Hamilton warming up on the driving range at the Club Car Championship. Not pictured: the sign where they misspelled his last name 😜
You may recall a few weeks ago I mentioned our son Hamilton earned a sponsor's exemption into the Club Car Championship, which took place in Savannah, Georgia at the Landings Golf Club. I have to say, it was one of the coolest experiences to be a part of even though I had no idea what to expect.
We knew going into it that the name of the game was to go as low as possible. And this absolutely turned out to be true. I believe the leader was -11 after the very first round.
Hamilton was able to go bogey-free in the first round and shot a 68. The
second round was tougher for him and he ended up shooting a 73, which put him at -3 and missing the cut (which was -5). Though he missed his goal of making it to Saturday, he took so much away from it and can't wait for the opportunity to come around again.
His days as a junior golfer taught him not to compare himself
to all the other players out there, most of whom hit it further or were playing for years. Instead, he focused on his own game and was able to quickly identify his areas of focus over the next few months.
There was a definite difference with the vibe of the tournament too. We're used to everyone competing in
junior golf for the thrill of the victory and learning valuable lessons with each tournament. On the Korn Ferry though, these guys are playing for a paycheck. It creates a tension we weren't used to seeing, even though Hamilton competed as an amateur.
I can also share with you as a parent that it never gets easier
watching them play in a tournment, no matter which one it is! You want it so badly for them, but we all know it's up to them to put the pieces together on the course.
Hamilton's next stop is one last shot at a State Championship title for high school and then on to the U.S. Open in June. But first, we have to
get him (and ourselves) through graduation and all the joys a senior year of high school brings!
