Chip Shots

Hello Illini fans!

We returned from the Cardinal Cup where we finished in ninth place out of 15 teams. We started the event by celebrating Dana's 20th birthday! We celebrated by eating chocolate chip cookies on the bus on our way to Louisville and caramel covered apples brought by Dana's mom on our way back to campus. It was a sweet way to start and end this event!

When we got to Louisville, we were able to get a little putting practice in before our practice round the following day. The course looked great and we were all very excited to play. When we got back to the hotel we all had take-out dinner family style.

The University of Louisville Golf Club was a great course that required accuracy and precision off the tee to ensure a good position for approach shots. The rough was very thick and long which not only provided a playing challenge, but at times finding the golf ball was difficult. The weather was great; however, the mornings were on the cooler side. Being diligent about our warm-up routines were essential to being physically prepared to play.

The first day we played 36 holes and had put ourselves in fourth place out of 15 schools and in position to make a move. We had high hopes going into the final round. However, we were unable to capitalize on our good position. Personally, I got sick the night before the final round, which was disappointing, because I was not in the best condition to produce the best round that I could for the team. As for the team, they kept the energy up and positive throughout the round which helped me to keep giving it my all!

We did not end the way we wanted to, but it was a great learning experience for all of us before going into our final tournament of the season in South Carolina. Each of us learned a lot about our own games and it was a great way for us to prepare for our final tournament of the season. We are excited to play in South Carolina and will work hard until then.

Until next time!

Grace Park