My runner-up finish at the New Zealand Open was encouraging. Of course, a win would have been better!  Alex Prugh and his caddie Zach Bixler have become good friends.  We hung out together in Australia and New Zealand, so it was good to see him at the top of the leader board. This is his second year on the Nationwide.  So he was due! And shooting 64 the last day was obscene. He earned it.  Don’t worry though;  I made him pay for dinner that last night.

My stats in New Zealand – 67-69-68-68=272 (16 under) were solid.  From tee to green, I hit a lot of good shots.  My ball striking was above average.  The Hills rewards ball striking, so I think that is why I did well.  I want to get a little more consistent with the putter though.  I will be working on that before my next tournament in Louisiana.

During the third round when I was the tournament leader, my ball hit a woman next to the #12 green.  It broke her nose, which was pretty disturbing to her and me.  Officials put her in a cart and carried her to get emergency medical help.  I putted out and made a par, despite feeling pretty unnerved about it.  Russell said, don’t worry, most pro golfers have this happen sometime in their career, which brings me to the subject of the crowds at the NZ Open.  They were phenomenal. Before the NZ Open, the biggest crowds I played in front of were at the Texas State Open at The Cascades in Tyler.  In Queenstown, the crowds were well above 10 thousand each day.  I read estimates for the weekend reached 40-thousand. The crowds were so loud in their reactions, Russ and I knew when my ball was close to the pin by the sound of the spectators.  Conversely, we also knew when it wasn’t close by the silence. This was a really positive experience to play in front of a large crowd and TV cameras.  I gained a lot of confidence playing in front of the big galleries.  I was nervous a lot, but I was also confident, which is most important.

At the close of the trip, the flight from Auckland to Los Angeles wasn’t too bad.  It went fast mostly because Air New Zealand has individual touch screens with movies, TV shows and other entertainment for every passenger.  I watched the entire 2008 Rugby League World Cup.  I was planning on mastering the Rubik’s Cube, but I lost my cube toward the end of the trip. If you have a Rubik’s Cube you aren’t using, send it to me. I promise to master it on long car and plane trips!  It was great to get back to my family in Dallas.  Thanks Grammy for one of your fabulous cakes! (This is a tradition in our family.)    

Next up is Louisiana Chitimacha Classic in Lafayette.  We are leaving Monday, March 23 and are routed through Beaumont to pick up Russell.  After the tournament, I will be playing the Shell Open Qualifier in Spring.  If I qualify, I’ll withdraw from the Stonebrae tournament in San Francisco. I have college tournament experience on both courses at Redstone. Otherwise, Russell and I fly out of Houston to SF on Monday, March 30^th. Then it’s back to Dallas for a two-week trip to Georgia.

So far, I am adjusting well to the travel and playing.  When you are high enough on the money list, you are asked to play the pro-ams on Wednesdays.  (You aren’t supposed to say no; I wouldn’t anyway.)This gives me an extra practice round, which is good. When we are playing back to back tournaments, the only day off is Monday (except for players who miss a cut).  I am working hard and feel so blessed to have this opportunity.

I want to say thank you to five special people:  Phil  Packer and Kendall Phinney at Hale-Mills Construction Company, Ron Atchley  of  Atchley Resources, Inc of Oklahoma City, Dr. John Lonergan and Dr. Linda Niessen of Dallas for their sponsorship. They made financial commitments before I won any money on the Nationwide Tour. That is faith!

And lastly, I close with this verse: “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”   Hebrews 12:1

Ping Press Release from NZ Open

I missed my first cut, and it was strange to hang around for two days. Truthfully, it sucked not to be playing the final two rounds. We travel to Queenstown for the last tournament, and I think I'll be anxious to play after the unexpected lay-off.  I shot 69 my second round at Clearwater with 33 putts. Some days, putting is the biggest challenge and other days, it's the best part of my game. I struggled with putting in Christchurch. Russ says he has never seen my hit the ball better.  I just need to put all the pieces together, and I believe I can win!

Christchurch is a really cool college town. It kind of feels like London, England too.  Imagine a British version of Austin, Texas. The golf course reminded me a little of Crosswater in Bend, Oregon where the NCAA Nationals were held my sophomore year at Texas A&M. The narrow fairways are guarded by big pine trees, lots of little streams and lakes on the course. But Crosswater was much longer than Clearwater. 

The Kiwi's (New Zealanders) say "no worries" as a way of saying "you're welcome" or "that's fine" or "yes" or a response to just about any question.  "No worries" to a food order.  "No worries" after saying thank you.  "No worries" is the national slogan.  Kind of cool.  That captures the attitude of this small country, which is very friendly.

I bought a rugby jersey of the New Zealand All Blacks.  My brother, Nate knows about the team.  One awesome thing about rugby is how they score.  Players have to actually touch the ball to the ground in the end zone before it's a touchdown. So once a player gets into the end zone, the other team tries to take the ball away before the ball is "touched" to the ground. I think we should do this in American football. That's a real touch down.

I haven't seen a Kiwi bird yet, but I did find Dr Pepper in a store! It was really cool to "Skype" with my mom and my Grammy.  It costs less than an Australian penny a minute at an internet cafe in downtown Christchurch.  My staff bag finally arrived from PING, so my mom showed it to me on camera! I also saw our cat Cobweb.  How awesome is that to be on the other side of the world and see your cat in real time, live on a computer? The sound was really clear too. No worries!

Well, Russ and I are working hard and will be ready for The Hills outside Queenstown.  I know I'll like this course. The front nine begins and ends with a Par 5.  Since I'm in the Top 25 on the money list after Moonah, I may get to play the pro-am, which means an extra practice round. But if not, no worries.... Cheers and God's blessings always, Martin     

P.S. Gig'em Aggies! We beat Missouri!

Well, I know you have one burning question that I must answer.  Yes, we did see a kangaroo down under! We also saw an emu and a wallaby. I wanted to take home a baby wallaby but Russ stopped me. I guess customs would have anyway. 

The Moonah course was fabulous. It was a sand lover's heaven. 200 bunkers on the course. Staying out of the traps was a primary goal.  When the wind wasn't blowing, which was almost never, or if it was at your back, the par 5's were drivable. I had only one eagle in Round 2 and should have had more. My putting was pretty good on tricky greens. I love links golf.  I first played links golf when I was 13 and our family took a trip to Scotland. Then I went back with the Aggie golf team, so I had a little experience to draw from. I'm accustomed to Texas wind.  But the winds of the Mornington Peninsula are super gusty, because we were just a 20 minute walk from the ocean.  But all in all, it was awesome to play down under. My PING Rapture driver was a weapon against the wind.  

I am pleased with the overall progress of my game.  Russ and I are working really hard, so I think we are seeing some results.  But even though 8th place may be good, I'm not satisfied.  Only a win gives me satisfaction, because my mindset is I want to beat the best and be the best. That means finishing 1st.

Tonight we arrived in Christchurch, New Zealand which is on the southern island. We lost two hours on the plane ride over.  It's Monday night, 19 hours ahead, two hours ahead of Moonah.  This time change won't be as hard to adjust to.  The internet connection is better at the hotel and they have Skype.  So I'm hoping to Skype with my family later this week since my mom skypes from her computer.

One last thing about Australia, I think I'm beginning to understand the rules of Aussie football. Next on my list--cricket.

Cheers and God's blessings from the other side of the world. Martin