Mark Brown has missed the cut in Scotland after shooting a 2-over par 74 in the second round of the Johnnie Walker Championship in Scotland. Brown should take heart from his improved display. In the blustery early morning conditions Brown got off to a poor start missing a short putt for par on the fourth and hitting his ball behind a tree on the fifth to make double bogey. Mark made a solid run of birdies in the middle of the round but really should have eagled the ninth to get himself on a roll. Needing to birdie two of the last four holes to have a chance of playing the weekend Brown missed makeable putts for birdie on 15 and 18 and showed his frustration by hurling his ball onto the practice range in a throw that would make him an adequate substitute fielder for the Black Caps. Mark would be better served spending less time throwing balls/clubs/other equipment and more time working on his putting stroke. Click here for full scores. The circus moves on to Switzerland next week.

Mark Brown described his 1-over par 73 in the first round of the Johnnie Walker Championship as doing “no damage”. After getting off to a fine start in the cloudy and calm conditions racing to 2-under par, Mark knew he had to make the most of the lack of rain. The birdie work wa undone with bogeys on 18 and one but another birdie on two put him back in the red. Sure enough late in the round the rain came, the temperature dropped and the nostril-invading midgies made their presence known. Mark made double bogey from the middle of the fairway when his ball found very thick rough and he took two shots to get out and then missed the putt. Mark’s ball striking was fair and putting reasonable and he will be looking to make the most of the early conditions tomorrow. Leader Paul Lawrie is at 5-under par. Click here for full scores.

I had a really positive week last week in Holland, even though the scores didn’t really show it, it was the best golf I have played in a very long time. After a four week break I quickly got into my stride, playing the first few holes of the tournament beautifully and that continued for the four days. Fairway and GIR stats were really good, the only disappointment was on the greens where I had 29, 33, 31 and 31 for the four days, way too many to be competitive and finished 47th. The golf course was fantastic, it’s a real shame that in Europe we don”t get to play many links courses apart from the British Open, so it was great to play one in Holland, the course got dry and was windy most days and I really enjoyed the challenge of playing lots of different shots. We had a nice time, staying on the beach at Zandvoort, the weeks are quite short in Europe, arriving Tuesday and flying home Sunday night, you don’t really get much time to look around but we do make the effort. Helen had a ladies day on Wednesday, doesn’t happen every week but it’s a good way of meeting people for both of us. And so on to this week, got home late Sunday night, had a glass of New Zealand wine, which is a little tradition on Sunday nights after a tournament, and put all of our clothes in the washing, ready to go again early Tuesday. Today I went to see my physical fitness trainer close by in Weybridge, I saw hime for the first time six weeks ago so was a good chance to see any progress and move on to the next phase. It is really interesting how closely weaknesses in your body are linked to your swing tendencies, in my case very weak and tight glutes which has a massive affect on how your body coils and resists. I also some did some putting practice, much needed! Gleneagles this week, I have heard it rained all last week in Scotland, the course is apparently very wet and muddy, so I hope we get some dry stuff this week. Important shots this week will be driving the ball well, taking some spin off iron shots, and staying patient on the greens that will no doubt be a bit bumpy because they are so soft.

This week we are staying in a castle in Crieff, not too far from the course so hopefully that will be nice, or at least novel. At the moment I am second reserve for the pro am and really hoping I get into it as I played last week’s one and had a good team of amateurs, plus it give me a chance to play another practice round.

Mark Brown has shot a one over par 71 in the final round of the KLM Open in Holland. On another day of ideal conditions, Brown birdied the second and just missed a chance for birdie on three. When the marshals indicated his tee shot on four was fine he strolled down the fairway to learn that his ball could not be found in the rough on the left. After a fruitless search Brown’s head came off as he made double bogey and lost his cool, never properly regaining it for the rest of the round. His ball striking was scratchier than on past days but still markedly improved on past tournaments, yet once again he had little luck on the greens. Birdies on 12 and 13 were followed by a double bogey after having an unplayable lie and incurring a penalty then missing the green and failing to up and down for bogey. Brown fought back strongly in the round with birdies on 16 and 17 and a long par saving putt on 18. Brown will finish in about 48th place but will take a lot out of this week. Click here for full scores. 

Mark Brown had another good round in Holland today with a 2-under par 68 to move to 3-under for the tournament. Brown was once again superb from tee to green and made tap in par after par as once again he hold too few putts. Brown had 31 putts in an otherwise brilliant display in warm and calm conditions at the Kennemer Golf and Country Club. After a bogey start after finding the left rough off the tee, Mark eased into his rhythym with birdies on two and chances on three, four and five. His luck changed as he took his chances on holes six through eight. On the back nine Mark continued his excellent ball striking but failed to capitalise and bogeyed sixteen after finding the right hand rough and failing to up and down from a missed green. Brown’s play is infinitely better than anything seen over the last few months but he needs to keep patient and keep working on his putting. After the round he managed to watch the All Blacks game before a quick lunch and off to the putting green ahead of his first Sunday round of golf since the Wales Open in early June. Click here for full scores, the leader is currently at 9-under par.

Mark Brown himself admits it would be hard to play better tee to green than he has over the last two days, today shooting a 1-over par 71 in the second round of the KLM Open in Holland. Brown’s putter let him down today, with five makeable birdie chances in the last seven holes going begging. Brown, resplendent in the Dutch national colour of orange, played sublimely other than a misjudged wedge on the fifth where he found very thick rough, bashed the ball out and three putted for double bogey. Mark made 14 greens in regulation but 33 putts was way too many on a day when so many chances were there for the taking. He now faces a nervous wait to see if he makes the cut, though realistically he will make it on the number. Should he play the weekend he will be looking to capitalise on the early conditions and make a move on the field. Click here for full scores.

Mark Brown has played what he described as “his best ball striking round of the year” in shooting 2-under par 68 in the first round of the KLM Open at Kennemer Golf and Country Club. Teeing off 10 at 7:30 am, Brown showed patience as he made par after par in the breezy and showery conditions. As he sun came out and the course hotted up so did Brown’s play with birdies on two and three.  Brown hit 12 of 13 fairways in his bogey free round, his only mistake perhaps being his outfit choice of royal blue shirt and white trousers which saw him dressed identically to the marshals. His round was not without drama though as his tee shot on the eighth went left into the rough and Brown had a tough par saving putt. The final hole saw Mark on the on the fairway but flew the green into some ugly rough, causing him to show frustration which had otherwise been absent. He chipped out to five feet and putted out for a solid start to what he is hoping is the first of four rounds here. Click here for all scores.

Hi all, thought it might be a good idea to post something each Monday, some thoughts of the previous week and a look forward to the week ahead.

This week’s event: the KLM Open near Amsterdam.

It has been a bit of a strange time of year, I decided that after playing a lot of events leading up to the British Open that it would be a good chance to have a break of 4 weeks mid season, missing 2 regular ET events and also 2 events in America that I hadn’t qualified for anyway (Bridgestone and the USPGA).  Just a chance to freshen up, take a physical and mental break, even though I should be fresh given that I wasn’t playing a lot of weekends anyway!  I had been through a real rough patch missing 7 of 8 cuts, through the biggest stretch of European events so it was time for a bit of reflection.

I spent some time on fitness work with a trainer here in London, something that I had neglected for a while and that has been beneficial, doing a lot of core and glute work, just stuff that helps in the functioning of a golf swing.  I also tried to put a lot of time into my short game which I see as the biggest area I can improve on for the rest of the season.  It has also been a very difficult time emotionally making the decision to part with Mal (see story) so there has been an adjustment there as well.  Helen and I also managed to fit in holidays to Poland and Spain in which was much needed, in Spain I was introduced to the all inclusive hotel stay, not good for the waistline!

Coming back after a long break is interesting, I am definitely keen and ready to go, but I know from experience it will take a while to get back into action, just mental and scoring areas that need to get sharp.  I have heard the course this week is excellent, a links style course, demanding off the tee and with wind a factor, sounds great.  I am the type of player where if I get some confidence early on I am away, so I will be looking for a solid start, knock in a few putts and ease into it, can’t wait.

Talk to you next Monday

Browny

Mark Brown and his coach Mal Tongue have parted ways after 19 years. Mark has paid tribute to Mal by thanking him for his years of dedication and advice. “Mal has been a tremendous influence on my golfing career, taking me from a skinny 15 year old to winning on the European Tour. I can never thank him enough for the immense amount of time and effort he has given me, as well as being a good friend.” Brown says, “It has proven difficult being on the other side of the world from Mal for long periods so I felt it was time for a change.” Mark wishes Mal every success in his future endeavours.