Snedeker blog: Life is good both on and off the course

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Brandt Snedeker, who won the Wyndham Championship last year on the way to PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year honors, is writing a blog for PGATOUR.com this year. This is his first installment.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- I didn't finish things off last week at the PODS Championship like I wanted, but at least I was back in contention.

Snedeker has already racked up three top-10s in 2008. (WireImage)

So I take a lot of positives away from my eighth-place finish. I hadn't been in that situation for a while so it was good to get the juices flowing again. I got to see where my game stood and what I needed to work on. I didn't stand up very well under the gun on Saturday and Sunday, but you're going to have weeks like that.

At the end of the day, I had a chance to win on Sunday and that's what you look for, so I'll take the good vibes from that and go from there.

I wish I could pinpoint exactly what happened last weekend. I wish I could say I was thinking ahead. I played really, really good golf for 45 holes. I was in the lead. Then, on that second nine on Saturday, I lost a couple of shots here and there and made a couple of dumb mistakes.

You're going do that over the course of a tournament, but I just did it all at the wrong time. It was unfortunate. I didn't step up on Sunday and play good when I needed to, either. I just made too many mistakes on the weekend to win a golf tournament. Tiger never does that -- he never makes mistakes on the weekend. So it's back to the drawing board and figure something out.

Overall, though, this gives me a ton of confidence. To play that well on a tough golf course in very tough conditions -- a U.S. Open style golf course, really -- is very encouraging. It lets me know that my game is going in the right direction. I had an off putting week and still had a chance on Sunday, so that's something to build on.

If I can get everything going in the right direction, just start putting a little bit better and keep hitting it the way I am, this year could be a lot of fun.

Most of the year, my ballstriking hasn't been where it needs to be. I haven't been able to be aggressive with my short irons. My short game has been saving me a lot in the past, but this year it's been a little off. My chipping, wedge play and sand game haven't been that great so I've been working real hard on them.

I want to be able to try to save some shots there and not put so much pressure on my ball-striking as I typically do. The work is paying off, too, so that's definitely a positive.

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Video: Snedeker on his sophomore campaign
Video: Snedeker tailgates before a Vandy football game
Video: Snedeker takes you on a tour of Nashville

I know, too, that I may be trying a little too hard to live up to what happened last year. I always put a lot more pressure on myself -- more than anybody else does. So I expect better from myself and expect to improve on last year.

I have to realize that it's not necessarily going to show in my results right away. It has to be a continual effort of putting more hard work in and doing the right stuff and hopefully, the results will come. I feel good about the way things are going.

It's been an exciting time for me off the course, too. I got engaged in early November and the wedding plans are in full swing. We are getting married in Nashville on Oct. 18. Mandy was a year ahead of me at Vanderbilt, and we've been dating for six years.

I asked her one morning and then we hopped on a plane at noon, literally, to go to New York City to celebrate. She was totally floored, which was great. I didn't think I was going to be able to surprise her when I finally asked her to marry me -- and I don't think she did, either.

But I did. It was great.

I tell people I must have caught her on an off day, and she said yes. We both love New York. We spent a few days there after I won in Greensboro, too, but I can only handle it for a couple of days. There are just so many people.

As you can tell, I'm not a real fast-paced kind of guy. It's fun to go up there and feel like the city is alive, though. There is so much to do, so many good restaurants, so much to see. We love going there. It was a fun way to relax and celebrate.

It's back to work again this week, though. I am looking forward to it. My ball-striking is good. I played a tough golf course well last week and this will be another good test. I played decent here last year, finished 22nd, and I like the golf course. So there are nothing but positives.

I can't wait to tee it up on Thursday.