De Jonge attempting to 'learn how to win' in Rochester

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Not long ago, during a leisurely dinner on a Saturday night in West Virginia, Brendon de Jonge was discussing his station in life on the Nationwide Tour.

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The closest Brendon de Jonge has come to victory on the PGA TOUR or Nationwide Tour is a tie for third.

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de Jonge's scorecard
Player profile: de Jonge

De Jonge, a native of Harare, Zimbabwae, was asked if he was disappointed about having to return to the Nationwide Tour after failing to retain his playing privileges on the PGA TOUR during his rookie season in 2007.

"Not really,'' the burly de Jonge said thoughtfully. "I honestly think I need to learn how to win. ''

Well there's no time like the present for an invaluable lesson on the subject. Through 36 holes of the Xerox Classic, de Jonge has himself in position to pick up quite a bit of knowledge about that invigorating yet elusive thing called victory. De Jonge had a wild ride over the 6,720-yard Donald Ross-designed Irondequoit County Club on Friday, making eight birdies and two bogies that added up to a 64. It gave him a 36-hole total of nine-under-par 131, good for a promising two-shot lead heading into the weekend.

There also could be a nice consolation prize for de Jonge, who entered this week 12th on the Nationwide Tour money list. He is a couple of solid rounds away from locking up PGA TOUR playing privileges in 2009 that go to the players who finish among 'The 25' on the season-ending list.

"That would be great,'' he said of the potential parting gift. "But . . .''

De Jonge didn't have to finish the thought. His body language said he wants to win badly.

"It's not easy to win on any tour, whether it's the PGA TOUR, the Nationwide Tour or a mini-tour,'' he said. "I think I can do it, but until I do, well it's only thinking.''

De Jonge has a handle on what it takes though.

"You have to keep putting yourself in contention,'' he said. "You have to learn how to control your emotions and learn the shots you can depend on under pressure.''

His results of late -- a pair of top fives and nothing worse than a tie for 18th in his last five events -- indicate he's operating on a nice learning curve. That's likely why he believes the best place for him to learn is the Nationwide Tour, where he admits being more comfortable.

De Jonge experienced an uneven season in The Big Show after he earned his privileges in 2007 PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament. He started well with a top 10 in Mexico, but hit a rough patch where he played on very few weekends. He rallied with a couple of top 10s late and made a late push to sneak inside the top 150, where he would have had conditional status in 2008.

"Looking back I think it was a blessing,'' de Jonge said. "I learned a lot last year watching veteran players. They know how to manage their bad rounds. I saw so many of them turn rounds that should have been one- or two-over into one- or two-under. They did it with patience. And I think I'm more patient now, but I needed a place to practice it without worrying about trying to keep a card.''

De Jonge was five when he was introduced to golf by his father Rik. Although he played a host of other sports, he zeroed in on golf when he started closely following the career of fellow Zimbabwean Nick Price. He broke Price's Zimbabwe Amateur scoring record in 1999, winning the event by 14 shots.

That's also about the same time de Jonge competed in the Orange Bowl junior tournament in Miami, where he caught the eye of quite a few college coaches. He wound up at Virginia Tech after also receiving scholarship offers from East Carolina, North Carolina and the College of Charleston. Twice an All-American and the only Hokie player to win twice in one season, de Jonge made it to the finals of Q-School in 2003 and has never had to grind on the mini-tours.

"I think I was like a lot of rookies that first season," de Jonge said. "I came out here feeling like a world beater and I probably played around a little too much. Then I realized just how good everybody is and started treating this more like a job.''

De Jonge knows he is a much better player now as his 2008 season will attest. But there still that matter of a significant breakthrough. In the past two seasons he has watched as two of his good friends, Brandt Snedeker and Johnson Wagner, who also played at Virginia Tech, have won on the PGA TOUR. While he was ecstatic for both, it made him think, Why not me?

"In a way they have motivated me, given me a kick in the butt,'' he said. "I feel like I am very competitive with them, so it could be me too. Maybe it should be me too.''

It could be de Jonge here come Sunday afternoon. It might be a smaller stage, but at this point de Jonge won't be quibbling.