Hillcrest Yankton Pro Am

Last week I played in the Hillcrest Pro-Am in Yankton, SD. I played this event 5 years ago just out of college and remember it being a lot of fun so decided to make another trip back! The event started off for me on Tuesday since I had to qualify for the actual tournament. The qualifier round went well as I shot 2 under to make it into the event. I was a little tired after driving up from Iowa the previous day and also from an emotional high off the win in Cedar Rapids. On Wednesday we had our practice rounds I had a light day of practice and played 9 holes to get ready for the first round.

The tournament started early Thursday morning for me and found the course to have by far the fastest greens of the year! I was one of the first groups out in the morning wave and the greens were pretty close to putting on glass, they were fast! Most of the events on the Dakotas Tour are Pro-Ams just like this event and is definitely a different way to play since your aren't playing with other pros in the event rather Amateurs that are mostly members of the club or clubs nearby. For the first three rounds I played with three different groups of Ams and we had a good time every day. I played some solid golf all week shooting 69 - 70 - 64 in the pro-am portion if the event. After the first three rounds there is a cut and the final day we are paired back with the pros. The final round I was in the final group sitting in third place, 4 shots back of the leader. The final round didn't go as planned for me as I ended up shooting an even par 72 on the day to finish 6th place. I felt as if I played well all day it was just one of those days where a few bad breaks and some missed opportunities turned a solid round into a relatively average one. Overall had a great week in Yankton! The members at Hillcrest put on an excellent event as I remembered from 2008. I got to stay with the family I stayed with in 08 and it was great to see them and their kids! Next week I'm playing in Rapid City, SD looking forward to seeing another new place.