New Orleans

My day of travelling on Monday was a nightmare from start to finish. Both of my flights were delayed so I arrived in New Orleans over four hours late. To make matters worse when I arrived my golf clubs hadn't, and as I reported the missing bag to the airline my courtesy car left without me. After a number of phone calls another car eventually came to get me and took me to my hotel. To complete my day the toilet in my room was overflowing and it was the only room available in the hotel!

Tuesday morning started better when my clubs arrived so I was able to go to the course and play a practice round with Jason Bolli and Brenden Pappas. Course architect Pete Dye along with tour players Steve Elkington and Kelly Gibson designed TPC Louisiana, it is 7.300 yards in length. It is a challenging course and has a number of run offs around the greens, which is different to the courses we have been playing in Florida where there is thick Bermuda. After I played I had lunch on the driving range as Paul Prudhomme a local famous TV chef was serving the players some of his amazing Cajun food. He gave all of the players a box set of his seasonings; I will have to try them when I get home. When I got back to my hotel I had to change rooms as the toilet had broke again! Atleast I was moved to a room overlooking the Mississippi river, which was only a few hundred, yards away.

On Wednesday I practised, especially the short shots I thought I would need around the greens and worked on trying to build some new irons, I am happy with my current set but I'm looking at some new options that may help me as my swing has improved over the last year. A slight shaft change can make a big difference to the distance, consistency or shape of your shot.

I had an early start on Thursday morning with fellow PGA tour rookies Kevin Streelman and Matt Jones. I didn't get off to a very good start on the front nine, with two bogeys, two birdies and a double bogey but I held it together with nine solid pars on the back nine.

I spent Friday morning relaxing in my hotel room before making the twenty minute drive to the course for lunch, the food in the players lounge this week has been fantastic, New Orleans is famous for its food and they certainly gave us a great variety to try. Out on the course I missed opportunity after opportunity and when I made a mistake it was costly, a frustrating day and a missed cut.

I spent the weekend sightseeing, as the city is rich in history and tradition. I went on a tour of "Mardi Gras World" where they build all of the floats for Mardi Gras and for theme parks like Disney, this was a colourful experience, they have hundreds of characters. I also went for a walk through the French Quarter, there are artists and entertainers performing on the streets and horse drawn carriages to take you on tours. When I was back in my room I practised my putting with my new Adams Dixx Blu digital instruction putter. It has a computer module that is fitted to the putter and collects data and stores statistics so you can review your putting habits, I have only been using it for a few days but I think it is a great. Thankfully, this week my flight to Houston was only fifty-five minutes long, so even though it was delayed it wasn't too bad and everything arrived with me.