Out on Tour with Jasper: Favorite pro-ams this season

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Jasper may not be seeing results on the course, but he does rank 7th in putts per round on Tour.

Editor's note: During the season one of our Nationwide Tour bloggers will check in with a quick note about how their season is going and what life is like out on the road with the Nationwide Tour. This week's player blog is from Shawn Jasper, who is in his rookie season on Tour after picking up his card at Qualifying School. He's a 2007 graduate of the University of Missouri and previously played on the Canadian Tour.

Well my first year on the Nationwide Tour continues to be a learning curve. I still have yet to make a cut, though I have been much closer as of late. I am learning a lot about my mental make-up this year and so far I am proud of my positive outlook despite all the negative results.

I can see the progress in what Pol and I are working on -- continuing to get the handle left through impact and get my arms lower at the top of my swing to help with getting the handle more left. I know it's getting better because I am hitting more solid irons and driving it straighter. I have also been able to develop a "go to" low-cut shot again, something I feel is essential to playing good golf, especially under the gun. I was even fortunate enough to achieve my first competitive hole-in-one as a professional on the fourth hole at Thornblade during the second round of the BMW Charity Pro-Am. PW from 130....swish!

While on the course I have not had a great year thus far, off the course I have had a lot of cool experiences. Being the big St. Louis Cardinals fan that I am, it was really nice to be able to go watch my Redbirds play their rival Cincinnati Reds while we were at the Chiquita Classic. And yes, I was that guy who wore a Cardinals jersey to a Reds home game. And yes, the Cardinals won the night I went! I also was able to go catch an Orioles game while we were in DC for the Melwood Prince George's County Open. Both the stadiums in Baltimore and Cinci were great places to watch a baseball game.

This year I have also been able to participate in a few pro-ams at various events and cities along the road. A couple stand out in mind.

The Zach Johnson Foundation Classic Celebrity Pro-Am was one of the coolest events I have played in. (You can watch a video about it here.) It was an honor to tee it up with Ryder Cuppers Rickie Fowler, Stewart Cink, Davis Love II and Johnson. I can't wait until I get to the point in my career that I am playing week-in and week-out with them. There were thousands of spectators, who got to be really close to the action as the ropes were near the fairways and greens. And we were also giving out as may autographs as we could. I went through a couple sharpies that day! That may have been my favorite part -- seeing all the kids out watching and the pure joy they had from us stopping to talk to them and sign their cap or a ball or a ticket. To be able to make a kid's day like that is what makes it a true statement to say I am living the dream.

The Tuesday of the Rex Hospital Open, there was a ladies pro-am. Golfers were auctioned off Sunday night to the highest bidder. It was a fun and creative way to raise money for the Breast Cancer Society in the area. The ladies were all good golfers, but more importantly, they didn't take the pro-am too seriously. We had a ton of fun on the course and really enjoyed the day. I think that actually led to our group shooting a fairly decent score. It truly was an experience I will never forget!