Beaufort native Mark Anderson grew up dreaming of playing in the Verizon Heritage. By winning the Players Amateur at Belfair last summer, he earned that chance. He is sharing his experience with The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette with a daily Heritage diary.
When I got to my first hole (No. 10), it was fun. I was excited. I was pumped up, and I hit a good drive. Once I got out there playing, I was fine. I was having a great time. I didn't feel out of place at all. I felt right at home.
Really, I hit the ball fine all day. But I putted poorly. And that probably cost me three or four shots, and that's why I'm 3 over par.
I was 1 over par through eight holes, and then I missed about a 2-footer on 18 for par. So that put me at 2 over. But then I double-bogeyed No. 1 and bogeyed No. 2. I just hit it right on No. 1, and then I hit a bad shot for my second shot and then missed a short putt for bogey. That put me at 5 over. I had a three-hole stretch there where I was 4 over, and I thought it could get ugly if I didn't do anything quickly.
I followed that with a birdie, and that got me back to playing solid. I wanted to get to 1 or 2 over, but I missed another short putt on No. 8. That really hurt, because I had some momentum going.
I need to shoot 2 or 3 under (today) to have a chance of making the cut. The golf course is in great shape. It's playing relatively hard with the wind blowing. That made it really tricky (Thursday). But I need to shoot low. I know I can do it, because I've done it out here before. I need to get out there and get off to a good start and figure out how to make a few putts.
I'm playing in the morning. It's going to be nice to play in easier conditions at the time when I need to play better. That's one thing I have going for me.
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