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.
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