Blog: Beck hopes to have fun, relaxed 2007 season  Special to PGA TOUR.com Editor's Note: Chip Beck will make his first start of the year next week at the Turtle Bay Championship in Kahuku, Hawaii. This is Beck's first installment in his blog, which he will periodically be writing for PGATOUR.com to share details about his rookie season on the Champions Tour. It's been about two months since I last played, so I'm anxious for a start. I wanted to play in the time off in a way that I'll be rested but also be fresh. I live in Chicago so it's hard to play golf. It's 19 degrees outside today! For the Bears game tomorrow, they said the Saints have never played in temperatures below 50 degrees. If they've never seen cold weather, they are going to see it tomorrow. The truth is, I prepared and scheduled the break well. I went to North Carolina for Thanksgiving and spent a week and a half down there. I went to Florida periodically and spent two weeks down there at Christmas and played every day. Last month, I spent two weeks playing with friends and sponsors like Jim Sims, Steve Stuart and Wes Edens. For me, it is fun to play with different people like that. It keeps me eager and fresh and ready to go. I'm excited about the Champions Tour this year and am looking forward to seeing what I can accomplish. My goals are to have a good time and really appreciate it, but also to play without the encumbrances of fear and anxiety, to not get too worried about my game. Any time you step into a new year you are always a little anxious to set goals and do things a little better than you've done them in the past. For me, I want to do the little things that make a difference. Like stepping up to the first tee with a good attitude, practicing my short game, doing little things around the green, working on putting. That is how you develop talent. It's not always big things. Who said it, that "Anybody can have the will to win but not everybody has the will to practice?" You have to have the desire to practice -- that is how you get championships. Take small steps and have discipline and that will help you play free. I'm playing at Turtle Bay in Hawaii next week. It is right on the water and some of my friends have said that the golf course is really beautiful. One of my friends stayed there and he said it has one of the prettiest resorts, where he had a room right on the water overlooking the ocean and the course. It's going to be a lot of fun to play there so I'm looking forward to it. It will also be nice to get down to Florida. I'm actually going to be able to play the ACE Group Classic from my home there. I've played Quail West before and I think guys will really like it, it is a very good golf course. The weather was so good in Florida these past few weeks, it was just ideal. The climate was superb. I'm really looking forward to getting into some real good climate because it always inspires you to play better golf. The Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints game is tomorrow. My wife said it was pure pandemonium in 1985 when they won. They closed the city down. I know that's getting a little ahead of ourselves, but to be one of four teams left in the league -- it will be pretty neat if they can beat the Saints and get to the Super Bowl. I know Mike McCaskey and Nancy would be so excited. They love their team and are really committed to it so it would mean a lot to them. I hope it goes their way, as they've been really nice to me. I went to see the Minnesota game and let me tell you, it can be a lot nicer watching from the box. That day it was 16 degrees and zero with the wind chill! But it was packed and, can you believe it, not one fan left the stadium. In weather 50-below, they go to watch their team win. They are pretty rabid fans! |
PGATOUR.com is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network