Asian Tour International Series - Foxhills

Monday 5th August - Practice Day 1

Foxhills is just under an hours drive for me so I decided to stay at home for this week which makes a nice change.

Arriving at Foxhills, I didn't really know what to expect but I quickly would learn how much of a big deal they have made the International Series.

There was security at the entrances where players, caddies and their guests would have access to certain area's around the clubhouse, so it made me feel that little more special, which makes a change from the regular events I play.

I arrived at 9am, with the plan to warm up, do some putting, short game and then on the range before playing the front 9.

After getting my accreditations and info for the week, I got to work. It felt like a proper tour event which was so cool, on the range they had some music playing and we had the option to hit pro v 1 or pro v 1x golf balls. This makes a huge difference because usually we have to hit shocking range balls that have no truth behind their ball flights! They even had this around the short game area, with volunteers clearing balls for us on the greens. In the players lounge, the food and drink on offer was amazing. We had so much to choose from the whole week and full credit to the team at Foxhills for doing a fantastic job. I perhaps should have used this more but there was a barber and physio on site as well, it just made it feel like a proper event. 

While I was practicing, I was approached by the super stroke putter grips and bushnell rep, I got myself a new putter grip and a spare bushnell battery which is very useful.

After all the antics, I managed to get out on the course to play 9 holes. I played with a mate from Foxhills who got in the event and also a Korean player that played in the Open a few weeks ago. The course was playing firm and they had sped the greens up considerably since I played here last week. Today was all about getting a good game plan off the tee, then just working on the feels around the greens, short game shots and putts. It was pretty windy, which made certain tee shots play tricky.

A good first day in the books.

Tuesday 6th August - Practice Day 2

I arrived again at a similar 9am time. My process was more of the same as yesterday but we were playing the back 9. It felt like everything was really ramping up as we got closer to day 1, all the players here really were focused and meant business. I really enjoyed that feeling of this your job, not just a jolly, which sometimes you get the feeling of normally at other events.

We had some rain today, a bit more than expected when we teed off but I decided to stick it out and play the back 9 anyway. I randomly joined up with a Chinese player, a Spanish and an Italian which was a good group. I definitely did not feel out of my depth. I played really nice, I felt more focused and executed a lot of shots on the back 9. The rain was welcome as it took the firmness and fire out of the course a little which made it a little easier to get the approach shots closer.

I felt comfortable and confident in our game plan for each hole and with the pro am on Wednesday, I would just practice at Manning's on Wednesday to stay fresh and rested ahead of day 1.

Thursday 8th August - Round 1

A 1pm tee time to start the event for me so I gave myself a good amount time to warm up and get ready for the round. I was paired with Jeev Milkha Singh which let's say, wasn't necessarily pretty to watch but it was a masterclass of playing to your own strengths within yourself.

The weather was pretty windy with some rain due to come through later in the afternoon.

I felt calm and focused and I started my round really solid. I made good par saves on the 3rd and 4th before making my first birdie on the par 5th. My first bogey came at the 495 yard par 4 7th and I made the turn at level par. I was hitting it solid but a little scrappy off the tee, just missing fairways which made it tricky to get the ball close to the pins. I stayed patient though and my best drive of day came at the par 5 14th, which was playing into the wind and drizzle. I hit a 7 iron just short of the green and managed to chip in for an eagle, a great feeling! Frustratingly, I three putted the next but managed to bounce back with a good birdie at the tough par 3 16th. I finished the round at -2 and in a very solid position of T26 which felt good.

Friday 9th August - Round 2

An 8am tee time to start round 2 off hole 10 which meant a quick turn around after round 1. By the time I got some food and got home, it was quite late and I struggled with sleep.

I was up at 5am and effectively operating on 5 and a half hours of sleep. My warm up was a little rushed but I stayed calm and said to myself, I've done this before and managed to go post a score. The weather was still breezy but much more sun than yesterday. More people seemed to be out watching which created a good atmosphere around the course. I started pretty well, with birdies on 12 and 13. I pushed my drive slightly on 14 where it finished directly behind a tree, I could only chip it 10 yards sideways, so that was a bogey. I hit one of my best shots of the week on the par 3 16th, a 4 iron from 212 yards with wind hurting off the left, water right to about 20ft. A dangerous hole that I played -1 for the 2 rounds. After making a good birdie on the 18th, I made the turn at level par and in good shape. However, the next three tee shots I struggled with. I pushed my 2 iron into the trees on the 1st and 2nd to make bogeys. I tried to reset and compose myself on hole 3, a tricky tee shot. I pushed my drive 5 yards into the trees, almost exactly the same as round 1. In round 1, I found it, chipped out and made a great par. Today, we got up there and could not find the ball. I had to go back to the tee and I walked off with a 7, 3 shots gone. It was a tough moment as although it wasn't the best of drives, I didn't expect to lose my ball. I tried to finish as best as possible but ended up finishing the round at +5 to miss the cut by three shots.

I was gutted. I did so much well throughout both days for it all to be undone in basically 2 or 3 moments. Despite missing the cut, I was in the tournament for large parts and that has given me huge confidence and motivation that I can compete at this level going forward. Finally a massive thank you to my caddies Guy and Ed this week and also everyone that supported me.

Time to put what I've learnt this week into Clutch next week at Manning's, a home event.

For more insights to my journey and to help your game, come join our growing RHG community.

Ryan

Round 1