Las Vegas - Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open

After arriving on Sunday night and making my way through the airport that has huge signs and TV's advertising the many shows that Vegas has to offer. I stayed at the Red Rock Casino which was nearer the golf course and a little quieter than the hotels on the Strip but the hotel wasn't lacking. Check in looked like a nightclub with red velvet and chandeliers.

A cold front came through on Monday so it was chilly first thing when I made my way to the golf course, I played a practice round and was surprised how quiet the course was, I guess most people thought they would wait until it warmed up later in the day. The course is fairly short and has many birdie opportunities. I practiced my putting for a while and noticed Justin Timberlake was practising before the Pro-Am.

The Shriners are an international fraternity based on Masonic principles. The Shriners of North America support the Shriners Hospitals for Children, a health care system of twenty two hospitals dedicated to improving the lives of children with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries and cleft lip and palate, all children are eligible for care and receive treatment free of charge regardless of financial need. There were a number of them around all week wearing their red fez hats.

Tuesday followed a similar format to Monday but after lunch I went onto the range and tested a couple of new drivers, Taylor Made had made one for me to try during practice but I hadn't hit it any better than the driver I have so we were looking at my ball flight and swing speeds with the varied shafts and heads to see what made more of an impact.

Wednesday I got up early and drove to the strip to check in for a helicopter trip over the Hoover Dam and Grand Canyon, as part of our trip we got to land on Indian land on the floor of the canyon where they served champagne and snacks or diet coke for me! It was an amazing experience; we took off to the theme tune from Top Gun. Our pilot also acted as tour guide throughout the flight, it was an amazing experience that ended with a flight over the hotels on the strip.

Thursday I had an early tee time and I played with Nick Flanigan and Alejandro Canizares, it was nice to catch up with Alejandro and hear about things going on in Europe as he went back in the summer to secure his card in Europe and has come back out to America for the last few events hoping for a big week like me. I didn't get off to a fast start but the round was a solid 6 under par, but the scoring was crazy low, Nick shot 8 under and had been peppering the flag all day, but 10 under was leading after the first round.

By the time I teed off on Friday lunchtime I was twelve shots behind the leaders and that was after a very good round! Nothing happened on the front nine and it was looking like I may miss the cut as I was 1 over for my round, but a couple of birdies in the closing holes got me to 8 under and comfortably in for the weekend.

Each player received two tickets to Justin Timberlake and friends concert, so after play on Friday most of the players and families went to the Planet Hollywood Casino for the show. It was a great show, he is a fantastic entertainer and the other performers included, Leona Lewis, Rhianna, and 50 Cent but my favourites were Boyz II Men. The place was jumping, but I left before the end as I had a half hour drive to my hotel and had an early tee time on Saturday morning.

Saturday was a frustrating day as I knew there were so many birdie opportunities, nothing dropped early on but I finished strongly with a couple of birdies and an eagle to finish the day at 10 under for the tournament. I had a lazy afternoon and then went to see Cirque du Soleil 'O' at the Bellagio. Cirque du Soleil have a number of shows in Vegas and it was between 'O' and "Love" which is all to Beatles music, but we decided upon 'O' as it is a water theme and this one won't be able to travel. It was amazing, not only the acrobats and synchro swimmers but the floor, one second it would be a pool deep enough for them to dive from 120 feet and the next it would be solid. There was so much going on at some points you didn't know what to look at!

Sunday, wasn't a good day, I got off to the good start I had been waiting for all week but had a double and quadruple bogey, which ended all hopes of a good finish. My flight wasn't until 10pm and all the earlier flights to Phoenix were fully booked so I decided to hire a car and drive there, it was a six hour drive but I was still there two hours before I was supposed to take off in Vegas. We had flown over the Hoover Damn during our helicopter ride but got to drive over it and stop for a few photos.

There are only three events left, so I need a good finish somewhere, someone has to win these events so why not me! This week I am playing in Scottsdale at the Frys.Com Open.