Back to work we go and what a great feeling it was to be competing again after a two-month break, writes ASHLEIGH BUHAI in the April copy of Compleat Golfer.
What a difference it made also to be living in Florida. The journey to Orlando was only two hours by car, which lowered the stress levels a lot when it comes to the travelling aspect.
The first tournament I played in after the break was the LPGA Gainbridge Classic. The venue was the well-known Lake Nona Country Club which the likes of Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Annika Sorenstam, Lydia Ko and a few other pros call home while they’re in the US.
There was a buzz in the air during the week as Annika was competing for the first time at an LPGA event since she retired 14 years ago. It made me think back to the first time I met her in Sweden as a 16-year-old. The memories also flooded back of the time when I got to play with her at the ‘Home of Golf’ – St Andrews, naturally! – in the first two rounds of her final Women’s British Open in 2007.
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These days, I might be only 31 but it did make me feel a little old when I realised most of the players in the field had never competed against her!
I am normally a slow starter to the season, but I was really happy to get off to a good start that week and to see that the work I had put in over the off-season was paying off. With rounds of 71, 67, 71 and 71 I capped off the week with a tie for eighth place.
The second week we headed a little further north to Ocala in Florida, an area famous for its horses. The Ocala Country Club is renowned for its replica holes taken from famous course from around the world. They include the postage stamp at Royal Troon, the 1st and 17th holes at St Andrews and the 10th, 12th, 13th and 16th holes at Augusta National.
The weather was a little cooler and windy on the weekend, and with the greens being redone a year ago they were still very firm which made it a little tricky getting the ball close to the hole. I started the week where I left off the previous week and played good steady golf with rounds of 70, 70 and 72, but they say it all happens on the back on Sunday.
Unfortunately for me a few missed shots led to a 77 in windy conditions, which saw me slide down the leaderboard to 34th place. Although Sunday didn’t go as I would have liked there were so many positives from the first two tournaments and I headed into the West Coast Swing with high hopes.
