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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, July 30, 2009

Weathered the elements; now time to defend title


    By Parker McLachlin

     • Ahn, 79, still linking together solid rounds

    Join us as we travel on the PGA Tour with Parker McLachlin, a former Punahou athlete. McLachlin and Castle alum Dean Wilson are the only Hawai'i golfers on the PGA Tour. McLachlin, Waikoloa's touring pro, will write his impressions on events that he has just completed and tournaments that are coming up on his calendar.

    Aloha PMac followers!

    I'm writing to you from home in Scottsdale after a LONG week at the Canadian Open. Some of you may have noticed that we had to finish up the event on Monday due to some of the worst weather I've ever endured during a four-day golf tournament.

    I didn't start my first round until 8:20 p.m., the latest I've ever teed off in a golf tournament in my life, and we played one hole then came back the next day and played 32!

    Thankfully that long day was some of my best scoring of the year. I posted 6-under in the first round with some solid play and some nice made putts. I played well the rest of that day but didn't score the way I did in the first 18.

    As the waiting continued every day I found myself maybe not as sharp mentally for the last round on Monday. I got off to a slow start and things unraveled from there. I was pretty fired up to play two full weeks in a row, to sharpen my scoring senses with two straight made cuts and some decent results.

    Fast forward to my preparation this week at home to defend my first PGA Tour victory from last year at the Reno Tahoe Open. In some ways it feels like forever that I made that putt on 18 to capture a dream I've had since I was a young boy. In other ways I can close my eyes and see that putt drop like it really was last week.

    I'm really excited to feed off some of the positive feelings from last year and more importantly build on that and the skills I've been developing in the last year. I have to say my raw skills feel more defined a year later and golf is a game of patience and it's a process, but one I think I'm closing in on. Thanks to everyone for all of the well wishes as I defend next week and hopefully I find some more magic in Reno!

    Till next time,

    Parker

    http://www.parkermclachlin.com