Mike Weir Blog: Back in the right direction

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Editor's Note: Canadian Mike Weir will be providing a blog for PGATOUR.COM following each round of the RBC Canadian Open. Below is the first installment.

There's not a bigger week on the calendar for me than this one, the RBC Canadian Open. This is a major, my national championship and a tournament I look forward to more than any other.

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And this year, I have to admit to being very excited about what's going on here at Glen Abbey. After last year, when there were so many question marks about the future of the tournament, it's great to see the support that has surfaced. The changes are clear just about everywhere you go -- talking to other players, the volunteers, the media, the look to the course. . . you really feel this tournament is once again headed in the right direction.

I've been especially pleased that the RCGA and RBC have involved the Canadian players in getting a sense of what the tournament needs to grow to the next level. They've approached us and asked what needs to be done and that's a refreshing change. We've had a number of conversations about what we think needs to be done and it's clear they've listened.

One of the first things we all said was that the tournament needs to move around to some of the classic Canadian courses. I had a chance to play St. George's on Monday and I thought it was very good. I think they might need to make a few subtle changes before 2010 when the Open is there, especially to a couple of the greens, but overall it's going to be a course that will appeal to a lot of people and word will spread on the TOUR about its quality.

That round at St. George's was part of a busy week for me. On Monday night, I attended the SCOREGolf Awards to accept the male touring pro award for 2007. It's something I've won before as both a pro and back when I was an amateur and it's always a great honor and a nice evening that pays tribute to a lot of great people in Canadian golf. It was a great chance to see a lot of old friends and I'm glad it's become a part of RBC Canadian Open week. It's a good fit.

Tuesday, I really just recharged my batteries after a long week at the British Open and Wednesday I played in the pro-am at the Abbey, hardly getting my round in before the rain came.

The course is in great condition, even better than when I was here a month ago. Of course, with all the rain, it's quite wet and playing long. That's always a bit of a double-edged sword in that you have to deal with the added length but it's easier to attack the pins knowing that the greens will hold.

For that reason, the winner this week is going to be the person who drives the ball in the fairway. The rough here is very thick and with it being wet, you're not going to bounce the ball very far.

The last time the Open was here, of course, I came close to winning. While it didn't work out for me that week, I do still have a lot of positive memories about shots I hit and holes I played. When I was playing in the pro-am, I thought of a lot of those good shots. I was even asking Brennan if he remembered a putt I made on this hole or a chip I played on that hole. I'll draw on those positive memories a bit this week.

Of course you can't have an Open without someone asking when a Canadian is going to win this thing. I'm confident it's going to happen one day, maybe this year or maybe sometime in the future. But a lot of things have to come together for that to work out. It's tough enough to win any week on the PGA TOUR. You really can't have any weakness in your game and putting it all together at the right time is a bit like trying to catch lightning in a bottle. Still, I'm sure that it will happen. I hope that I'm able to do it, but if it's not me then I hope one of the other 18 Canadians in the field this week manages to pull it off. There couldn't be a better story for Canadian golf and for the RBC Canadian Open.

Overall, I'm feeling very good about my game, about the way I'm playing and especially about this tournament. Now, if we can just get the rain to stop, it would be perfect!

As always, thanks for your support.
Mike