For the second year in a row the BirdieSisters  set their  sights on a championship at the “Doral – Publix Junior Golf Classic.”  And, for the second time they came up a little short.  This is by far their most difficult tournament of the year because they loose a lot of ground on their competitors in the winter, not being able to practice outside.  They do their best to keep up by working on mats and in golf domes;  however,  there is no substitute for the golf course.

When we arrived on Tuesday it was 88 degrees.  We checked into the beautiful Doral Resort and Spa, changed into shorts and headed straight to the golf course to practice.   It took all 9 holes for the BirdieSisters to get into a groove.  In fact, it was dark when they finally made it to the 9th hole.  They could barely see the ball.  The next day turned out to be a better experience.  The BirdieSisters played 18 holes and became a lot more comfortable on the course.   Thursday was the official practice round and the BirdieSisters each played their 9-hole tournament course.  However, Myah wasn’t able to finish her practice round due to rain storms.

The tournament began on Friday.  Erica teed off from hole number 10 on the Red Course at 8:00 am.  Immediately thereafter the rain came pouring down.  Before Erica’s group could finish hole number 10, the siren sounded to suspend play until the rain stopped.  After about 30 minutes play resumed, and so did the pouring rain.  Nevertheless, the tournament continued.  Finally, during the middle of play on the 15th hole, the siren sounded again to suspend play.  Myah had begun playing at 9:30am and was on the 2nd hole when the siren sounded.  This time, a decision was made to cancel the first day of the tournament and play a one day championship round the next day.   We were all drenched, especially Erica who had played 6 holes with no umbrella.

Saturday presented sunshine and much cooler temperatures — high 60s.  Erica teed off at 9:00 am and Myah teed off at 10:30 am.  By 11:00 am temps were climbing into the mid to upper 70s.  Both Erica and Myah had strong starts off the first tee, something they have struggled with in the past.  Additionally, both Erica and Myah were successful at driving their balls right down the middle of the fairway throughout the tournament — another area where Erica has struggled in the past.  While putting showed improvement over last year, both Erica and Myah struggled with their approach shots.  Although their final scores weren’t great, we are pleased with the improvement observed in both their mental and physical game.   If the BirdieSisters can maintain this level of play and couple it with more time playing outside, look out!  For more information and scores visit:  http://www.firstteemiami.org/tournaments/doral/scores2009/