If you’re at all like I am, you get quite a kick out of watching the PGA Tour players struggle from time to time. Sure, it’s awesome to see them hitting huge drives, close approaches and shots most of us can only dream of, but once in a while it’s fun to see them look like most of us do everyday.
The story of the weekend was the weather. Sunday the winds and rain came in a all hell broke loose. The average score at Torrey Pines South sky-rocketed above 77 and to show how hard things can be, third round co-leader Scott Brown (who I played against in college) shot an 87 to drop all the way down to T-47.
Brandt Snedeker on the other hand comes from six strokes back and eventually catches the leaders. His 69 was best by 3 strokes, it was the only round under par and was nothing short of miraculous. How’d he do it? Let’s take a look:
Fairways & Greens: This one is obvious, but on a tough course with high rough, fairways and greens are paramount. While Tour players are usually looking to get as close as they can on their approach shots, on days where the weather is king, any portion of the fairway or greens will do. Snedeker led in both categories the final round.
Stay Patient & Love the Challenge: Weather is tough and you’re going to get bad breaks. Whenever I’m playing in horrid conditions, I always like to turn it positive thinking to myself “this is everything golf can throw at me, let’s battle and see who wins. “ By keeping it positive and accepting the difficulty that everything brings will keep you in the present and not about getting back into the warm club house.
Ride momentum: In heavy weather conditions, Pars can feel like birdies. If you can string a few good shots together or even make a few birdies keep it going!
Now, what does Sneds do in his swing that makes him a great wind player. He lost in a playoff in the wind at the Sony earlier this year and tackled Torrey. What I’d like highlight is how still his head and sternum stay though the shot. When you’re able to stay that still, you will be able to consistently strike irons clean and control trajectory. Check him out