Brennan's Blog -Fryscom Open

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 22:13:08

Another year is about to come to a close this week in Phoenix where Mike will defend at the Frys.com Open. This will be the end of my tenth year as Mike's caddy and it doesn't feel like I've been out here that long. So long that I am now considered a veteran caddy, which is a scary thought. It's always great to come back to an event to defend, something that doesn't happen too often for most players. It makes the event a little bit more special than if you were just playing in another fall season event. With only three tournaments left on tour it is crunch time for a lot of guys this week who are trying to keep their playing privileges for the 2009 season. Most of the guys are pretty relaxed and loose and just playing out the season in a great frame of mind. The few trying to keep their tour cards are probably not so comfortable.

The Frys.com Open is going to be played on the same course this year, but it's going to play much different than it did last year. The course last year played very hard and fast while this year it's playing much softer and slower. It may sound a bit confusing but they overseeded the course with a winter grass that makes it look very green and lush. Last year it was straight Bermuda grass that didn't look nearly as good and required very little water. To simplify things, the course is much softer and greener and will therefore play a lot longer. The greens are pretty similar and are quite fast in certain spots so you need to be very careful where you're putting from. Aside from the condition changes there have been no layout changes so Mike should be very familiar and have some positive feeling towards the course having played so well last year.

The key to playing Grayhawk is obviously to keep the ball in the fairway, but approach shots are especially crucial. It's important to keep the ball on the proper side of the hole in order to have makeable putts for birdie. If you happen to get on the wrong side of the hole some of the putts can be very fast and force you to putt defensively. I think there will be a lot of birdie opportunities this week under these conditions.

The Scottsdale area is always one of the best stops on tour for me because I have lots of friends here and can always sneak in a round of golf during the week. This week there will also be a couple of hockey games as the Coyotes are in town so that adds some entertainment during the week. It's also a great time of year for the weather in Arizona. The daytime highs are in the mid 80s and the lows are in the 60s so it's great to have a week of sunshine with winter quickly approaching.

I think this year has turned out to be a very productive year and the only negative is that Mike hasn't wonï¿½yet. He has really played solidly all year, improving different components of his game throughout; as we all try to do. With a win here it would turn a good year into a great year!

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more.