Ladies German Open

Hello everyone…

I’ve finally found some time to sit down and write my latest blog!

My friend and fellow Professional, Kieron, came out to caddy for me. We went to Spain for a few days back in March for some warm weather training and I was impressed with the thoughts he had when he was helping me with my game out there.

I then thought that he would be good on my bag and so he proved to be in Germany. He’s very calm and obviously has a good understanding of the game.

We got off to a good start in round 1 and I shot 3 under – that was honestly the worst it could’ve been. I had 6 birdies and 3 bogeys, always nice to make some birdies in your first round!

Round 2 was similar but I had 4 birdies and only 1 bogey. It meant that I had made the cut and would be playing at the weekend – part one done!

The weekend I just remember struggling with my pitching slightly and this was mainly due to me not being 100% sure on my yardages (every tournament I seem to be gaining distance!) and always having in between yardages. I still made 3 birdies and was driving the ball better than I had the past few weeks. You know what they say, you get one thing sorted and another thing goes!

I shot +1 which isn’t really what you want at the weekend as the aim is to move up the leaderboard day by day… Still, I had the fourth round to go but this turned out to be a similar story… It’s really frustrating when you set yourself up to fire in good approaches and you hit the majority of shots pretty well but then struggle with the yardages.

Saying that, I had 3 bogeys and 3 birdies for a level par round of 72. All four rounds had spells of my usual steady, consistent par golf…

I was disappointed at having moved down the leaderboard but I had to take the positives of making the weekend and driving much better. I putted solidly too overall.
The weather was a challenge – it was really hot but I guess it beats rain!!

Kieron was great to have out there and we both enjoyed it. He kindly wrote some notes for me about the week which we have since discussed and I can use to improve parts of my game. A big thank you to him!
I have to say it was brilliant to have lots of spectators watching, it makes it feel like a proper tournament and I love it.

So, it was straight on to Prague where after a near 4 hour bus ride, we finally arrived at our hotel for the week!
Needless to say after that journey and a long, hot week in Germany, it was a case of a much needed rest on Monday!! It was also a day to get some laundry done – the joys of travelling!!

I had heard various reports about the course we were playing so I was looking forward to getting out there and seeing it for myself. Having played the practice round, I liked the course and felt comfortable with it. It was a short course and tight in places but quite cute.

On the Wednesday, I only took my wedges and a putter out with me as I knew short game would be key that week. I went out with my friends Charlotte and Becky Brewerton and it was good to see how Becky was playing the course as she has played it before.

My first round I started on the 10th hole and my distance control let me down there. The next was a par 3 with an island green and due to me gaining distance as previously mentioned, I went long in to the water! I played a good chip but the putt just missed. I struggled with feel on the greens in that round leaving most putts short. I think in my head they were faster than they actually were. Also my alignment seemed to be a little off, I was striking everything well but just not hitting it close enough on big greens.

So, the score of +7 wasn’t great which was disappointing but I actually didn’t feel like I had played that bad!
I was more determined than ever to go out on the second round and shoot a better score. I felt confident that I could do that. I had more birdies and shot +3 so at least that was an improvement. It took over 5 hours to play the first round in very hot conditions and the second round wasn’t much quicker… This wasn’t an excuse, not at all but it’s always nice when the pace of play keeps moving and you can get a good rhythm going. As always, it’s a case of taking the positives from every tournament and Germany was a big positive so I’ll use that as more motivation to keep going and securing my card.

Since I’ve been back, I’ve played in the Estepona Pro am held at Cowdray Park on the Saturday and Chiddingfold on the Sunday. This was a real success and enjoyed by all playing. I came 7th out of the Pros and was pleased with how I struck the ball both days. Becky Brewerton, Bree Arthur and Hannah Burke (LET Pros) came down to play and this was a nice treat for the amateurs playing. It’s a pro am that has the potential to go on to be even more successful with more tour pros joining in. The aim now over the next few weeks is to work on my wedges and yardages and get them more dialled in!

Karen (mind coach) came over to see me and we went over some of the stuff that we’ve worked on in the past. It was great to go over it again as it’s really effective and I know it will help me in my next tournament in Sweden.

Let the hard work begin 🙂

*See more photos on the gallery page…