had I been able to play at the designated time, but you can't dwell on woulda-coulda-shouldas.

It was a good experience in which I learned that there is still plenty for me to improve upon, especially mental toughness. Being unquantifiable makes that aspect of the game the hardest to improve upon, at least for me. I'm not quite sure how to improve that. Maybe I'll have someone follow me around with an airhorn for practice.

Next up is the Regional Championship on September 24th. There may not be a lot of people competing in the tournament, but they're quality players and I feel up to the challenge. My goal at the beginning of the season was to make it this far. Now that I have, the new goal is to make it to the National Championship in California come November.

Between now and then, stay tuned for a product review.

Quick update

Too much has happened since my last entry. Here's a quick rundown of what's gone on since then in my footgolf summer.

Grand Junction

With hopes of qualifying for the Regional Championship, I failed miserably. I played what I believe to be my worst round of footgolf maybe ever. Through two holes I was five over par. I couldn't combat the wind or kick consistently straight to save my life. I embarrassed myself. My sister Jamee, on the other hand, qualified, and I couldn't be happier for her. We had a good time driving to and from Colorado in what was a memorable trip.

Qualifier at Riverside Golf Course

With one chance remaining to qualify, I had my eyes set on defending the home course in the first AFGL qualifier in Utah. I made a lot of mistakes and finished one over par, but still managed to take home some hardware. I tied for third place overall, which was just enough to qualify me for the Regional Championship. It's funny how I spent the money to travel to Idaho and Colorado to try and qualify, but I wouldn't actually do so until the qualifier at my home course. I didn't play my best, but I'll take the results. What's even better is that the Regional Championship will also be held at Riverside on September 24. Biggest event for me so far this year.

My brother Gavin and good friend Scott came to the course to watch me, which I was very appreciative of. I get that being serious about a fringe sport like this can be odd, but I love those guys for supporting me that day.

Losing my Adidas Nativo

While playing a round one morning by myself at Riverside, I was a bit too aggressive with my approach on hole 4, a par four with a green surrounded by tall, thick rough. Not far beyond the hole was a steep drop off to the Weber River. The grounds crew had placed a net to prevent balls from making the plunge, but I watched in horror as my Adidas Nativo, a ball I spent a good amount of money on, dropped through the net and into the river. I searched for three hours and found nothing. My name and number are on the ball, but no one has contacted me.

Since I lost my ball, I've been playing with an Adidas Jabulani training ball, meaning it's not the official match ball that the pros use, but a step or two below. I haven't played as much as I would like to, but since using that ball I haven't shot over par at Riverside. It doesn't carry nearly as much spin or bend as my Nativo does, so I can let it rip with a lot more confidence. I also believe the ball rolls with more accuracy than my Nativo. I'm planning on saving up money (like $200-$300, I know, crazy) to eventually buy an official match ball Adidas Jabulani. All in good time.

Club Championship

Riverside is putting together a Club Championship this Saturday, and the winner gets their AFGL membership for 2017 paid for. They had a qualifying tournament to get into the actual tournament, in which I was the overall winner as I matched my personal best score of -8 (using my Jabulani training ball. Go figure). Turns out that the tournament was meaningless as everyone will be able to play in the actual championship, but it was great to see that I can play well in a tournament situation. I hope I can replicate that on Saturday to save me $50 for next years. More than that, I need to build up that consistency for the Regional Championship.

In summation, I'm definitely not playing as much as I'd like to, but I'm ok with where I'm at. Stay tuned for a product review soon as well as updates with the upcoming tournaments.