The heat and light of playing in the big show definitely got to The Links of GlenEagles head pro Kevin Graf.
Playing his way into the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada event in a two-round playdown between four course pros for the host exemption spot, Graf shot 7-over 77 in the opening round Aug. 30 to pretty much put himself out of contention on a course he’s played for eight years.
“The nerves definitely got the best of me, there,” he chuckled out front of GlenEagles pro shop as the ATB Financial Classic wrapped up Aug 2. “It was pretty cool having all my family and friends around me. But I was definitely pretty nervous.”
Obviously, it’s one thing to hit the ball around the track and quite another to do it under big-time tournament conditions.
“It’s incredible. I play the course a lot,” Graf said. “But to play it with all of their (tournament) stuff up here and playing it with other pros and a gallery, it was altogether just such a cool experience.”
And, in the end, it was the money stick that abandoned him.
“I actually hit the ball pretty well on Thursday. I was hitting it OK,” he recalled. “The putter let me down on Thursday.”
He finished 11-over (77-74-151), missing the cut by 14.
“The score didn’t matter much to me,” he insisted. “Just the experience, it was incredible.”
