Mikes Bell Canadian Open Preview
Tue, 03 Mar 2009 01:55:07
To be sure, it's a hectic week; much busier than normal with lots of demands on my time. I have to be very careful and make sure that I still get time to practice and get my rest, but over the years, I've managed to find a good balance.
I'm coming in here feeling much better about my game and the back ailments that were troubling me at the PGA Championship are almost gone. When I look back now on that tournament, it's actually a bit surprising just how I managed to get into contention - it was all smoke and mirrors really. But sometimes that's what you have to do to get the job done.
To prepare for this evnet, I took last week off and really didn't hit very many balls at all. I wanted to give my back a good rest so I'd be ready for the Bell Canadian Open. I won't say that it's 100 per cent but it's a lot better. In golf, you have to stay in your angles when you swing and with this kind of ailment I wasn't able to do that the last few weeks. I'm starting to get better, but I'm not quite there yet. In the pro-am on Wednesday, my lower back got fatigued more than I'm used to; that's primarily because I haven't been able to keep up with my workouts. But come Thursday, I'll be ready.
The golf course here in Ancaster is wonderful and I've been hearing nothing but rave reviews about it in the locker room. Most of the guys love the old style course, especially the par 3s, which are all solid. Anytime you have to hit three-irons and four-woods into par 3s, you know they're playing tough. Really, this is a true shotmaker's course. You can't just stand up here and bomb it; you have to shape your shots and you have to stay out of the rough. The greens have some pretty serious rolls on them, too, so you are going to have to hit it close to have birdie putts.
Overall, I think the players who fare well here will have to have a good strategy. If you stand on the first tee without a plan, you can easily get into trouble.
There's been a lot of talk this week about the field and about the status of this tournament. I can't tell you why so many players have withdrawn this week; each one probably has a different reason. For some, school is starting and they want to be there for their children. Others may have been playing a lot of events in a row. Whatever the reason, they don't know what they're missing. Still, the field here is filled with solid golfers. As we saw at the British and the PGA, the Tour is really deep. Almost anyone inside the top 300 in the world can win out here and that includes this week.
Of course, I still think this is one of the best stops on Tour, but we have to make it better and I think the RCGA and Bell are working hard to do just that. Taking the tournament around the country is a good step - that's what a national championship should do. And taking it to some of Canada's great courses is another important move. Ancaster is one of those and I know Shaugnessy in Vancouver will be another.
But we also need to make this tournament different than the regular PGA Tour stops. We need to make the younger golfers here realize that they are playing for a national championship and to build some of that feeling that soaks into them the minute they step on the property. I think many of the older players know that. I know from talking to guys like Fred Couples and Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson that this was a big week, it was a tournament they all really wanted to win. When you look at the names of the past champions on the trophy, you begin to sense what this tournament is all about and I think the RCGA, the PGA Tour and the players have to work hard to re-establish that.
This tournament is very important to me - it's the first professional tournament I ever attended live. I can remember coming to this tournament as a kid. A whole bunch of us junior golfers piled into a car and got a ride down. We walked around and watched the tournament. I remember going to a clinic put on by Andy Bean and Tom Kite. Later, when I was in university, I Monday qualified and I can remember standing on the range and hitting balls beside Jack and Nick Price. It was nerve-wracking for a kid, but it's something I'll never forget. So I have great memories and I want this to be an important tournament so the kids playing today will have their own memories. . . . and so the Canadian golf fans will get to see a great championship year in and year out.
I know that every one of the Canadians here would love to win this week and be the Bell Canadian Open champion. For me, it would be a great honor. It's obviously a dream of mine and to do it this year, especially with the kind of year I've had, would really just be an unbelievable year. It would be really, really special to add my name to that list with Pat Fletcher.
As always thanks for your support, thanks for reading, and enjoy the week.
Mike Weir"
